Computer Science Program
Dr. Bill Pierson, Division Chair (e-mail)
Program Description
The Bachelor of Science in Computer Science program prepares students for careers in computer science through learning based on practice and grounded in theory. Students learn how to analyze, design, build, test, and deploy computer based systems by making technical trade offs between performance, scalability, availability, reliability, security, maintainability, cost and societal impact. Marshall's computing facilities are state-of-the-art and readily available to students.
This degree program is jointly offered by the College of Science (COS) and the College of Information Technology and Engineering (CITE). For administrative purposes, student applications and records are housed in CITE.
Admission and Transfer Criteria
The minimum requirements for admission into the Computer Science major for first time freshmen are:
- an ACT composite score of 21 (SAT 980) and
- an ACT mathematics score of 23 (MTH SAT 540).
The minimum requirements for admission into the Computer Science major for transfer students, whether from within Marshall University or from another institution, are:
- 15 earned semester credit hours of college-level coursework,
- an overall Grade Point Average of at least 2.5 in all college-level coursework,
- completion of ENG 101 (or equivalent) with a grade of C, and
- completion of MTH 132, or MTH 127/130 and MTH 122 (or equivalent) with a grade of C.
Because enrollment may be limited, prospective students are encouraged to apply for admission as soon as possible and are urged to contact a faculty advisor.
For those desiring to major in computer sciences who do not meet the admission or transfer criteria listed above:
- Students may be admitted as a Pre-Computer Science major with a minimum ACT composite of 19 (SAT composite 900) and an ACT mathematics score of 19-22 (Math SAT 460-530). Transfer students must be eligible for MTH 127/130 - College Algebra and MTH 122 - Plane Trigonometry.
Students in Pre-Computer Science must complete the criteria for transfer students to Computer Science. Registration for Computer Science courses will be limited once transfer criteria are met.
B.S. Degree Requirements
The B.S. degree program requires 128 credit hours (CH) of coursework. Students are advised to pay careful attention to Marshall Plan requirements; please consult an advisor. The general degree requirements of the Colleges of Science and Information Technology and Engineering are superseded by the requirements outlined below (all courses are 3 CH except where indicated):
A. Program General Requirements (70-73 CH)
I. Orientation (1 CH)
Choose one of the following:
- UNI 101: New Student Seminar (1 CH)
- HON 101: New Student Seminar Honors (1 CH)
II. General Education (30 CH)
The Marshall Plan requires students to complete one Multicultural course, two International courses, and one Writing Intensive course. When developing a plan of study, we suggest taking an International course that also qualifies as a Writing Intensive course.
1 Communications (12 CH)
The following courses are required:
- Choose one of the following three options for meeting the English Composition requirement:
- ENG 101 - English Composition I (3 hrs) and ENG 102 - English Composition II (3 hrs)
- ENG 101 - English Composition I (3 hrs) and ENG 302 - Research Intensive Writing (3 hrs)
- ENG 201H - English Composition Honors (6 hrs)
- ENG 354 - Scientific and Technical Writing (3 hrs)
- CMM 103 - Fundamentals of Speech Communication (3 hrs)
2 Humanities, the Arts, and Literature (9 hrs)
The following courses are required:
Humanities: one course in Classics, Philosophy, or Religious Studies. (PHL 200: Introduction to Philosophy: Ancient Period is recommended.)
The Arts: one course from the following:
- ART 112 - Introduction to Visual Arts I (3 hrs)
- MUS 142 -: Appreciation of Music I (3 hrs)
- THE 112 -Theater Appreciation I (3 hrs)
Literature: one course from the following:
- Classics:
CL 230 - Ancient Greek and Roman Epic (3 hrs)
CL 231 - Women in Greek and Roman Literature (3 hrs)
CL 232 - Ancient Greek and Roman Drama (3 hrs)
CL 233 - Greek and Roman Historians (3 hrs)
CL 234 - Greek and Roman Poetry (3 hrs) - any English 300 or 400 level literature course except:
ENG 302 - Research-based Composition (3 hrs)
ENG 353 -
ENG 360 - Introduction to Creative Writing (3 hrs)
ENG 377 - Creative Writing: Poetry (3 hrs)
ENG 378 - Creative Writing: Fiction (3 hrs)
ENG 402 - Pre-professional Composition and Rhetoric (3 hrs)
ENG 408 - Advanced Expository Writing (3 hrs)
ENG 444 - Rendering the Landscape (3 hrs)
ENG 491 - Creative Writing: Poetry Workshop (3 hrs)
ENG 492 - Creative Writing: Fiction Workshop (3 hrs) - any 300 or 400 level French, German, Latin, or Spanish literature course.
