• Skip to Content
  • AZ Index
  • Catalog Home
  • Institution Home
West Virginia University 2024-2025 Academic Catalog
WVU Home
Would you like to search this site specifically, or all WVU websites?
  • Catalog Home
  • WVU Morgantown
    • Undergraduate Catalog
    • Graduate/​Professional Catalog
  • WVU Potomac State College
    • Applied Sciences
    • Liberal Arts
    • STEM
    • Regents Bachelor of Arts
  • WVU Institute of Technology
    • School of Arts and Sciences
    • School of Business
    • School of Engineering-​Leonard C. Nelson
    • School of Nursing
  • Archived Catalogs
  • Catalog Home/
  • WVU Morgantown/
  • Graduate/Professional Catalog/
  • Engineering and Mineral Resources- Benjamin M. Statler College of/
  • Department of  Computer Science and Electrical Engineering/
  • Computer Science/
  • Computer Science, Ph.D.
WVU Morgantown

Computer Science, Ph.D.

  • Overview
  • Learning Outcomes

Curriculum in Doctor of Philosophy –Computer Science Requirements

A candidate for the Ph.D. degree with a major in computer science must comply with the rules and regulations as outlined in the WVU Graduate Catalog and the specific requirements of the Statler College and the Lane Department of Computer Science and Electrical Engineering.

Program Requirements

The doctor of philosophy degree with a major in computer science is administered through the college’s interdisciplinary Ph.D. program. The research work for the doctoral dissertation must show a high degree of originality on the part of the student and must constitute an original contribution to the art and science of computer science.

All Ph.D. degree candidates are required to perform research and follow a planned program of study. The student’s research advisor, in conjunction with the student’s Advising and Examining Committee (AEC) will be responsible for determining the plan of study appropriate to the student’s needs. The underlying principle of the planned program is to provide the students with the necessary support to complete their degree and prepare them for their career.

Research work for the doctoral dissertation must represent a significant contribution to engineering or computer science. It may entail a fundamental investigation into a specialized area.

Curriculum Requirements

Course List
Code Title Hours
A minimum cumulative GPA of 3.0 is required
Course Requirements *
A minimum of six credit hours of 600 or higher level courses
A maximum of six credit hours may be in directed study (CS 795)
Research24
CS 797
Research
Select from the following based on degree path: 18
Any BIOM, BMEG, CE, CHE, CHEM, CPE, CS, EE, IENG, IH&S, MAE, MATH, MINE, PNGE, PHYS, SAFM, SENG, or STAT courses 500-795, as approved by the student's AEC
Examinations
Plan of Study
Qualifying Exam
Candidacy Exam
Final Exam
Dissertation
Total Hours42
*

Students who do not hold a baccalaureate degree in computer science are required to take a set of undergraduate computer science courses above and beyond the minimum coursework requirements.

Doctoral students who do not have an M.S.C.S. degree must either earn this degree or complete coursework as required for the M.S.C.S. with thesis option. It is not necessary to actually write a thesis. A minimum of twenty-four hours of coursework is required. Up to twelve hours may be transferred from work done at another institution.

A minimum of forty-two hours of coursework and thirty hours of independent research beyond a bachelor’s degree, or eighteen hours of coursework and twenty-four hours of independent research beyond an M.S. degree are required.

Examinations

Qualifying Exam

All students must take and pass a written qualifying examination. Normally, the qualifying examination is given no later than one semester after completion of eighteen credit hours toward the doctoral degree. This examination is designed to assess the basic competency of students in the computer science field to determine whether or not they have sufficient knowledge to undertake independent research.

The Lane Department of Computer Science and Electrical Engineering is organized in the following five Focus Areas. All Ph.D. degree programs use these Areas to provide organizational structure to the educational process as delineated under specific Ph.D. requirements. The significance of these Areas will be of particular importance in preparation for the Qualifying Exam as each area has designated Ph.D. Qualifier Core Courses as follows:

Course List
Code Title Hours
1. Electronics and Photonics Focus Area
EE 550
Advanced Semiconductor Electronics
EE 551
Linear Integrated Circuits
EE 650
Optoelectronics
2. Signals and Systems Focus Area
EE 513
Stochastic Systems Theory
EE 515
Linear Control Systems
EE 533
Computer Applications in Power System Analysis
3. Computer Systems Focus Area
CPE 670
Switching Circuit Theory 1
CS 550
Theory of Operating Systems
4. Software/Knowledge Engineering Focus Area
CPE 684
Advanced Real-Time Systems
CS 677
Pattern Recognition
CS 630Empirical Methods in Software Engineering and Computer Science3
CPE 520Application of Neural Networks3
5. Theory of Computing Focus Area
CS 510
Formal Specification of Language
CS 520
Advanced Analysis of Algorithms
CS 525
Computational Complexity

Ph.D. students must make the first attempt to pass the qualifying exam within fourteen months of their enrollment if they already have a M.S. degree from the Lane Department of CSEE or within twenty-six months otherwise. The Ph.D. qualifying process consists of completion of a research project and oral examination. The project is intended to demonstrate the student's ability to assemble and analyze the relevant literature for a given research problem and to make preliminary steps towards his/her own contribution.

