Undergraduate FAQs

To be eligible for the Bachelor of Science in Computer Science and to enroll in major-level CSC courses (CSC 2720 Data Structures and all 3000- and 4000-level CSC courses), students must fulfill the following requirements:

• Complete the following courses with a grade of C or higher:
  1. CSC 1301 Principles of Computer Science I;
  2. EitherTheoretical Foundations of Computer Science or MATH 2420 Discrete Mathematics; and
  3. Either MATH 2211, MATH 2212, or MATH 2215.
• Students must earn an average of 2.5 grade points across the three courses areas (a, b, and c). The GPA will be calculated based on the first attempt at the courses designated above at Georgia State University.
• Where more than one course may be taken toward fulfilling the requirement (items a and b above), the first attempt at the first course taken from the list will be used to calculate the major eligibility grade-point average. For example, in item c, if a student takes MATH 1113 before taking MATH 2211, then the first attempt at MATH 1113 will be used for the major eligibility GPA.
• WFs counts as an attempt. Ws do not count as an attempt. Courses retaken using the university Repeat to Replace policy are not counted as first attempts.
• If a student has AP credit for any course designated above, the course will not be used in this GPA calculation, even if the student chooses to take the course.
• Transfer students who transfer these course(s) into Georgia State, may use the grades in the transferred course(s) to calculate the GPA or they may attempt them once at Georgia State. Courses taken at Georgia State’s Perimeter College count as first-attempts.

Once students are eligible to take major-level Computer Science courses (CSC 2720 and 3000- and 4000-level CSC courses), they remain eligible to take them as long as they are eligible to enroll at Georgia State University, and they satisfy other Computer Science program requirements. Students must meet any prerequisites for the specific 3000- or 4000-level course.

This requirement applies to students entering or re-entering the university in fall 2017 or thereafter, or to students who choose to follow the Computer Science program requirements in the undergraduate catalog for 2017-18 or thereafter. Students who have selected the Computer Science B.S. major but have not yet fulfilled the major eligibility requirement will be designated as Pre-Computer Science majors.

Students in majors other than Computer Science including those minoring in Computer Science, may enroll in major-level CSC courses as long as they meet any pre-requisites for the specific course.

Please see the computer science undergraduate catalog entry for additional information.

In addition to the general criteria for undergraduate admissions at Georgia State University, to be eligible for the Bachelor of Science in Data Science and to enroll in major-level DSCI courses [DSCI 2720 (Data Structures in Python) and all 3000- and 4000-level DSCI courses], students must fulfill the following requirements:

• Students must earn a 2.5 grade-point average across the three course areas (a, b, and c), with no grade lower than a C.
• The GPA will be calculated based on the first attempt at the courses listed below at Georgia State University.

The designated pre-major courses are:

a. DSCI 1301 (Principles of Programming for Data Science I);
b. Either CSC 2510 (Theoretical Foundations of Computer Science) or MATH 2420 (Discrete Mathematics); and
c. Either MATH 1113, MATH 2211, MATH 2212, or MATH 2215

Where more than one course may be taken toward fulfilling the requirement (items a and b above), the first attempt at the first course taken from the list will be used to calculate the major eligibility grade-point average. For example, in item c, if a student takes MATH 1113 before taking MATH 2211, then the first attempt at MATH 1113 will be used for the major eligibility GPA.

WFs count as an attempt. Ws do not count as an attempt. Courses retaken using the university Repeat to Replace policy are not counted as first attempts.

If a student has AP credit for any course designated above, the course will not be used in this GPA calculation, even if the student chooses to take the course.

Transfer students who transfer these course(s) into Georgia State may use the grades in the transferred course(s) to calculate the GPA or they may attempt them once at Georgia State. Courses taken at Georgia State’s Perimeter College count as first attempts.

Once students are eligible to take major-level Data Science courses (DSCI 2720 and 3000- and 4000-level DSCI courses), they remain eligible to take them as long as they are eligible to enroll at Georgia State University, and they satisfy other Data Science program requirements. Students must meet any prerequisites for the specific 3000- or 4000-level course.

Please see the computer science undergraduate catalog entry for additional information.

The department often sends job postings for internships to the CSC_UNDERGRAD mailing list. The University Career Services office on campus is also a great resource for landing an internship.

Please see the document Computer/Software Requirements for Incoming Students.

Typical jobs for computer science graduates include software developer, database administrator, information security analyst, mobile app developer, and data scientist.

GSU students have the flexibility in their degree program to earn a minor without needing to take extra hours. We also have three options for a dual-degree program in which students obtain both a B.S. and an M.S. degree in 4+1 years.

Computer Science focuses on how and why computers work, explaining the technical and theoretical details, whereas Computer Information Systems focuses on how to apply technology in a business setting. A Computer Science major should have a strong background in mathematics and good problem-solving skills.