3 Social Sciences (9 hrs)
Choose three courses, but no more than one course from each area:
- Geography: any course
- History: any course
- Political Science: any course
- Psychology: any course
Note: PSY 201 - General Psychology is recommended - Sociology/Anthropology: any course except
SOC 344 - Social Research I (3 hrs) or
SOC 345 - Social Statistics I (3 hrs) or
SOC 445 - Social Statistics II (3 hrs)
III. Mathematics (18 CH)
The following courses are required:
- MTH 220 - Discrete Structures (3 hrs)
- MTH 229 - Calculus with Analytic Geometry I (5 hrs)
- MTH 230 - Calculus with Analytic Geometry II (4 hrs)
- MTH 329 - Elementary Linear Algebra (3 hrs)
- MTH 345 - Applied Probability and Statistics (3 hrs)
IV. Science (12-15 CH)
Choose three of the following, including one two semester sequence (BSC 120-121, CHM 211/217 and 212/218, or either PHY 201/202 and 203/204 or PHY 211/202 and 213/204):
- BSC 120 - Principles of Biology I (4 hrs)
- BSC 121 - Principles of Biology II (4 hrs)
- CHM 211 - Principles of Chemistry I (3 hrs) and
CHM 217 - Principles of Chemistry Lab I (2 hrs) - CHM 212 - Principles of Chemistry I (3 hrs) and
CHM 218 - Principles of Chemistry Lab II (2 hrs) - GLY 200 - Physical Geology (3 hrs) and
GLY 210L - Earth Materials Lab (1 hr) - Either (PHY 201: General Physics (3 hrs) or PHY 211: Principles of Physics (4 hrs)) and PHY 202: General Physics Lab (1 hr)
- Either (PHY 203: General Physics (3 hrs) or PHY 213: Principles of Physics (4 hrs)) and PHY 204: General Physics Lab (1 hr)
V. Business (9 hrs)
The following courses are required:
- ENGR 221 - Engineering Economy (3 hrs)
- MGT 320 - Principles of Management I (3 hrs)
- ACC 215 - Principles of Accounting I (3 hrs)
B. Computer Science Core (40 hrs)
The following courses are required (professional ethics and social responsibility topics are discussed in CS 490 and CS 491.):
- CS 110 - Computer Science I (3 hrs)
- CS 120 - Computer Science II (3 hrs)
- ENGR 204 - Introduction to Digital Systems (4 hrs)
- CS 210 - Algorithm Analysis and Design (3 hrs)
- CS 300 - Programming Languages (3 hrs)
- CS 305 - Software Engineering I (3 hrs)
- CS 310 - Software Engineering II (3 hrs)
- CS 320 - Internetworking (3 hrs)
- CS 330 - Operating Systems (3 hrs)
- CS 340 - Cyber Security (3 hrs)
- CS 350 - Database Engineering (3 hrs)
- CS 490 - Senior Project I (3 hrs)
- CS 491 - Senior Project II (Capstone) (3 hrs)
C. Computer Science Electives (minimum 6 hrs)
Choose two of the following electives:
- CS 315 - Software Quality Assurance (3 hrs)
- CS 370 - Computer Graphics (3 hrs)
- CS 420 - Distributed Systems (3 hrs)
- CS 440 - Image Processing (3 hrs)
- CS 455 - Systems Engineering (3 hrs)
- CS 460 - Multimedia Systems (3 hrs)
- CS 475 - Internship (3-12 hrs)
- CS 480-483 - Special Topics (1-4 hrs)
- CS 485-488 - Independent Study (1-4 hrs)
D. Free Electives (6-12 hrs)
Students may choose additional CS courses, Liberal Arts courses, courses towards a minor, or any other courses according to personal preference.
Sample Curriculum Plans
The following plans are samples; please consult an advisor when creating your own plan of study. The first sample assumes a Math ACT score of 23 to 26 making MTH 132 - Pre-Calculus with Science Applications a required course.