The oral exam will include:

  1. Presentation by the student of his/her research project
  2. Questions about the work, its context, and relevant literature
  3. Questions about course work, focusing specifically on the three core courses for which the student has earned credit

The possible outcomes of the first year exam are: "Pass" which means the student is qualified to begin work towards the candidacy exam; "Pass with Recommended Coursework" which means the student is qualified to begin work towards a candidacy exam but certain courses must be taken; or "Fail". Any student failing the qualifying exam on the initial attempt will have one additional attempt within six months. Failure of the exam on the second attempt will disqualify the student from further doctoral studies in the LCSEE program.

Candidacy Examination

In order to be admitted to candidacy, the student must pass a candidacy exam, which is designed to evaluate the student’s overall ability to engage in high-level research.

When all requirements are completed, the qualifying and candidacy examinations are passed, and the research proposal is successfully defended, the student is formally admitted to candidacy for the Ph.D. degree. For full-time students, admission to candidacy must normally occur within three years of entering the Ph.D. program.

Final Examination

At the completion of the dissertation research, candidates must prepare a dissertation and pass the final oral examination (defense) administered by their AEC.

In order to complete the Ph.D. requirements, a student must pass a final oral examination on the results embodied in the dissertation. This examination is open to the public and, in order to evaluate critically the student's competency, may include testing on material in related fields, as deemed necessary by the AEC. All requirements for the degree must be completed within five years after the student has been admitted to candidacy.

Suggested Plan of Study

It is important for students to take courses in the order specified as much as possible; all prerequisites and concurrent requirements must be observed. A typical doctoral degree program that completes degree requirements in three years is as follows. A typical Ph.D. program requires four to five years beyond the Baccalaureate degree, although scholarly achievements are more important than length of program.

First Year
FallHoursSpringHours
Course3Course3
Course3Course3
CS 7973CS 7973
 9 9
Second Year
FallHoursSpringHours
CS 7976CS 7976
Course3Course3
 9 9
Third Year
FallHoursSpringHours
CS 7979CS 7979
 9 9
Total credit hours: 54

Major Learning Outcomes

Computer Science

It is our goal that in the first five years after graduation our students will:

  1. Achieve success and proficiency in the Computer Science profession.
  2. Be recognized as leaders.
  3. Contribute to the well-being of society.
  • Computer Engineering
  • Computer Science
    • Computer Science, M.S.C.S.
    • Computer Science, Ph.D.
  • Electrical Engineering
  • Software Engineering

WVU Morgantown

Graduate/Professional Catalog Information

  • Academic and Professional Standards
  • Admissions
  • Advising, Enrollment and Evaluation
  • Calendar
  • Courses
  • Degree Regulations
  • FERPA
  • Financial Aid
  • Graduate Certificates
  • Programs, Courses and Credits
  • Tuition, Fees and Residency
  • Veterans

Office of the University Registrar
P.O. Box 6878
Morgantown, WV 26506
Email: registrar@mail.wvu.edu
Phone: 304-293-5355

  • Accreditations
  • Web Standards
  • Questions or Comments?

© 2024-2025 West Virginia University. WVU is an EEO/Affirmative Action employer — Minority/Female/Disability/Veteran.

  • A-Z Site Index
  • Campus Map
  • WVU Careers
  • Directory
  • Give
  • Handshake Login
  • WVU Alert
  • WVU Today
  • WVU Portal
  • WVU on Facebook
  • WVU on Twitter
  • WVU on YouTube

The information on this page is subject to change without notice. Disclaimer

Print Options

  • Send Page to Printer

    Print this page.

  • Download Page (PDF)

    The PDF will include all information unique to this page.

  • Download Complete 2024-25 PDF Catalogs

    • WVU Morgantown - Graduate/Professional
    • WVU Morgantown - Undergraduate
    • WVU Keyser - Potomac State College
    • WVU Beckley - WVU Tech
    • WVU Morgantown - Law

    Download 2024-25 PDF Courses Catalogs

    • WVU Morgantown - Graduate/Professional Courses
    • WVU Morgantown - Undergraduate Courses
    • WVU Keyser - Potomac State College Courses
    • WVU Beckley - WVU Tech Courses

Print Options

  • Send Page to Printer

    Print this page.

  • Download PDF of this page

    The PDF will include all information unique to this page.

  • Download Complete 2020-21 PDF Catalogs

    • WVU Morgantown - Graduate/Professional
    • WVU Morgantown - Undergraduate
    • WVU Keyser - Potomac State College
    • WVU Beckley - WVU Tech
    • WVU Morgantown - Law

    Download 2020-21 PDF Courses Catalogs

    • WVU Morgantown - Graduate/Professional Courses
    • WVU Morgantown - Undergraduate Courses
    • WVU Keyser - Potomac State College Courses
    • WVU Beckley - WVU Tech Courses