Graduate Admission Requirements
Applicants should hold a bachelor’s degree from an institution comparable to the University of Colorado.They should have considerable programming experience and sufficient mathematical maturity to understand advanced mathematics courses.
Prerequisites
Applicants should have had the equivalent of the following University of Colorado courses:
CSC 1410-3 Fundamentals of Computing
CSC 2421-3 Data Structures and Program Design
CSC 2511-3 Discrete Structures
In addition, applicants should have had at least three upper-division computer science courses, such as the following courses:
CSC 3412-3 Algorithms
CSC 3415-3 Principles of Programming Languages
CSC 3453-3 Operating System Concepts
CSC 4034-3 Theoretical Foundations of Computer Science
CSC 4508-3 Introduction to Software Engineering
CSC 4591-3 Computer Architecture
Additional requirements include:
(1) 10 credit hours, on the semester basis, of university-level Calculus; and
(2) at least one math course beyond Calculus, such as Advanced Calculus, Differential Equations, Linear Algebra, Probability, Statistics, or Combinatorial Analysis.
Students lacking some of these courses whose background is otherwise satisfactory might be admitted with the understanding that the courses must be completed after admission.
Required GPA
Applicants should have a grade point average (GPA) of at least 3.0. If the GPA is below 3.0 but above 2.75, and/or some prerequisites are lacking, the applicant may be accepted as a “provisional degree student”; see the next section.
GRE Exam
Applicants whose GPA is below 3.0 must submit GRE results of 1000 Verbal + Math, and 3.0 Written. The other option is to take four CSE undergraduate courses in computer science, to be taken at UC-Denver, as a non-degree student and receive at least a B in all of them; the student must contact CSE Graduate Advisor to learn which courses are applicable.
International Students
Applicants whose native language is not English must take either the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) or the International English Language Testing System (IELTS) exam and must score above 525 (paper) or 197 (computer) or 71 (internet based) or 6.0 on the IELTS. Applicants whose native language is not English are not required to take the TOEFL test if they have completed a baccalaureate or graduate-level degree program at an English-speaking college or university or have completed at least 2 semesters at a college or university in the United States as a full-time student and obtained a "B" average (3.0 GPA) or higher.