GRADUATE FAQS
Graduate Handbook
Major requirements, policies and questions related to the Georgia State Computer Science graduate program are summarized in the Graduate Handbook.
Prospective Graduate Students
Admission requirements for the M.S. in Computer Science can be found here.
Admission requirements for the Ph.D in Computer Science can be found here.
If you have additional questions about the admissions process, please check the Graduate Admissions FAQ page.
We welcome students from all backgrounds. However, applicants are expected to have completed certain computer science foundation courses with a grade of B or higher in each. Please refer to the current graduate catalog for a list of foundation courses. If you did not take all of these courses but the admission committee thinks you are talented, you will be asked to take the missing foundation courses during the first semester of enrollment at Georgia State, before starting your M.S. or Ph.D. coursework. Typically, we recommend that non-CS majors complete the CSC 1000–3000 level courses with a grade of B or higher before applying to our graduate program. You may also want to consider Georgia State's postbaccalaureate program.
No. Incomplete applications are not reviewed. Please begin the application process well before the deadline to ensure all material is received. It is especially important to request transcripts well in advance of the deadline.
Please refer to the Student Financial Services website for tuition and fees for both graduate and undergraduate students.
Prospective students are encouraged to request information or start the application process to learn about fellowships or other funding opportunities that are available upon acceptance.
Georgia State Payment Plan
The Georgia State Payment Plan allows a student to defer payment of the current term's tuition and mandatory fees. The deferred balance is calculated after all estimated financial aid is applied to the student account. Under the payment plan terms, the first installment is due approximately 10 days after classes begin. Click here to learn more.
Graduate Assistant Payment Plan
Georgia State University offers a payment plan to assist graduate students who hold full-time graduate assistantships. Students who are registered for 9 or more credit hours and employed by the university as graduate assistants are eligible to use the payment plan to pay mandatory fees and discounted tuition. Click here to learn more.
Please visit the International Student & Scholar Services website for tuition and fees for international students.
The faculty review committee reviews all applications in a holistic manner. With that in mind, the review process can take many weeks after the application deadline. Please be patient as the admissions committee reviews applicants and releases decisions.
Visit the Office of Graduate Services next steps for newly admitted students page for more information about advisement, financial aid, health insurance, and more.
Also, bookmark their Graduate Student Journey page for resources and information that will be helpful throughout your tenure in the program.
The department will request the tuition waiver from the college at least 2–3 weeks before the start of the semester. If you have questions about this time frame, please contact Mr. Jamie Hayes.
Graduate Teaching Assistantship (GTA)
This type of assistantship is offered by the department. We consider all accepted students for a graduate assistantship at the time of admission and some top students are admitted with funding support. If accepted into the GSU CS program, you will also have another opportunity to apply for funding before each semester starts. Please keep an eye on messages sent to your GSU email address for GTA application instructions.
Graduate Research Assistantship (GRA)
This type of assistantship can be offered by our faculty members. Please be aware that our professors do not offer GTAs. Before applying for a GRA, we strongly encourage you to check the research interests of our professors and preferentially contact persons whose research interests align with yours. To increase the chances of successful application, we suggest you clearly outline how you can contribute to the research of a particular faculty member and their research group. Applications sent to random people inside and outside of the department, as well as generic applications without specific details, have smaller chances of success.
By accepting a graduate teaching assistantship, students should agree to the following terms:
- Diligently and responsibly complete assigned job duties
- Maintain good academic standing with a minimum GPA of 3.0
- Not engage in outside employment
- Attend at least one GTA workshop in the semester when offered the assistantship
- Be available on campus from the first day of the semester to the last day of the semester
- Ask for permission for any absence in the semester from the course instructor and the Director of Graduate Studies
Current Graduate Students
You must provide a reasonable justification to have your concentration change request considered by the department, such as a letter from your faculty advisor noting that your project or research lies outside of your current concentration. Please send all requests to Dr. Ashwin Ashok.
If approved by the department, you will need to submit a change of concentration form to the college to have your curriculum record updated.
Reduced Course Load (RCL) application process:
Step 1. Submit an RCL application in OGMS.
Step 2. Share the reasons why you are reducing your course load with your faculty advisor, asking her/him to approve your application in OGMS. Please include your graduation semester. Without your advisor's approval, your application cannot be approved by Dr. Ashwin Ashok.
Step 3. Submit an RCL application in iStart. (Enter Dr. Ashok's email address ([email protected]) for approval and your faculty advisor's email address for secondary approval.)
Curricular Practical Training (CPT) application process:
Step 1. Submit a CPT application in OGMS.
Step 2. Share your (internship) details with your faculty advisor, asking her/him to approve your application in OGMS. Without your advisor's approval, your application cannot be approved by Dr. Ashwin Ashok. You can ignore the section of the application that asks if you are currently registered for CSC 8940. Registration will be completed later.
Step 3. After your application in OGMS is approved by Dr. Ashok, submit a registration assistance form for the CPT course (CSC 8940). Select the "instructor/department approval" form. The graduate director will provide approval.
Step 4. Submit a CPT application in iStart. (Enter Dr. Ashok's email address ([email protected]) for approval and your faculty advisor's email address for secondary approval.)
Step 5. Make sure you decline any type of graduate assistantship (i.e., GRA or GTA) during the same term as your CPT authorization.
