Computer Science (PHD)

Location(s): Manhattan Campus

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The Ph.D. degree in Computer Science is offered through the Computer Science graduate program. Requirements include 90 semester hours of graduate-level credit. All work must be completed within seven years.

General requirements include: Completing the Breadth Requirement and passing the Research Proficiency Exam (Preliminary Examination); successfully presenting a research plan to one’s supervisory committee at a research proposal meeting; and completing the research plan, writing a dissertation, and successfully defending the dissertation in an open forum.

Admission Requirements

Students already holding an applicable master’s degree upon admission can count 30 credits toward the 90 credits required for the doctorate.

Course Requirements

General requirements include:

Completing the Breadth Requirement
Passing the Research Proficiency Exam (RPE)
Passing the Preliminary Examination
Completing a Proposal Defense
Writing a dissertation and successfully defending the dissertation in an open forum.

Course work requirements include:

24 hours of course credit at Kansas State University beyond the master’s degree level
15 hours must be 800 level or above
One or more courses in theoretical or fundamental topics
At least 30 hours of Ph.D. research credits.

Breadth Requirement

The Breadth requirement requires demonstrating proficiency in six areas: Implementation, Languages, Systems, Applied CS, Foundations, and Algorithms.

The Breadth requirement must be completed by the end of the fifth semester. If the student fails to complete the Breadth Requirement within the specified time, the student must leave the Ph.D. program.

The student must receive a B or better in each course used to satisfy the Breadth Requirement. In addition, the overall average of all courses used to satisfy the Breadth Requirement must be at least 3.5.

Courses taken at KSU as part of a B.S. or M.S. degree, or approved courses from institutions with joint PhD program with the CS Department at KSU, can be used to satisfy the breadth requirement.

A single course cannot be used to satisfy the breadth requirement in more than one area.

In extenuating situations, outside experience or courses transferred from other institutions can be proposed to satisfy Breadth Requirements if approved by the Graduate Studies Committee.

Proficiency in Implementation Area

Proficiency in Implementation area can be demonstrated by completing one course from the following group:

CIS 641 - Software Engineering Design Project Credits: 3
CIS 690 - Implementation Project Credits: 3
CIS 706 - Translator Design I Credits: 3
CIS 722 - Operating System Practices Credits: 3
CIS 736 - Computer Graphics Credits: 3
CIS 801 - Translator Design II Credits: 3

Proficiency in Languages Area

Proficiency in Languages area can be demonstrated by completing one course from the following group:

CIS 705 - Programming Languages Credits: 3
CIS 706 - Translator Design I Credits: 3
CIS 771 - Software Specification Credits: 3
CIS 801 - Translator Design II Credits: 3
CIS 806 - Semantics of Programming Languages Credits: 3

Proficiency in Systems Area

Proficiency in Systems area can be demonstrated by completing one course from the following group:

CIS 720 - Advanced Operating Systems Credits: 3
CIS 721 - Real-Time Systems Credits: 3
CIS 722 - Operating System Practices Credits: 3
CIS 725 - Advanced Computer Networks Credits: 3
CIS 726 - Advanced World Wide Web Technologies Credits: 3
CIS 750 - Advanced Computer Architecture Credits: 3
CIS 751 - Computer and Information Security Credits: 3
CIS 755 - Systems Security Credits: 3

Proficiency in Applied CS Area

Proficiency in Applied CS area can be demonstrated by completing one course from the following group:

CIS 655 - Security and Reliability of Computing Systems Credits: 3
CIS 730 - Principles of Artificial Intelligence Credits: 3
CIS 740 - Software Engineering Credits: 3
CIS 744 - Advanced Software Analysis and Design Credits: 3
CIS 761 - Data Base Management Systems Credits: 3

Proficiency in Foundations Area

Proficiency in Foundations area can be demonstrated by completing the following course:

CIS 770 - Formal Language Theory Credits: 3

Proficiency in Algorithms Area

Proficiency in Algorithms area can be demonstrated by completing the following course:

CIS 775 - Analysis of Algorithms Credits: 3

Research Proficiency Exam

Ph.D. students must pass a Research Proficiency Exam (RPE). The RPE is meant to judge the student’s ability to conduct research, and is expected to lead the student into PhD research.

The RPE will be one-semester long, and during this semester, the student must make three public presentations and produce a written report. The gap between the presentations must be at least four weeks and the last presentation must be before finals week.

Students must have their Program of Study filed with the Graduate School before requesting to schedule the first presentation.

For the RPE, the student must also form an RPE Committee consisting of three faculty members from the Department of Computer Science. Members of the PhD Supervisory Committee (as listed in the Program of Study form) belonging to the Department of Computer Science must be included in the RPE Committee. The Major Professor cannot be the chair of the RPE committee; instead, the chair must be the one of the other two members who has highest academic rank (if they have the same rank, the one who has been longest at the Department of Computer Science).

The student will start the RPE process by choosing an area of study in consultation with the Major Professor. The first presentation should include a literature survey of the area, an open problem, and a proposed approach. At the end of the first presentation, the RPE Committee will approve the plan or suggest an alternative problem. The second presentation should present the progress made towards addressing this problem. The third presentation must be accompanied by a written report containing literature survey, a description of the problem addressed, the technical approach used to solve the problem, and the results and their interpretation. At the end of the first and second presentations, the student will be provided feedback on his/her progress and expectations for the next presentation. After the final RPE presentation, the student’s work will be judged as “pass” or “fail” by the RPE Committee. Positive votes from a majority of the RPE Committee will constitute a “pass”.

In case the RPE presentations take place prior to the Preliminary Examination, it shall be the sole responsibility of the PhD student to maintain a record of having completed the RPE. This entails having all members of the RPE committee sign a document stating that the student passed the RPE.

The RPE must be scheduled with the aim of completing it before the end of the fifth semester.

If the RPE is graded as “fail”, then the student will have a second attempt, during which the RPE committee may choose to give the student a different problem to work on. The student must pass the second attempt before the end of the semester following the first attempt. (Thus it may happen that a student does not complete the RPE until the end of the sixth semester.) Otherwise, the student must leave the PhD program.

Preliminary Examination

The student must request a Preliminary Examination Ballot from the Graduate School within one semester of completing the RPE and Breadth Requirements, and no later than at the end of the sixth semester. The Preliminary Examination Presentation should include a presentation of the plan for the dissertation research and must be approved by the supervisory committee. The Preliminary Examination Presentation may be completed in conjunction with the final RPE Presentation. Upon passing the Preliminary Examination, the student will be admitted to candidacy for the Ph.D. degree by the Graduate School.

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