Plan 1 (Math ACT 23-26 or above)
Freshman Year | |||||
| Fall Semester | Spring Semester | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CS 110 - Computer Science I | 3 | CS 120 - Computer Science II | 3 | ||
| ENG 101 - English Composition I | 3 | ENG 102 - English Composition II | 3 | ||
| MTH 132 - Pre-Calculus with Science Applications | 5 | MTH 220 - Discrete Structures | 3 | ||
| Social Science | 3 | MTH 229 - Calculus with Analytic Geometry I | 5 | ||
| UNI 101 - New Student Seminar | 1 | Social Science | 3 | ||
| Total | 15 | Total | 17 | ||
Sophomore Year | |||||
| Fall Semester | Spring Semester | ||||
| CS 210 - Algorithm Analysis and Design | 3 | CS 300 - Programming Languages | 3 | ||
| ENG 354 - Scientific and Technical Writing | 3 | ENGR 204 - Introduction to Digital Systems | 4 | ||
| MTH 230 - Calculus with Analytic Geometry II | 4 | MTH 329 - Elementary Linear Algebra | 3 | ||
| Arts | 3 | Science | 4 | ||
| Science | 3 | Social Science | 3 | ||
| Total | 16 | Total | 17 | ||
Junior Year | |||||
| Fall Semester | Spring Semester | ||||
| CS 305 - Software Engineering I | 3 | CS 310 - Software Engineering II | 3 | ||
| CS 320 - Internetworking | 3 | CS 340 - Cyber Security | 3 | ||
| CS 330 - Operating Systems | 3 | CS 350 - Database Engineering | 3 | ||
| MTH 345 - Applied Probability and Statistics | 3 | CMM 103 - Fundamentals of Speech Communication | 3 | ||
| Science | 4 | ENGR 221 - Engineering Economy | 3 | ||
| Literature | 3 | ||||
| Total | 16 | Total | 18 | ||
Senior Year | |||||
| Fall Semester | Spring Semester | ||||
| ACC 215 - Principles of Accounting I | 3 | CS 491 - Senior Project II | 3 | ||
| CS 490 - Senior Project I | 3 | CS Elective | 3 | ||
| MGT 320 - Principles of Management I | 3 | Free Elective | 3 | ||
| CS Elective | 3 | Free Elective | 3 | ||
| Humanities | 3 | Free Elective | 4 | ||
| Total | 15 | Total | 15 | ||
Plan 2 (Math ACT 27 or above)
Freshman Year |
|||||
| Fall Semester | Spring Semester | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CS 110 - Computer Science I | 3 | CS 120 - Computer Science II | 3 | ||
| ENG 101 - English Composition I | 3 | ENG 102 - English Composition II | 3 | ||
| MTH 229 - Calculus with Analytic Geometry I | 5 | MTH 220 - Discrete Structures | 3 | ||
| Social Science | 3 | MTH 230 - Calculus with Analytic Geometry II | 4 | ||
| UNI 101 - New Student Seminar | 1 | Social Science | 3 | ||
| Total | 15 | Total | 16 | ||
Sophomore Year |
|||||
| Fall Semester | Spring Semester | ||||
| CS 210 - Algorithm Analysis and Design | 3 | CS 300 - Programming Languages | 3 | ||
| ENG 354 - Scientific and Technical Writing | 3 | ENGR 204 - Introduction to Digital Systems | 4 | ||
| MTH 345 - Applied Probability and Statistics | 3 | MTH 329 - Elementary Linear Algebra | 3 | ||
| Arts | 3 | Science | 4 | ||
| Science | 4 | Social Science | 3 | ||
| Total | 16 | Total | 17 | ||
Junior Year |
|||||
| Fall Semester | Spring Semester | ||||
| CS 305 - Software Engineering I | 3 | ACC 215 - Principles of Accounting I | 3 | ||
| CS 320 - Internetworking | 3 | CS 310 - Software Engineering II | 3 | ||
| CS 330 - Operating Systems | 3 | CS 350 - Database Engineering | 3 | ||
| Humanities/Literature | 3 | CMM 103 - Fundamentals of Speech Communication | 3 | ||
| Science | 4 | ENGR 221 - Engineering Economy | 3 | ||
| Free Elective | 3 | ||||
| Total | 16 | Total | 18 | ||
Senior Year |
|||||
| Fall Semester | Spring Semester | ||||
| CS 340 - Cyber Security | 3 | CS 491 - Senior Project II | 3 | ||
| CS 490 - Senior Project I | 3 | CS Elective | 3 | ||
| MGT 320 - Principles of Management I | 3 | Free Elective | 3 | ||
| CS Elective | 3 | Free Elective | 3 | ||
| Humanities/Literature | 3 | Free Elective | 4 | ||
| Total | 15 | Total | 15 | ||
Curriculum Sheet
Here is a curriculum sheet (PDF format) that recaps the above information.
Computer Literacy
The Marshall Plan computer competency requirement is met by CS110 and CS120.
Minor in Computer Science
A student may be awarded a minor in Computer Science by completing a minimum of 15 credit hours that include the following courses:
- CS 110 - Computer Science I (3 hrs)
- CS 120 - Computer Science II (3 hrs)
- CS 210 - Algorithm Analysis and Design (3 hrs)
- any two CS courses at the 300- or 400-level (6 hrs)
Please consult your advisor for more information.
Program-Related Links
www.acm.org - Association for Computing Machinery
www.computer.org - IEEE Computer Society