You will need to submit a registration assistance form. Depending on the type of error you are receiving, you'll need to select the appropriate form. The Graduate Services office will now be processing student requests for registration assistance (i.e., special approvals, prereq errors and exceptions, time conflicts, and course repeat permissions). Students can submit requests using the Registration Assistance portal. For additional information, contact Graduate Services.
Common courses for which students receive a registration error are CSC 8940 (internship course – department restriction), CSC 8930 (master's project course – department restriction), and some CSC 8000-level courses (prerequisite restrictions).
If you encounter a prerequisite restriction, you will need course instructor approval. Please include this information in your registration assistance form to assist with processing.
With our ever-growing enrollments, some graduate courses are filled quickly. As of Summer 2022, the university has implemented a new waitlist function via your PAWS account for select courses. This waitlist function will allow you to add yourself to a waitlist for a full course. If a seat becomes available for a section (either through a student dropping or the department adding seats to the section), students at the top of the list will have 24 hours to register (you will be notified via your GSU email account). If you don't register during that time frame, then the next student on the list will have the opportunity to register. A video explaining the use of the system is available here.
Step 1. Obtain a copy of the course syllabus for each course you want to transfer. If a course syllabus is unavailable, you must obtain satisfactory documentation of the course content from the institution where the course was taken. You must submit copies of course descriptions from course catalogs or websites instead of your own descriptions. A URL may also be given if the material may be currently accessed from the Internet using the given URL. You may also submit additional supporting materials such as assignments, exams, etc.
Step 2. Obtain an official transcript or its copy from your Graduate Admission file. Copies of grade reports are not acceptable.
Step 3. Submit your request by completing the transfer credit form at the Office of Graduate Services website. Be sure to upload the required documents (syllabus and transcript). Please allow at least four weeks for the processing of your request. You can check your results in PAWS.
Please note, master's candidates can transfer a maximum of 6 credit hours into their degree program, while doctoral candidates can transfer a maximum of 30. Additionally, transfer credit is subject to a seven-year time limit for master's degrees and a ten-year time limit for doctoral degrees. Any transfer requests that exceed either the credit limit or time limit must be accompanied by a petition for deviation from college requirements.
Please visit the ISSS website for information regarding enrollment requirements for the semester. If you have questions about maintaining your visa status, please contact ISSS.
Students who have a graduate assistantship (GA) through the department should register for four hours of
CSC 8981 and/or CSC 8982.
- If you are a graduate research assistant (GRA), you should register under your research advisor for CSC 8981.
- If you are a graduate teaching assistant (GTA), you should register under your course instructor or the graduate director for CSC 8982.
IMPORTANT: Students with assistantships MUST register for a minimum of 12 hours during fall and spring semesters and 9 hours during summer semester.
Each program has different milestones. Refer to your graduate handbook or catalog for specific milestone information.
On the non-course milestone submission form, select your degree program. Your program milestones will populate.
Please use your graduate handbook or catalog to familiarize yourself the requirements of your program. Also, consult with your faculty advisor or graduate director for questions about specific course requirements.
Be sure to monitor and review your DegreeWorks audit at LEAST TWICE per semester (at the beginning of the semester and after grades have been posted). The university's Advisement website has helpful DegreeWorks video tutorials.
The university requires you to apply for graduation at least two semesters in advance. Degree candidates will be invited to apply for graduation once the Office of Graduation Review and the College of Arts & Sciences have deemed them eligible.
Eligibility is based on program completion percentage, earned hours within the program, and institutional grade point average. Students who are deemed eligible to apply will receive an email requesting they apply. Submit your graduation application with a one-time fee of $50.00 via your PAWS account by the appropriate deadline.
- Complete all M.S. degree requirements (or Bioinformatics Concentration requirements).
- Check your PAWS account; if you see M.S. degree, just apply for it and you are done.
- If you are a Ph.D. student, you can only apply for the M.S. degree after finishing your research proposal. Then, bring the following documents to the graduate director to apply for the M.S. degree: (a) plan-of-study form (see links above) with courses taken and grades, (b) hard copy of your PAWS transcript, and (c) hard copy of your first-authored paper.
Submit a hiring-by-outside-department application in OGMS. When you submit your outside-department application, please include your offer letter and completed EPAF (GA Personnel Form) from your hiring department. The sections of the form that need to be completed before submission are Requesting Department, Student Information, Appointment, Funding, Compensation, and Hiring Department Information.
After your application in OGMS is approved by Dr. Ashwin Ashok, the CS department will process your request. Please let your hiring department know.
NOTE: If you don’t have a faculty advisor, please list the CS graduate director (Dr. Xiaojun Cao).
Students are strongly encouraged to look for opportunities to publish their ideas and work. All doctoral students are required to publish articles prior to completion, although there is no minimum number. Publications are the most important tool for communicating a good idea and for demonstrating that the broader research community considers an idea to be important and well developed. The feedback obtained from referee reports or a conference presentation can be extremely helpful in developing further research and writing the dissertation.
Contact Us
Department of Computer Science
Office Hours (Available Remotely):
Monday - Friday
8:30 a.m. - 5:15 p.m.
Office Hours (In Person):
By appointment
Department Chair
Associate Chair
Director of Undergraduate Studies
Associate Director of Undergraduate Studies
Director of Graduate Studies
Associate Directors of Graduate Studies
Office/Delivery Address
Department of Computer Science
Georgia State University
25 Park Place
Suite 700
Atlanta, GA 30303
USPS Mailing Address
Department of Computer Science
Georgia State University
P.O. Box 5060
Atlanta, GA 30302-5060