Application Note State University of New York – Stony Brook – M.S in Computer Science I PROGRAM DESCRIPTION The M.S program is designed primarily to train students with professional goals in business, industry, or government, requiring a detailed knowledge of computer science concepts and applications The program concentrates primarily on applied computer science, emphasizing programming, software development, computer systems, and applications with appropriate theoretical background Each student is given the experience of working on one or more projects involving analysis, design, evaluation, and/or implementation Students in the M.S degree program choose between three project options: Basic Project Option In this option, the students receive a broad coverage of Computer Science with at least one projectoriented coursework The student must take credits of CSE 522 (Basic Project in Computer Science) as a part of his/her graduation requirement (see link below) Advanced Project Option In this option, the student undertakes a more involved, two-semester long project under the guidance of a faculty advisor The student must take 3+3 credits of the two-semester long sequence of CSE 523/524 (Advanced Project in Computer Science I and II) as a part of his/her graduation requirement Thesis Option In this option, the student performs a research project under the guidance of a faculty advisor (usually 2–3 semester long), and writes a dissertation The student must take 6–9 credits of CSE 599 (M.S Thesis) as a part of their graduation requirement https://www.cs.stonybrook.edu/students/Graduate-Studies/MSProgram II DEADLINE APPLICATION DEADLINES Semester Spring 2019 Fall 2019 M.S Program Ph.D Program November 01, 2018 November 01, 2018 December 01, 2018 January 15, 2019 Notes: Domestic applications for Spring 2019 may continue to be accepted till Decemeber 15, 2018 There is no application fee for domestic applicants for the M.S and Ph.D programs Most Ph.D students are admitted for the Fall term, but a handful may be admitted for the Spring Application Note term as well A majority of the M.S applications are also received for the Fall term Late applications may not receive full consideration, especially for financial support https://www.cs.stonybrook.edu/admissions/Graduate-Program III.ADMISSION REQUIREMENT A - Bachelor Degree: A bachelor’s degree, usually in a science, mathematics or engineering discipline is required The transcript should show a grade average of at least B (i.e., 3.0/4.0) in (i) all undergraduate course work, and (ii) in the science, mathematics, and engineering courses B - Basic Mathematics: Two semesters of college level calculus, plus a course in linear algebra Also desirable is a course in either probability theory or probability and statistics C - Minimal Background in Computer Science: The student must have at least undergraduatelevel proficiency in the core computer science areas If the student does not have a degree in computer science, he/she must demonstrate this proficiency via junior/senior undergraduate-level coursework or relevant job/project experience preferably in the following core computer science areas: discrete mathematics, theory of computing, algorithms, programming languages or compilers, computer organization/architecture and operating systems If exposure is lacking in one or two of the above areas, similar level of exposure in the following areas may be acceptable instead: computer networks, artificial intelligence, databases, computer security or computer graphics Note that mere programming experience is usually not considered sufficient D - GRE Examination All applicants to the M.S or Ph.D program must submit Graduate Record Examination (GRE) scores for the general aptitude tests Applicants are encouraged to submit GRE test scores for the advanced examination in Computer Science as well E - TOEFL All applicants whose primary or native language is not English are required to submit a valid TOEFL score The only exception to this requirement is for M.S applicants who are not getting financial support as teaching assistants, and who have graduated and received a degree from an institution where English is the sole language of instruction; such students can apply for a TOEFL waiver Process & Mailing Address https://www.cs.stonybrook.edu/sites/default/files/drupalfiles/basicpage/graduate-handbook.pdf Can the GMAT test be used as a substitute for the GRE? No The GMAT exam can not be used in place of the GRE or the TOEFL exam Application Note https://www.cs.stonybrook.edu/faq-page# What are the typical test score results? Students admitted in 2011 had the following score averages: TOEFL: 105 (iBT) GRE General Test: Verbal 560 (68th percentile), Quant 780 (94st percentile), Writing 3.6 Note that test scores are only one of the criteria in the review process The admission committee reviews all aspects of the application as a whole A superlative score will not ensure admission if the remainder of the application is of low quality At the same time, applications with below average scores can be compensated by other higher quality sections of the application Can the GMAT test be used as a substitute for the GRE? No The GMAT exam can not be used in place of the GRE or the TOEFL exam I am an international student studying in the U.S., I need to take GRE and TOEFL? All applicants are required to submit a valid GRE examination score All Ph.D applicants must submit a valid TOEFL score due to teaching responsibilities What happens to my application if my materials (GRE and TOEFL scores) are late? Applications with late materials, such as GRE and TOEFL scores, can negatively affect the review process There is a brief margin (1-2 weeks) after the application deadline where these scores can still be processed in time for review Applications reviewed without scores will be negatively impacted Note, that these materials are required before any offer of admissions will be issued I have only one original copy of my TOEFL and/or GRE scores Should I send them with my application? There is no need to send a hard copy of your GRE or TOEFL GRE and TOEFL scores are to be officially