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UCF's doctoral program in computer science is designed to attract students who are qualified and show the greatest potential for meeting current as well as projected demands of the market existing within the state and Southeast region of the nation. This includes students holding a baccalaureate degree with sufficient knowledge in computer science and those students holding a Master's degree in computer science, engineering, mathematics or an allied field. The objectives of the program are to provide professionals trained at the highest possible academic level in theory and practice, with proven abilities for innovative research and instruction in computer science and to produce individuals with an expertise suitable for positions in industry, academia and government. We also wish to provide a service to those individuals desiring to expand their knowledge beyond the Master's level in an attempt to stay abreast of recent advances and technology in computer science, but not necessarily seeking a doctoral degree. Students successfully completing this program will have exhibited breadth as well as depth of capability involving both theoretical aspects of computer science and practical considerations of computing. The program demands breadth of knowledge in fundamentals of computer science, depth in an area of specialty in the discipline, and the creativity necessary to produce a dissertation advancing this body of knowledge.
Required CoursesAll students planning to enter the doctoral program must take and receive an A or B in each of the following courses or their equivalents:Research CommitteePotential Ph.D. students will be assigned an advisor upon program entry. The formation of a research committee should occur as soon as the student has identified a potential research area. The committee consists of at most five faculty members; three of whom must be computer science graduate faculty and at least one of whom must be from outside the college. The student must work in close cooperation with the Research Committee chairperson to formulate a research problem for his/her candidacy examination.
Ph.D. Qualifying ExaminationsThe Ph.D. Qualifying Examination requirements in Computer Science consist of two parts: 1) The written examination will consist of one question from each of the subjects listed below (in four groups.)Student's will be required to answer correctly a total of four (4) questions out of the set of all questions that will be given at the exam. The student is free to select the questions he/she chooses to answer. The necessary background is a strong working knowledge of the area at the undergraduate level. 2) The research requirement of the Qualifying Examination is meant to demonstrate the student's ability to conduct research and write the result he/she obtained in the form of a publication. This will be typically done in collaboration with the student's advisor. It is expected that this requirement will be fulfilled no more than 12 to 18 months after entrance into the Ph.D. program.The Ph.D. program has three required courses: CDA 5106 - Architecture, COT 5310 - Formal Languages and Automata Theory, and COT 5405 - Design and Analysis of Algorithms. Upon passing Qualifying Exams, a student may be asked by the graduate committee and advisor to take coursework in those areas in which his/her performance was judged as marginal and/or in areas that the student did not choose to answer questions. The Qualifying Exams will be offered once in each of the fall and spring terms at a date to be announced in the prior term. The graduate committee will assign two or three faculty members to each group who are responsible for creating the questions for that group and seeing that questions answered are properly graded and reported to the graduate committee. Students are given two successive opportunities to pass the written exams in their entirety. Passing the Qualifying Examinations constitutes formal admission into the Ph.D. program.
Plan of StudyFollowing admission to the Ph.D. program, the student, in conjunction with his/her major advisor and research committee, formulates a plan of study, consisting of a minimum of fifty-seven semester hours of graduate coursework and independent study credit and at least fifteen hours of dissertation, CXX 7980. The student must maintain a GPA of 3.5 in all of the advanced graduate-level courses. The plan of study must contain:Note: Course outside Computer Science must be pre-approved by a faculty advisor in order for a student to receive credit. Candidacy ExaminationThe candidacy examination is taken when the student has finished most of the course work and has identified an area of research for the doctoral dissertation. The examination should be taken within two years of passing the qualifying examination. The examination consists of two parts: The written examination is graded as satisfactory or unsatisfactory. The presentation of the dissertation prospectus must justify the originality and the significance of the proposed research.Upon successful completion of the written examination and the acceptance of the prospectus, the student is declared a candidate for the doctoral degree in computer science. Dissertation hours, CXX 7980, cannot be taken until this examination is passed.
Dissertation and Oral DefenseEach student must write a dissertation on his or her research that describes a significant and original contribution to the field of computer science. The dissertation must be in a format specified by the Office of Graduate Studies. A copy of the manuscript must be presented to the Office of Graduate Studies for approval of the format and editorial characteristics at least three weeks before the oral defense of the thesis. This is referred to as first deposit of the thesis and must be made before the first deposit deadline as specified by the Office of Graduate Studies. At this time, a date for the oral defense must be established for public announcement. The oral defense of the dissertation is administered by the Research Committee which makes a critical inquiry into the work reported in the dissertation and into the areas of knowledge that are immediately relevant to the research. All members vote on acceptance or rejection of the dissertation. The dissertation must be approved by a majority of the Committee and a pass/fail report will be submitted to the Office of Graduate studies by the Committee.Milestones for the Ph.D. degreeProgression through the Doctoral program proceeds in the following steps:Miscellaneous
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