Master of Science in Computer Science (2024)

From CU Programs on Coursera: Yes, up to six graduate-level credit hours of courses from other CU programs on Coursera may be applied as elective credits toward the MS-CS degree on Coursera. All courses must be graduate level, offered on Coursera, and meet all applicable academic standards. This includes all courses offered by the ME-EM, MS-DS, and MS-EE programs on Coursera that do not start with a "CSCA" prefix, with the exception of the following courses.

Credit from these courses cannot be applied toward MS-CS requirements:

• DTSA 5302 Cybersecurity for Data Science
• DTSA 5303 Ethical Issues in Data Science
• DTSA 5501 Algorithms for Searching, Sorting, and Indexing
• DTSA 5502 Trees and Graphs: Basics
• DTSA 5707 Deep Learning Applications for Computer Vision - The exclusion of this course will take effect in AY 24-25. If you were admitted in AY 23-24 this course was still part of your catalog year and accepted toward electives in the MS-CS degree.

Courses may not be counted twice toward two credentials of the same level. This means students can apply credit from a particular course toward one graduate certificate and one graduate degree, but they cannot apply credit from a particular course toward two graduate certificates or two graduate degrees. CU certificates on Coursera are automatically awarded once all requirements are met.

From Other CU Programs: No, this program does not currently accept transfer credit from CU programs other than those listed above.

From Other Institutions: No, this program does not currently accept transfer credit from other institutions or from CU Boulder programs other than those listed below.

• Strong foundation in computer science via academic or professional background
• Some experience in programming and software development
• Knowledge in linear algebra, discrete math, probability, and statistics (calculus required for select electives – see individual course descriptions for details)

A cross-listed course is offered under two or more CU Boulder degree programs on Coursera. For example, Dynamic Programming, Greedy Algorithms is offered as both CSCA 5414 for the MS-CS and DTSA 5503 for the MS-DS.

• You may not earn credit for more than one version of a cross-listed course.
• You can identify cross-listed courses by checking your program’s student handbook.
• Your transcript will be affected. Cross-listed courses are considered equivalent when evaluating graduation requirements. However, we encourage you to take your program's versions of cross-listed courses (when available) to ensure your CU transcript reflects the substantial amount of coursework you are completing directly in your home department. Any courses you complete from another program will appear on your CU transcript with that program’s course prefix (e.g., DTSA vs. CSCA).
• Programs may have different minimum grade requirements for admission and graduation. For example, the MS-DS requires a C or better on all courses for graduation (and a 3.0 pathway GPA for admission), whereas the MS-CS requires a B or better on all breadth courses and a C or better on all elective courses for graduation (and a B or better on each pathway course for admission). All programs require students to maintain a 3.0 cumulative GPA for admission and graduation.

An outside elective (sometimes called an “external” elective) is a course offered by another CU Boulder degree program on Coursera. You may apply credits earned from outside elective courses to complete your degree’s elective requirements. Tuition rates vary by program. Credit limits apply and not all courses are applicable to all degree programs. See your program’s student handbook for details and restrictions.

The following courses are not considered outside electives:

• Courses offered by your degree program: You can identify courses offered by your degree program by the four-letter prefix before the course number: Computer Science: CSCA, Data Science: DTSA, Electrical Engineering: ECEA, Engineering Management: EMEA
• Courses that are cross-listed with a course offered by your degree program: You can identify cross-listed courses by checking your program’s student handbook.

For example, Data Mining Pipeline is a one-credit cross-listed course available as both DTSA 5504 and CSCA 5502. CSCA 5502 is not considered an outside elective for Data Science students, and DTSA 5504 is not considered an outside elective for Computer Science students. These courses would be considered outside electives for Electrical Engineering and Engineering Management students because they are not cross listed with ECEA or EMEA courses, respectively.

No. Key courses in these programs overlap, and the Graduate School’s “No Double Dipping” rule prevents students from applying credit from one course toward 2 graduate degrees (or toward 2 graduate certificates).

