The number of hours for the graduate degree as described in this web page will be effective in Summer 2018.
In all majors, a student must complete thirty semester hours in computer science courses numbered 5000 or above, including approved CIS 5930 and CIS 6930. At most, one course outside the department at the 5000 or 6000 levels can also count towards the 30 hours if approved by the department chair after the major professor justifies why the outside course is important for the student’s research. Supervised teaching, supervised research, seminars, directed individual study, internship, and courses with prefix CGS are excluded.
For the Computer Science major, at least one course from each of the following three core areas must be taken to satisfy the area requirements:
Software
- COP 5570 Concurrent, Parallel, and Distributed Programming (3)
- COP 5621 Compiler Construction (3)
- COP 5725 Database Systems (3)
Systems
- CDA 5155 Computer Architecture (3)
- CNT 5505 Data and Computer Communications (3)
- COP 5611 Advanced Operating Systems (3)
Theory
- COT 5310 Theory of Automata and Formal Languages (3)
- COT 5405 Advanced Algorithms (3)
- COT 5507 Analytical Methods (3)
Computer Science Major
MS CS students must complete the undergraduate prerequisites on the following page before graduating, and will likely have to complete a subset of these courses before being admitted to the program.
Cybersecurity Major
Cybersecurity students must complete the undergraduate prerequisites on the following page before graduating, and will likely have to complete a subset of these courses before being admitted to the MS Cybersecurity major.
Undergraduate Pre-requisites for MS Cybersecurity degree.
A student in the Cybersecurity major is required to take the following courses:
- CIS 5370 Computer Security (3)
- CIS 5371 Cryptography (3)
- CNT 5412 Network Security, Active and Passive Defenses (3)
- CNT 5505 Data and Computer Communications (3)
- CNT 5605 Computer and Network Administration (3)
- CIS 5627 Offensive Computer Security (3)
- CAP 5137 Software Reverse Engineering and Malware Analysis (3))
This major also includes the award of the Information Security Specialist Certificate. Students are not required to apply to the general CS MS degree beforehand and are allowed to directly apply to the Cybersecurity Major MS program.
Computer Network and System Administration Major
CNSA students must complete the undergraduate prerequisites on the following page before graduating, and will likely have to complete a subset of these courses before being admitted to the MS CNSA major.
Undergraduate Prerequisites for the MS CNSA Degree Program
The following courses are the core requirements for the MS CNSA degree.
Required Computer Science Courses for the MS CNSA Degree Program
- CDA 5155 Computer Architecture (3)
- CNT 5412 Network Security, Active and Passive Defenses (3)
- CNT 5505 Data and Computer Communications (3)
- CNT 5605 Computer and Network Administration (3)
- COP 5611 Advanced Operating Systems (3)
- COP 5570 Concurrent, Parallel, and Distributed Programming (3)
In addition to the required courses, the CNSA program has an experience requirement, and students are required to complete system administration intern-ship(s) to complete this requirement. The CNSA program works with various departments and colleges on the FSU campus to provide local system administration intern-ships for students. As part of our Computer Science established curriculum, practical training in the field in the form of an internship is recommended for all students enrolled in the program. The Computer Science department offers in CIS 5949 – Internship in Computer Science course. We provide this course as a request that a Department of Homeland Security Designated School Official at Florida State University’s Center for Global Engagement approve Curricular Practical Training in the student’s federal government immigration (SEVIS) record. This course would be in addition to their major requirements. We recommend that all of our students seek extracurricular and experiential learning opportunities in any semester in which they become available.
It is possible for the MS CNSA students to obtain an NSA-approved training certificate, which facilitates graduates from the program in getting employment with a federal government agency or a government contractor after they graduate. The MS CNSA student can use two of the available elective courses to take COP 5725, Database Systems, and CIS 5370, Computer Security to fulfill the requirements. However, this certificate is limited to U.S. citizens only. A description of the training certificate is available at https://www.cs.fsu.edu/academics/certificate and in the section of Requirements for NSA Training Certificate below.