reported to us through ETS Official IELTS scores must be sent directly to our department, upon request only We are not able to accept copies of GRE, TOEFL or IELTS scores When submitting a request through ETS, please ensure your scores are sent to Stony Brook University using the department and institutional codes as referenced in #9 Additionally, please enter your score in the AY online application form This score will be verified with the electronic report Entering scores in your AY application allows for immediate consideration of your application However, please know that if you are offered admission, any offer of admission will not be issued without having received your official scores from the testing service Application Note What is the minimum GPA requirement? The graduate school requires a minimum of 3.0 GPA for admission to any graduate program However, note that the GPAs of typical admits are significantly higher Students with exceptionally strong research or work experience but a GPA that is marginally below 3.0 may, in a few cases, be considered for provisional admission I not meet your English proficiency requirement Do you offer conditional admission to fulfill the requirements? We not offer conditional admission to fulfill any English proficiency requirements The English proficiency requirements and the TOEFL exam must be met in order to be considered for admission Do you offer conditional admission? We not offer conditional admission for any reason Is it necessary to have a bachelor’s degree in CSE? Are students without a degree in CSE at a disadvantage compared to other applicants? A bachelor’s degree in Computer Science is highly recommended, but is not a requirement Students who have a bachelor’s degree in another field and who can demonstrate a strong computer science background, through employment and/or college-level coursework, may still apply All applications are evaluated according to the same criteria Therefore students without a CSE degree must demonstrate How I calculate my GPA in the application? Students should report their GPA or aggregate percentage (international students) according to the standard scale used by their universities Do not attempt to convert to the 4.0 GPA scale In the application, report the aggregate score/GPA achieved during the full course of your studies Why I need to enter my GRE and TOEFL scores in the application if there are sent by ETS to Stony Brook? There can be delays in receiving test scores from ETS By entering your scores in the application, the admissions committee is able to begin reviewing your application Note that the scores entered on your application will be verified with scores transmitted to the University by ETS https://www.cs.stonybrook.edu/faq-page Application Note IV PROCESS & MAILING ADDRESS Online Application APPLICATION MATERIALS Your application requires all of the following: ＊ A statement of purpose, describing your interests and motivation to pursue a graduate degree ＊ A resume or CV, describing your work experience, academic projects, and areas of expertise ＊ Three recommendation letters, from academia or industry All recommendation letters should be submitted online For Ph.D applicants, we highly recommend that a majority of the letters be from academia ＊ Scanned transcripts, please make sure transcript scans are clear and legible or your application will not be reviewed ＊ Test scores, please have ETS send your official GRE score to Stony Brook University (institution code: 2548); if your native language is not English, please have ETS send your official TOEFL score to Stony Brook University (institution code: 2548) If you took IELTS instead of TOEFL, please provide a scan of your IELTS scorecard into your ApplyYourself online application Do not send any paper documents until you receive a specific request After a review process, students deemed admissible will be asked to have their official transcripts sent to us by postal service Please not send us any hard copy documents until and unless you receive such a request, as paper documents tend to obstruct admissions processes and will likely delay the processing of your file For additional information, please check our FAQ and the Graduate School's admission web pages https://www.cs.stonybrook.edu/admissions/Graduate-Program Stony Brook: Graduate Program Director Department of Computer Science Stony Brook University Stony Brook, New York 11794-2424 Tel: (631) 632-8462, 8470 Email: graduate@ cs.stonybrook.edu I was previously admitted to the program but had to decline Where should I note this on my current application? Application Note In the Admission Information Page of the ApplyYourself application this information can be included There is no need to note your prior admittance in any other section of the application How I determine the ETC code for my undergraduate and graduate universities on the Educational History section of the application? To enter the code, press the LOOKUP button A new window will appear asking to enter the name of the university, City, State and Country The easiest approach is to leave all fields blank except the Country field Examples of Country abbreviations are as follows: US : United States CHN: China IND: India KOR: Korea Click Submit A list of all universities in the entered country will appear Select your university linked in the list to enter the ETS code in the field I am a MS applicant, how I fill out the CS Supplement? In the first section of the supplement, Computer Science Proficiency, applicants should enter courses which they have taken at the undergraduate or graduate level pertaining to the topics listed If the applicant has not taken a course in the area "NONE" should be entered in the Title field In the section, GPA Computation, international students and students who obtained undergraduate degrees outside of the USA must enter the GPA obtained each year during their undergraduate career Additionally, the rank in class or institution should be indicated if denoted on the official transcript Unofficial ranks will not be accepted and discarded I applied last semester but was rejected, can I reuse my SOP and