Graduate Degree Admissions

Minimum College Requirements

Applicants to the graduate programs must have been awarded (or about to be awarded) a 4-year bachelors degree equivalent to that granted by the University of Illinois. Their GPA for the last 45 - 60 semester-hours (junior and senior years) of undergraduate study must correspond to a "B" or 3.0/4.0 or higher. If an applicant also holds a graduate degree, the GPA for that degree must also be at least a "B". This represents the minimum GPA required by the Graduate College of this university. Please note the average GPA of those applicants recommended for admission by the department is much higher as indicated below.

Applicants who hold masters degrees in computer science or computer engineering whose degree requirements are equivalent the M.S. or M.C.S. degree in CS at UIUC should not apply for a second master degree. The Graduate College of the University of Illinois will not award degrees which are duplicate in content, if not name, to one already awarded.

Applicants whose undergraduate degree is a three-year program are not eligible for graduate level admission consideration at the University of Illinois. As stated previously, the degree must be equivalent to the four-year bachelor degrees awarded by this university.

General Department Requirements

Admission to the graduate programs within the Department of Computer Science is very competitive. The median grade point average (GPA) is 3.6/4.0 for those recommended for admission.

Program Application Requirements

The online Master of Computer Science (M.C.S.) degree program through the Illinois Internet Computer Science (I2CS) program is identical to the on-campus degree program. Applicants to the online program must have sufficient background in computer programming, algorithms and data structures, computer organization, and theory of computation (Comparable to CS 125, CS 225, CS 231/232, and CS 173/273 at UIUC).

Admission Procedures

Thank you for considering the Master of Computer Science (MCS) degree program for distance learners though the I2CS program.

To apply, use the university's on-line application system, which is available at:

http://www.grad.uiuc.edu/admissions/apply/.

The university's application fee is $60 for US citizens and permanent residents and $75 for all other applicants. The fee must be paid by credit card at the same time the on-line application is completed. If you cannot pay by credit card, contact the Office of Continuing Engineering Education. Please do not send the application fee to the department because it will delay the payment process, and if processed past the application deadline, will cause your application not to be reviewed for the term originally indicated on the application. Furthermore, all parts of the application, including application fee must be received by the application deadline; no application will be considered without payment of the fee. Late applications will not be accepted. Application fees are non-refundable.

Applicants must send official copies of transcripts of all completed university course work, and certification of degree for all completed degree programs, three letters of reference, and a statement of purpose which is included in the online application.

GRE General. The Graduate Record Examination (GRE) general aptitude tests (Verbal, Quantitative, and Analytical) are no longer required. In some cases, GRE scores may provide helpful supporting information; therefore, it is recommended that the scores are reported if the applicant has taken the exam.

GRE Subject. Applicants to the Ph.D. program are strongly encouraged to submit a score for the GRE (Subject/Advanced) Computer Science Test. If the background of the applicant is in mathematics, science, or engineering, they may submit an advanced GRE test score from that area.

TOEFL, TOEFL iBT or IELTS. All students whose native language is not English are required to have the Educational Testing Service (ETS) officially submit the results of the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL iBT, CB, PB or IELTS) before they can be admitted to the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. A graduate applicant is exempt from this testing if, within five years of the proposed term of enrollment, he or she has completed at least two academic years of full-time study as defined by the home institution, or completed a graduate degree, in a country where English is the primary language and in a school where English is the primary language of instruction.

All credentials must be received by the application deadline. Incomplete applications are subject to denial.

Application Checklist

Submit application online at http://www.grad.uiuc.edu/admissions/apply/program.htm.
Official copies of transcripts of all university course work and certification of degree of all completed degree programs.
Three letters of recommendation. A letter of reference PDF form is available at: http://www.grad.uiuc.edu/forms/admission/LetterOfReference.pdf.
Score from the TOEFL (iBT, CB, or PB) or IELTS if required (see above). Uncertified copies are acceptable pending official scores.

Most information is submitted through the university's on-line application system. If necessary, some items may be mailed to:

Director of Graduate Admissions

Department of Computer Science

University of Illinois

1210 Siebel Center, 201 N. Goodwin

Urbana, IL 61801

UNITED STATES

Admission Deadlines

Summer Session or Fall Semester: December 15

Spring Semester: September 1

Admission decisions are typically announced by March 15 for summer and fall admissions and by November 1 for spring admissions.

Tuition, Fees and Registration

Tuition, fees and registration are handled by the Engineering and Computer Science Online Program. Information can be found at Engineering and Computer Science Online Program Registration.

Admission Decisions

Graduate student admission decisions are administered by the Fellowship, Assistantship, and Admissions (FAA) Committee comprising of a number of faculty members and senior graduate students.

The FAA committee evaluates each complete application received by the deadline, based on the applicant's academic grades, reference letters, statement of purpose, and all other relevant information.
Applications that are lacking required credentials will not be forwarded to the FAA committee for review until complete. Incomplete files are subject to denial.
Applicants will be notified of the status regarding the completion of their file via email. Admission decisions may be sent either by regular mail or by email with attachments. Please do not call or email the department as no information concerning an applicant's file or admissions decision will be given to telephone or email inquiries.

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Last Modified April 18 2008 05:58:52.