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Dec 21, 2024
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2023-2024 Undergraduate Catalog [ARCHIVED CATALOG]
Computer Science, B.S.
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Admission Requirements
Any student may declare a CS major or minor, but students may enroll in CS courses beyond CS 149, CS 159 and CS 227/ CS 227 only if they are fully admitted to the CS major or minor. Full admission to the major or minor is granted as described below.
- Students who have attempted CS 149, CS 159 or CS 227/MATH 227 at JMU may not attempt them elsewhere (that is, they must make any second attempts at JMU).
- Students must submit an application for full admission to the CS major or minor no earlier than the semester in which they complete CS 159.
- Students with a GPA of 3.0 or better in CS 149 and CS 159, and who have attempted CS 159 only once, are guaranteed full admission to the major or minor. Others will be granted full admission to the CS major or minor as space permits based on their GPA in CS 149 and CS 159 and faculty evaluation of their potential to succeed in the CS major or minor.
- Students who have completed the CS minor may apply for full admission to the CS major no earlier than the semester in which they complete the last course in the CS minor.
- CS minors with a GPA of 3.0 or higher in the CS minor will be fully admitted to the CS major; others will be admitted as space permits based on their minor GPA.
- Students will be notified of their CS major or minor admission status no later than January 1st for admission in the spring semester (following application the previous fall semester), and no later than May 31st for admission in the fall semester (following application the previous spring semester).
- Students who are not granted full admission to the CS major or minor may file one additional application in the next regular semester after they are denied admission.
Transfer students who have completed the equivalent of CS 159 (or for whom this class is waived) are granted full admission to the CS major or minor. Other transfer students are subject to same process as non-transfer students. Progressing in the Major
Students may enroll in each of CS 149 , CS 159 , CS 240 and CS 261 at most twice. Most CS courses require a minimum grade of “C-” (minimum of “B-” in CS 149 ) in prerequisite courses, including those taken in the Department of Mathematics and Statistics . Students must achieve a minimum cumulative grade point average of 2.0 in all courses used to satisfy CS major degree requirements.
Degree and Major Requirements
| Degree Requirements |
Credit Hours |
| General Education 1 |
41 |
| Quantitative requirement (in addition to General Education ) |
3 |
| Major requirements (listed below) |
49-52 |
University electives
Total
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24-27
120
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Footnote
1 The General Education program contains a set of requirements each student must fulfill. Some credits may be fulfilled by courses required within the major.
Choose one introductory discrete math course: 3 Credit Hours
Choose one calculus sequence: 4-6 Credit Hours
Choose one statistics course: 3-4 Credit Hours
Choose one algorithms course: 3 Credit Hours
Choose one systems elective: 3 Credit Hours
Major Requirements Total: 49-52 Credit Hours
Additional Information
The credit/no-credit option may not be applied to any courses specifically listed above, nor may that option be applied to computer science electives Certificates
Periodically, the department may offer a collection of two or more advanced courses in a particular area of study. Students successfully completing those courses will obtain a certificate in that area of study. Examples of possible certificate programs include networking, software engineering and information security. U.S. Government Requirements for Computer Scientists
The U.S. government standard for occupational category GS- 1550: Computer Science Series includes a requirement of 15 hours in statistics and mathematics including differential and integral calculus. This means that students considering a career as a computer scientist with the U.S. government (including DoD, NASA, etc.) must complete more math courses than the minimum requirement for a B.S. degree. Recommended calculus sequences for these students are MATH 235 -MATH 236 or MATH 231 - MATH 232 -MATH 236 . However, only the U.S. Office of Personnel Management can give final approval of individual qualifications. Sample Plan of Study for Majors
This is just an illustration of a path through our curriculum.
First Year - Fall Semester
First Year - Fall Semester Total: 15 Credit Hours
First Year - Spring Semester
First Year - Spring Semester Total: 15 Credit Hours
First Year Total: 30 Credit Hours
Second Year - Fall Semester
Second Year - Fall Semester Total: 15 Credit Hours
Second Year - Spring Semester
Second Year - Spring Semester Total: 15 Credit Hours
Second Year Total: 30 Credit Hours
Third Year - Fall Semester
Third Year - Fall Semester Total: 15 Credit Hours
Third Year - Spring Semester
Third Year - Spring Semester Total: 15 Credit Hours
Third Year Total: 30 Credit Hours
Fourth Year - Fall Semester
- CS Algorithm Elective Credits: 3.00
- CS Elective Credits: 3.00
- Elective Credits: 9.00
Fourth Year - Fall Semester Total: 15 Credit Hours
Fourth Year - Spring Semester
- CS Electives Credits: 6.00
- Elective Credits: 9.00
Fourth Year - Spring Semester Total: 15 Credit Hours
Fourth Year Total: 30 Credit Hours
Footnotes
1 Many students opt to take the two-course calculus sequence ( MATH 231 and MATH 232 ), but if you have the appropriate ALEKS score, you could take MATH 235 to fullfil your calculus requirement.
2 Many students opt to take Elementary Statistics ( MATH 220 ) to fullfil our statistics requirement, but we have two other course options: MATH 229 or MATH 318 .
Program Total: 120 Credit Hours
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