Recommendations? This is a decision that each applicant must make independently In either case, all required documentation must be resubmitted through ApplyYourself into your new application I have been out of touch with my undergraduate college, can the recommendations be accepted from the work place? This is a decision that each applicant must make independently We will accept recommendations from the work place I thought I submitted my application, but when I login to ApplyYourself it does not say submitted What I do? If you are experiencing a technical difficulty, please click on the Technical Support link at either the top or bottom of the home page of your application account in ApplyYourself From there, please click ‘Submit a Ticket’ and follow the prompts to submit a support inquiry A technical specialist from ApplyYourself will return your inquiry My recommender will only send a hard copy letter of reference Where can I send it to? All recommendations letters should be submitted online If you want to request an exception to this policy, please send your request to graduate@cs.stonybrook.edu We grant permissions only in exceptional cases Please note, hard copy letters of reference will slow down the review process of your application My recommender cannot upload my letter of reference Can I upload them myself? Or can you upload it for me? Application Note V We can only accept letters of reference submitted by the recommenders themselves Students cannot upload letters of reference to ApplyYourself Also, our department or University cannot upload the letters on your behalf All letters must be submitted digitally through ApplyYourself What is the mailing address for sending hard copy documents? First of all, don't send us any paper documents until and unless we explicitly ask for them Unsolicited hard copy documents will only delay the processing of your application If and when hard copy documents are requested by the department, an email will be sent directly to the applicant providing the mailing address for their required documents What is your institution's code for GRE and TOEFL? The institution code for GRE and TOEFL is 2548 The Department code is 0402 for GRE and 78 for TOEFL Please note, if the scores were sent with the wrong department code, we will still receive your scores so long as the institution code is correct https://www.cs.stonybrook.edu/faq-page SOP/ESSAY/WRITING SAMPLE A statement of purpose, describing your interests and motivation to pursue a graduate degree A resume or CV, describing your work experience, academic projects, and areas of expertise https://www.cs.stonybrook.edu/admissions/Graduate-Program Statement of Purpose What would you consider your special qualifications to be, over and above those called for on the previous pages of the application? Discuss briefly your experience relative to the area of proposed study outside the classroom What you propose to with your advanced degree, professionally? Additional Supplemental Materials It is highly recommended that you check in advance with the program coordinator of your intended department to establish what additional materials are required if any Submission of non-required documents is not recommended and may slow down the review process Please provide additional documents per your intended program's requirements (Online Application) VI ADDITIONAL NOTE FOR INT’L APPLICANT English Proficiency Requirements for Foreign Students All students who are foreign nationals or have taken their higher education in a non-English speaking country must demonstrate proficiency in English, as described in Section The award of a Teaching Assistantship is contingent on the candidate’s ability to speak English proficiently All non-native English speakers will be required to have TOEFL/SPEAK score 25 or above, or IELTS/SPEAK score of 7.5 or above, before being assigned to classroom or other teaching Application Note duties Students who not meet these requirements must take remedial courses ESL 591, ESL 596, or ESL 598 depending on their TOEFL/IELTS SPEAK scores First year foreign students are advised to take full advantage of every opportunity to improve their fluency in English through frequent conversation with other English speakers, and by enrolling in appropriate English language courses Students on assistantship who cannot fulfill their obligations may not have their assistantships renewed; students who entered without support or with partial support will not be considered for full support the second year if they cannot assume the obligations of a teaching assistant https://www.cs.stonybrook.edu/sites/default/files/drupalfiles/basicpage/graduate-handbook.pdf Fall 2018 Tuition and Fee Billing Rates https://www.stonybrook.edu/commcms/bursar/tuition/_documents/1188/Fall %202018%20Grad.pdf VII STATUS CHECK https://app.applyyourself.com/AYApplicantLogin/fl_ApplicantLogin.asp?id=sunysb-gs VIII OTHER / FINANCIAL AID / INTERVIEW The M.S program is intended for students seeking advanced positions in the software industry Applicants that already have a Master's (or doctoral) degree in Computer Science are not eligible Students admitted to the M.S program are not offered financial support by the department, but some of our best M.S students find partial or full research assistantships from CS faculty or some other department on campus Information regarding tuition and other costs can be found here We receive a large number of applications, so we can admit only a fraction of them https://www.cs.stonybrook.edu/admissions/Graduate-Program ... Graduate Program Director Department of Computer Science Stony Brook University Stony Brook, New York 1179 4-2 424 Tel: (631) 63 2-8 462, 8470 Email: graduate@ cs.stonybrook.edu I was previously admitted... send your official GRE score to Stony Brook University (institution code: 2548); if your native language is not English, please have ETS send your official TOEFL score to Stony Brook University. .. immediate consideration of your application However, please know that if you are offered admission, any offer of admission will not be issued without having received your official scores from the