A total of 90 credit hours of graduate-level coursework is required for the Ph.D. in Computer Science at Indiana Univeristy’s Luddy School of Informatics, Computing, and Engineering in Indianapolis.
Ph.D. candidates must take at least 24 credit hours of courses in computer science at or above the 500 level. Courses for nonmajors (CSCI-A) do not count.
Six courses, from the list below, must be completed each with a minimum grade of B:
Foundations of Computing
Select at least one.
- CSCI-B 501 Theory of Computing
- CSCI-B 502 Computational Complexity
- CSCI-B 503 Algorithms Design and Analysis
Computer Systems
Select at least one.
- CSCI-B 534 Distributed Systems
- CSCI-P 536 Advanced Operating Systems
- CSCI-P 538 Computer Networks
Select at least one from either 3 or 4
Programming Languages
- CSCI-B 521 Programming Language Principles
- CSCI-B 522 Programming Language Foundations
- CSCI-P 523 Programming Language Implementation
Intelligent Systems
- CSCI-B 551 Elements of Artificial Intelligence
- CSCI-B 555 Machine Learning
- CSCI-B 561 Advanced Database Concepts
- CSCI-B 565 Data Mining
A grade average of B (3.0) is required for the 24 credit hours of required computer science courses. In addition, the Graduate School requires a B (3.0) average in all courses taken.
Minor Area Requirement
The Ph.D. requires a 12-credit minor unless the student is a dual major with another department. There are two options to satisfy the minor requirement:
- An external Ph.D. minor awarded by another IU graduate program on campus that the Computer Science program approves, chosen from the list of approved minors inthe graduate bulletin. Appropriate options include Applied Data Science, Applied Statistics, Biostatistics, and Human-Computer Interaction, among others. Requirements are set by the department or program offering the minor.
- An individualized Ph.D. minor: at least 12 credit hours from two or more IU programs outside of computer science. An individualized minor requires approval from the Dean of the Graduate School, based on the recommendation of the student's advisory committee, before any of the courses are taken.
Qualifying Examination
The qualifying examination is given before the first semester of the student’s third year in the program. This examination is administered by the advisory committee and is expected to have a written and an oral component. The written exam covers the program's core courses.
The oral exam takes place shortly after students pass the written exam. It is based on their responses to the written exam and the content of the core courses. Both the written and the oral exams are prepared and evaluated by faculty members in the department who are familiar with the core curriculum.
A student must have completed the 24 credit hours of courses in computer science before taking the qualifying exam. Students must pass both the written and oral exams to advance to candidacy. They may retake either the written or oral exam one, but not both, if they do not pass that part on the first attempt.
Dissertation
A dissertation is a written elaboration of original research that makes creative contributions to each student’s chosen area of specialization. Students will enroll multiple times in CSCI-Y 890 Thesis Readings and Research (1–12 cr.) while completing their dissertations. All requirements must be completed within seven years of passing the qualifying examinations. The dissertation process includes the following components:
- Proposal: This is an in-depth oral review undertaken by students who have made significant progress in their research. Students must publicly defend their proposal within one year of passing the qualifying exams. The defense is open to the public, after which the committee deliberates in private.
- Dissertation defense: Students must publicly defend their dissertations when their doctoral research is almost complete. Like the proposal defense, this presentation is open to the public, followed by a closed committee discussion.