However, you can earn a Data Science Graduate Certificate on your way to an MS-CS degree without needing more than 30 credits. See Can I earn both a Data Science Graduate Certificate and an MS-CS? for details.

You can earn a Data Science Graduate Certificate on your way to an MS-CS degree without needing more than 30 credits. This is possible because multiple courses in the MS-CS and MS-DS programs are cross listed. Note that you can apply credits from one course toward 1 graduate degree and 1 graduate certificate, as long as you earn the graduate certificate first.

To earn a CU certificate on Coursera, you must maintain a cumulative certificate GPA of 3.00 or higher. Individual certificates may have additional requirements. CU certificates on Coursera are automatically awarded once all requirements are met.

Make sure you take courses in the correct order and complete all steps to earn the certificate(s) you are most interested in. Additional steps are required to earn graduate certificates offered by CU Boulder degree programs on Coursera other than your own program. Your program’s student handbook (MS-CS | MS-DS) outlines those steps and other important considerations, including rules preventing students from double counting courses between multiple certificates.

Yes, but first make sure you understand important considerations & required steps outlined below.

Please be aware that the MS-DS and MS-CS are different degree programs with different requirements. While the programs share a similar structure using performance-based admission, pay-as-you-go tuition, and options for both non-credit and for-credit experiences, there are also important differences. Please carefully review the following:

• Recommended prerequisite knowledge: Though neither program has formal prerequisite requirements, they do recommend students have familiarity with particular subjects. See recommended prerequisite knowledge for the MS-DS and the MS-CS. 
• Admissions requirements: See a list of admissions requirements for the MS-DS and the MS-CS.
• Curriculum: See an outline of coursework requirements for the MS-DS and the MS-CS.
• Grade requirements: The MS-CS requires a minimum grade of B on all breadth courses (including pathway courses) and a minimum of a C on all elective courses. If you have not earned these minimum grades in the DTSA version of a course, you will not be able to apply that credit toward the MS-CS unless you retake the course and meet this minimum grade requirement. Both programs require a 3.0 cumulative GPA and 3.0 pathway GPA. See details for both programs in the MS-DS and MS-CS student handbooks.
• Tuition: Tuition rates vary by program. See details for the MS-DS and MS-CS.

Please be careful to indicate your degree interest properly, as noted below:

• DO indicate degree interest on the MS-CS enrollment form. You will start using the MS-CS enrollment form to select, enroll in, and pay for for-credit courses. At that point, you will indicate that you are interested in pursuing a degree on the MS-CS enrollment form.
• DO NOT indicate degree interest on the MS-DS enrollment form. There is a question on the MS-DS enrollment form that asks if you are interested in pursuing the degree. Please do NOT select this option if you intend to pursue the MS in Computer Science. If you indicate degree interest on the MS-DS form, you will need to complete extra steps later to change your degree choice to the MS-CS degree.
• If you already indicated you were interested in “pursuing a degree” on the MS-DS enrollment form, you must take additional steps to change your degree to the MS in Computer Science. You must email reg-specialprograms@colorado.edu to request a program change from the online MS-DS to the online MS-CS.

You will not be admitted to the MS-CS until you meet all requirements. You must meet all admission requirements outlined in the MS-CS student handbook, including completing a full pathway specialization with a B or better in each course. You will also need to indicate your intent to pursue the MS-CS degree, which you can only do on an MS-CS enrollment form. Admission decisions are released once per session, approximately 3-4 weeks after the end of the session.

You may upgrade and pay tuition during any open enrollment period to earn graduate-level CU Boulder credit for. Because some courses are cross listed in both the MS in Computer Science and the MS in Data Science programs, you will need to determine which program you would like to earn the credit from before you upgrade.

• MS in Computer Science (MS-CS) Credit: To upgrade to the for-credit computer science (CSCA) version of your course, use the MS-CS enrollment form. See How It Works.

If you are unsure of which program is the best fit for you, review the MS-CS and MS-DS program websites, and then contact datascience@colorado.edu datascience@colorado.edu or mscscoursera-info@colorado.edu if you still have questions.