The Grainger College of Engineering
Siebel School of Computing and Data Science

On-Campus Master of Computer Science

Join the lively Urbana-Champaign community for full-time study and earn your Master of Computer Science degree in as little as three semesters! The MCS is a non-thesis (coursework-only) degree requiring 32 hours of graduate coursework. At least four courses must be chosen from unique “core” areas of computer science, and 12 hours must be at the advanced graduate level (500-level). 

Space on campus is limited, but students have access to the greatest selection of courses to satisfy the MCS degree requirements. Other opportunities to earn your MCS with Grainger Engineering include the MCS in Chicago program, online MCS, and online MCS in Data Science. These three options offer greater flexibility and allow for both full-time and part-time study.

Explore the On-Campus MCS Program

Apply by January 15

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Application Information

Who may apply? Applicants should hold a bachelor's degree in computer science, or if not, must have coursework (or commensurate experience) in object-oriented programming, data structures, algorithms, linear algebra and probability/statistics. The On-Campus MCS is designed to allow students to complete the degree in as little as one year with a maximum of three continuous semesters. (Full-time employees of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign will be admitted only as on-campus students and may complete the program on a part-time basis.) The recommended undergraduate GPA for applicants applying to the Professional Master's program is a 3.2/4.0 or higher. The Siebel School of Computing and Data Science does not require GRE scores for any of its graduate programs. Applications for the MCS do not require letters of recommendation, but will be considered if included, especially if used to justify experience in lieu of required coursework, or other irregularities.

Admission for UIUC Graduates

If you complete an Illinois degree in CS, CS+X, Mathematics & CS, Statistics & CS, Computer Engineering or a CS minor with a GPA of 3.5 or better in the last two years of your undergraduate degree and a GPA of 3.7 or better in CS courses which includes CS 374, one of CS340/CS341/ECE391, and at least two 400-level CS courses, then you are guaranteed admission to our MCS programs in Urbana or Chicago.

There are different conditions for guaranteed admission to our online MCS and online MCS-DS programs for Illinois students due to the greater capacity in those programs.

DEGREE REQUIREMENTS

Master of Computer Science (MCS) Requirements Table.

Degree Planning Document [PDF].

Breadth Requirement: 12-16 credit hours.
Must complete four different courses, each from a different area, from the following eleven core areas with a grade of B- or higher:

  • Architecture, Compilers, Parallel Computing: CS 426, 431, 433, 483, 484, 526, 533, 534, 536
  • Artificial Intelligence: CS 440, 441, 442, 443, 444, 445, 446, 447, 448, 540, 542, 543, 544, 545, 546, 588, 598 DL for Healthcare
  • Bioinformatics and Computational Biology: CS 466, 581, 582
  • Computers and Education: CS 500
  • Database and Information Systems: CS 410, 411, 412, 470, 510, 511, 512, 514
  • Interactive Computing: CS 409, 415, 416, 417, 418, 419, 445, 465, 467, 469, 519, 565, 567, 568
  • Programming Languages, Formal Methods, Software Engineering: CS 421, 422, 427, 428, 474, 475, 476, 477, 521, 522, 524, 527, 576, 584
  • Scientific Computing: CS 450, 482, 554, 555, 556, 558
  • Security and Privacy: CS 461, 463, 562, 563
  • Systems and Networking (includes real-time systems and security): CS 414, 423, 424, 425, 434, 435, 436, 437, 438, 439, 461, 463, 498 Cloud Computing Applications, 523, 525, 537, 538, 541, 563
  • Theory and Algorithms: CS 473, 475, 507, 571, 573, 574, 579, 580, 583, 586

Advanced Coursework: 12 credit hours with a grade of C or higher.
Must be computer science courses numbered CS 500-590 or 598. One 4 credit hour CS 597 course or an approved non-computer science 500-level course may be approved.

Additional Requirements

  • At least 24 credit hours must be taken in computer science offered by the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
  • Any course taken for letter grade must have a grade of C or higher.
  • Up to 12 credit hours of previous graduate coursework that is approved by the Department of Computer Science (including non-degree graduate courses completed within the Department of Computer Science) may be transferred and applied to the Professional MCS degree requirements.
  • Additional Coursework: Graduate (400- and 500-level) coursework from Computer Science, other Grainger College of Engineering Departments, MATH, STAT, or PHYS are pre-approved as Additional Coursework. All other courses must receive prior approval from the CS Graduate Advising Office in order to satisfy degree requirements.
  • All degree requirements must be completed in three continuous semesters or less (counting only fall and spring terms). 

MASTER OF COMPUTER SCIENCE (MCS) Requirements TABLE

Credit Hours Hours
Total Credit for the Degree 32
Course Work 32

Breadth Requirement: four different courses, each from a different core area out of the ten core areas.

 12-16

Advanced courses – chosen from CS 500 - CS 590 and CS 598; CS 597, or an approved non-CS 500-level course may satisfy 4 credit hours of this requirement.

 12

Elective courses (subject to Other Requirements and Conditions below)

 4-8

Other Requirements and Conditions (may overlap):*

Only 500-level and 400-level (when offered for graduate credit) coursework will be counted toward degree requirements.

A minimum of 24 CS credit hours must be taken from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign campus.

A minimum of 12 500-level credit hours overall.

A maximum of 4 hours of CS 591 and CS 491 may be applied toward the degree.

A grade of B- or higher is required for the Breadth course work.

The minimum program GPA is 3.0.

At most, 12 credit hours of previous graduate coursework that is approved by the Department of Computer Science (including non-degree graduate courses completed within the Department of Computer Science) may be transferred and applied to the Professional MCS degree requirements.

All degree requirements must be completed within three consecutive semesters (only fall and spring semesters are counted). 

Tuition & Fees

FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE

The Siebel School of Computing and Data Science generally does not offer Professional MCS students research or teaching assistantships. Students are eligible to accept an assistantship if one is offered. See the Office of Student Financial Aid for further information about financial assistance offered by the University.

Full-time status for Urbana MCS students who hold a graduate assistantship is defined by the Grainger College of Engineering (GCOE) as at least nine credit hours* toward their degree requirements during Fall and Spring term(s) when on appointment.  (Full-time employees of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign are eligible to register for fewer credit hours.) These are department policies for this program.

* Current GCOE minimum requirement for full-time enrollment for graduate students on at least a 25% graduate appointment.