Page 80 - Bowie State University Graduate Catalog 2018-2020.

skilled workforce and for those planning to enhance their skill level in the
chosen area.

Admission to the Program

Completion of Bachelor’s degree with a minimum of 3.0 cumulative GPA on a
4.0 scale in the last 60 credit hours is preferred
A minimum of two letters of recommendation
An applicant is expected to possess the prerequisites for the intended area of
study. If a deficiency exists, the necessary course work must be completed
prior to the advancement to candidacy
Students not meeting these requirements may be admitted on a conditional
basis. The conditional student must maintain a minimum GPA of 3.0 in at least
nine (9) Computer Science graduate credits in the first year of study to be fully
admitted
A statement letter indicating educational and professional objectives of the
candidate
A minimum TOEFL score of 550 (International students)

Program Requirements

Completion of a minimum of 60 graduate-level credit hours (not including
dissertation) from among the list of courses for the doctoral program
recommended by the Doctoral Program Committee. (For those students who
do not have a computer science background, the Doctoral Program Committee
may assign additional courses.) Up to six graduate-level computer science
credits may be counted from qualifying institutions. Students entering the
program with a Master’s Degree in Computer Science or related area may be
able to count up to thirty graduate-level computer science credits from
qualifying institutions.
Satisfactory completion and passing the qualifying examination.
Satisfactory completion and passing the comprehensive examination.
Satisfactory completion of the dissertation requirements (12 credits).
Satisfactory completion of the dissertation defense.

Courses

Students are required to earn 15 credits (5 courses) in core computer science
topics, 45 credits (15 courses) from four of the knowledge areas, (where the
500- level courses cannot exceed 9-credits and those courses should include at

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