Program Description
The Master of Engineering Program (M.Eng.) in computer science is a one year professional degree program designed to develop expertise in system design and implementation in many areas of computer science. These areas include:
- Computer systems
- Fault-tolerant and secure systems
- Distributed and parallel computing
- High-performance computer architecture
- Databases and data mining
- Computer vision
- Computational tools for finance
- Software engineering
- Graphics
- Artificial intelligence
- Machine learning
- Natural language processing
- Robotics
The Master of Engineering in Computer Science Program is designed to allow students flexibility in their course choices so they can best tailor their program of study to match both what they are interested in and their post-graduation employment goals. Faculty-supervised project work, which may be done individually or in a small group, is either associated with ongoing research in the Department of Computer Science or done in collaboration with other fields throughout the university.
Cornell seniors may use the Early M.Eng Pathway Credit option, which allows them to take courses toward their M.Eng. Degree while in their final undergraduate semester. The Early M.Eng Pathway Credit option applies only to students who have 1 to 8 credits remaining to complete their undergraduate program.
Program Information
- Program Mode of Delivery: In Person
- Program Location: Ithaca, NY
- Minimum Credits for Degree: 30
Program Requirements
Course List | Code | Title | Hours |
| 1 | 15 |
| CS 5999 | Master of Engineering Project | 3-6 |
| 2 | 9-12 |
| Total Hours | 30 |
To receive an M.Eng. degree in Computer Science, the following requirements must be met:
- Satisfactory completion of at least 30 credits, of which:
- At least 28 credits must be taken for a letter grade.
- A maximum of two credit hours graded on an S/U basis may be included.
- Three to six (3-6) credits must be earned as project credit in CS 5999.
- No more than 20 credits can be taken in one semester.
- Students must maintain a course load of at least 12 credit-bearing hours each semester.
- The credit hours of any course in which a student receives a grade below C- will not count toward the Master of Engineering degree.
- A cumulative GPA of at lease a 2.5 must be maintained to continue in the program.
University Graduation Requirements
Requirements for All Students
In order to receive a Cornell degree, a student must satisfy academic and non-academic requirements.
Academic Requirements
A student’s college determines degree requirements such as residency, number of credits, distribution of credits, and grade averages. It is the student’s responsibility to be aware of the specific major, degree, distribution, college, and graduation requirements for completing their chosen program of study. See the individual requirements listed by each college or school or contact the college registrar’s office for more information.
Non-academic Requirements
Conduct Matters. Students must satisfy any outstanding sanctions, penalties or remedies imposed or agreed to under the Student Code of Conduct (Code) or Policy 6.4. Where a formal complaint under the Code or Policy 6.4 is pending, the University will withhold awarding a degree otherwise earned until the adjudication process set forth in those procedures is complete, including the satisfaction of any sanctions, penalties or remedies imposed.
Financial Obligations. Outstanding financial obligations will not impact the awarding of a degree otherwise earned or a student’s ability to access their official transcript. However, the University may withhold issuing a diploma until any outstanding financial obligations owing to the University are satisfied.
Graduation Requirements for Master of Engineering Degree (M.Eng.) Programs
Requirements
The following are general requirements for graduation that apply to all Master of Engineering degrees offered on the Ithaca campus. The individual program pages provide additional information about discipline-specific requirements.
Credits and Residency Units
- Satisfactory completion of 30 technical credits, of which:
- At least 21 credits must be earned at Cornell. (Some M.Eng. programs allow up to 9 transfer credits of letter-graded coursework completed outside of Cornell to be applied to the M.Eng. degree.)
- At least 12 credit hours must be in coursework from the home M.Eng. program (as determined by the program).
- A maximum of two credit hours graded on an S/U basis may be included.
- The credit hours of any course in which a student receives a grade below C- will not count toward the Master of Engineering degree.
- Students must maintain a course load of at least 12 credit-bearing hours1 each semester.
- Students may not enroll in more than 20 credit-bearing hours per semester.
- Students must complete two full-time residency units1 (semesters) as registered M.Eng. students. Winter and summer sessions do not count as residency units.
Courses
- Only program-approved courses at the 5000 level and above may count toward the M.Eng. degree.
- Courses covering subject matter previously taken at Cornell may not be repeated for credit.
- Satisfactory completion of an engineering design project bearing 3 or more credit hours and including a formal written report.
Other Requirements
- A grade-point average of 2.50 or above is required across all Cornell courses which count for credit towards the M.Eng. degree.
- Students must complete all degree requirements within four calendar years of their first enrollment in the M.Eng. program (six years for distance learning students), inclusive of any leaves of absence.
- Students must complete the M.Eng. Exit Survey prior to graduation.
Admissions
Application Requirements and Deadlines
Application Deadlines
Fall, February 1; Spring, October 1
Requirements Summary
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Prerequisites
- All applicants must have a bachelor's degree (BA / BS / BE) in computer science or a related technical field (e.g., electrical and computer engineering, information science, operations research) typically suffices. Applicants who have majored in these and other fields are absolutely encouraged to apply provided they have demonstrated knowledge of the following subjects:
- Object-Oriented Programming and Data Structures (e.g., CS 2110): Intermediate programming in a high-level language and introduction to computer science. Topics include program structure and organization, object-oriented programming (classes, objects, types, sub-typing), graphical user interfaces, algorithm analysis (asymptotic complexity, big “O” notation), recursion, data structures (lists, trees, stacks, queues, heaps, search trees, hash tables, graphs), simple graph algorithms. Java is the principal programming language.
- Data Structures and Functional Programming (e.g., CS 3110): Advanced programming course that emphasizes functional programming techniques and data structures. Programming topics include recursive and higher-order procedures, models of programming language evaluation and compilation, type systems, and polymorphism. Data structures and algorithms covered include graph algorithms, balanced trees, memory heaps, and garbage collection. Also covers techniques for analyzing program performance and correctness. NOTE: Although knowledge of functional programming is not essential, advanced knowledge of data structures is.
- Computer System Organization and Programming (e.g., CS 3410): An introduction to the design of embedded systems, with an emphasis on understanding the interaction between hardware, software, and the physical world. Topics covered include assembly language programming, interrupts, I/O, concurrency management, scheduling, resource management, and real-time constraints.
- Mathematical Foundations of Computing/Discrete Structures (e.g., CS 2800): Covers the mathematics that underlies most of computer science. Topics include mathematical induction; logical proof; propositional and predicate calculus; combinatorics and discrete mathematics; some basic elements of basic probability theory; basic number theory; sets, functions, and relations; graphs; and finite-state machines. These topics are discussed in the context of applications to many areas of computer science, such as the RSA cryptosystem and web searching.
- Basic Calculus and Linear Algebra Functions and graphs, limits and continuity, differentiation and integration, volume and arc length, infinite sequences and power series, parametric equations, partial derivatives, double and triple integrals, line and surface integrals, vector fields, gradients and Jacobians, matrices, determinants, vector spaces, linear systems, least squares, eigenvalues and eigenvectors, orthogonality and inner product spaces.
Admissions Contact Information
Name: CS MEng Office
Email: meng-admissions@cs.cornell.edu
Website: https://www.cs.cornell.edu/master-engineering-computer-science/apply
