Program Overview

Bachelor’s-to-Master’s in Computer Science

The Bachelor’s-to-Master’s in Computer Science program is a linked bachelor’s and master’s degree program designed for highly qualified students. This program, typically completed in four-and-a-half to five years, aims to equip students with the ability to analyze problems that require computation and design and implement appropriate problem solutions that are efficient and effective. Students will possess a broad mastery of in-depth knowledge of computer science, across theory, software, systems, and applications.

Program Structure

• Students in this bachelor’s-to-master’s program must complete all bachelor’s degree requirements before enrolling as master’s students, although they may take graduate courses while enrolled as undergraduates.
• Students must register for and earn a minimum of 24 units while enrolled as master’s students.
• Students may apply up to 8 units (500 level or above) from the undergraduate degree to the master’s degree, with the restriction that no computer science course that is applied to the undergraduate major may be applied to the requirements for the master’s degree.
• The bachelor’s degree is conferred by the College of Arts & Sciences and the master’s degree is conferred by the Graduate School of Arts & Sciences.

Learning Outcomes

The learning outcomes of this program consist of the combined outcomes of the undergraduate BA in Computer Science and graduate MS in Computer Science courses. These outcomes include:

• Understanding and evaluating the organization, design, and construction of hardware and software systems for computing.
• Attaining a level of mathematical ability allowing the student to formally abstract and analyze computational processes.
• Analyzing problems that require computation to answer as well as designing and implementing appropriate problem solutions that are efficient and effective.
• Possessing a broad mastery of in-depth knowledge of computer science across theory, software, systems, and applications.

Requirements

• Students must complete all requirements for the BA in Computer Science and all requirements for the MS in Computer Science.
• Students may apply up to 8 units from the undergraduate degree toward the MS. However, courses that fulfill the requirements for the Computer Science major may not be counted toward the MS; students must take elective courses beyond the BA requirements to count them toward the MS.

Admission

• Information about application requirements and deadlines for bachelor’s-to-master’s programs can be found through the Graduate School of Arts & Sciences.
• Students must have a cumulative grade point average of 3.5 in computer science with an overall average of 3.0.
• Seniors may not apply to the Bachelor’s-to-Master’s program.

Accreditation

Boston University is accredited by the New England Commission of Higher Education (NECHE).