Carnegie Mellon School of Computer Science

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The School of Computer Science (SCS) at Carnegie Mellon gained its present status as a separate school in 1988; the department of computer science was established in 1965. It consistently ranks as one of the best computer science programs in the United States [1], and is currently ranked 1st [2]. In the past 15 years, SCS researchers have pioneered developments in the areas of algorithms, computer networks, distributed systems, parallel processing, programming languages, robotics, language technologies and software engineering.

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[edit] History

In the 1950s, the "electronic computer" emerged, capturing the minds of researchers in many disciplines. At Carnegie Mellon, this group included faculty such as Allen Newell, Herbert Simon, and Alan J. Perlis, as well as faculty in the Graduate School of Industrial Administration (now called the Tepper School of Business), staff from the newly formed Computation Center, and key administrators. This group conceived of computer science as more than the theory and design of computers; it is, as Newell said, "the study of all the phenomena arising from them."

The Department of Computer Science, one of the first such departments in the nation, was officially formed in July 1965. The intent was simple: to cultivate a course of study leading to the Ph.D. degree in computer science, a program that would exploit the new technology and assist in establishing a discipline of computer science. The educational program, formally accepted in October 1965, drew its first graduate students from several existing academic disciplines: mathematics, electrical engineering, psychology, and the interdisciplinary Systems and Communications Sciences program in the Graduate School of Industrial Administration. The department was housed within the Mellon College of Science.

By 1985, new areas within computer science were commanding attention with enough vigor that the department set about to become a school. Buttressed with the strong commitment of Newell, Simon, Nico Haberman, Provost Angel Jordan and President Richard Cyert, the department of computer science began a two-year status as a "floating" department in the early months of 1986. No longer embedded within the traditional confines of the Mellon College of Science, the Department began to stretch its scientific and fiscal wings, to see how it would evolve in a larger, more "open" organization. In 1988, the Department was officially elevated to the status of a School of Computer Science, among the first such schools in the country.

[edit] Structure in the 1980s

During the 1980s, the graduate program of the Computer Science department of Carnegie Mellon was atypical. The department offered only a Ph.D. study program, with no master's degree as an intermediate step. The Ph.D. program required a minimum of six years of residency. It was called the "do or die" program among the graduate students. In many other schools, students could bail out with a master's degree if they couldn't make it all the way. The Carnegie Mellon program demanded absolute dedication and commitment with no alternative. At the time, it prided itself on being one of the best computer science graduate programs in the nation, specializing in computer networking, operating systems (Mach), and robotics.

[edit] SCS today

[edit] Organizational units

[edit] Doctoral programs

  • Ph.D. in Computer Science
  • Ph.D. in Computer Science/Neural Basis of Cognition
  • Ph.D. in Robotics
  • Ph.D. in Robotics/Neural Basis of Cognition
  • M.D./Ph.D. in Robotics
  • Ph.D. in Language and Information Technologies
  • Ph.D. in Human-Computer Interaction
  • Ph.D. in Software Engineering
  • Ph.D. in Computational and Statistical Learning
  • Ph.D. in Computational and Statistical Learning/Neural Basis of Cognition
  • Ph.D. Program in Computation, Organizations and Society
  • Ph.D. in Computer Science (Pure and Applied Logic)
  • Ph.D. in Computer Science (Algorithms, Combinatorics, and Optimization)
  • Interdisciplinary Ph.D. Program (self-defined)

[edit] Academic masters

[edit] Professional masters

[edit] Undergraduate programs

  • Fifth Year Masters in Computer Science (Carnegie Mellon, CS undergrads only)
  • MBA – Computer Science 3-2 Program (Carnegie Mellon, CS undergrads only)
  • Bachelor of Science in Computer Science
  • Additional Major in Human-Computer Interaction
  • Minor in Language Technologies
  • Minor in Computer Science
  • Minor in Robotics (this is technically granted by CIT)

[edit] Student organizations

Women@SCS is an educational program at Carnegie Mellon whose mission is to create, encourage, and support women's academic, social and professional opportunities in the computer sciences and to promote the breadth of the field and its diverse community. Women@SCS has initiated programs, such as the Big/Little Sister program for undergraduates, the invited Speaker Series for graduates, as well as dinners and other social and academic events. Women@SCS also sponsors outreach projects such as "Is there a robot in your future?" workshop for middle school girls. In general, the committee strives to promote a healthy and supportive community atmosphere.

[edit] See also

[edit] External link

Carnegie Mellon University

Academic Units

Carnegie Institute of Technology (College of Engineering) • College of Fine Arts • College of Humanities and Social Sciences • Heinz School of Public Policy and Management • Mellon College of Science • School of Computer Science • Tepper School of Business
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