Offered by the Department of Computer Science, in partnership with the Department of Mathematics and Statistics and Department of Physics, College of Arts and Sciences.

Admission to the Program

In addition to meeting the minimum university requirements for graduate study, applicants must submit a completed graduate application form, two letters of recommendation, and copies of all college transcripts.

Degree Requirements

• 39 credit hours of approved graduate work, exclusive of CSC-898/CSC-899
• Comprehensive Exam: A student, with the help of their PhD advisor (also the chair of the committee), chooses a topic for specialization and forms a dissertation committee of at least four members (including the advisor), at least two of whom are full-time faculty at American University. The student is given a written and oral examination on this topic prepared and scored by the committee members. A student who fails the comprehensive examination may apply to the program director for one additional attempt
• Original Research Proposal: Students develop an original written research proposal and orally present it before their dissertation committee, thereby preparing them for the final dissertation defense
• Advancement to Candidacy: Students are considered "advanced to candidacy" (or "all-but-dissertation") when they have completed all required course credits, have passed their comprehensive exam, and have an approved dissertation proposal by the dissertation committee
• Dissertation: Subject to applicable university academic regulations, students must obtain approval of the program director for the composition of the dissertation committee, typically during the third year. The dissertation committee should normally include faculty from at least two disciplines (e.g., Computer Science, Mathematics and Statistics, Physics, or other sciences)

Course Requirements