Last updated: June 27, 2022.
Beginning in Fall 2022, the Department of Computer Science is adopting a new process for admission to the Computer Science major. Admission is required for any student wishing to take upper division courses in CS (i.e., 300 or 400 level courses). With the new process, in the term after a student has completed the requirements described below, they will be able to complete an opt-in form, linked from the CS website, and will then be admitted to the CS major in time to take classes in the following term. Some special provisions, involving "dual use" courses, also described below, are made so that students can continue to make progress towards their degree in the gap between completing the admission requirements and being fully admitted to the major. Although opt-ins still require verification to check that the requirements have been met, this new process will be quicker, easier, more flexible, and more transparent for students.
Requirements for Admission to the CS Major
Students must complete the following requirements (or approved equivalents) for admission:
| Computer Science Requirements (complete with grade C or better) |
CS 161 Introduction to Programming and Problem Solving (this requirement will be waived for students who have completed CS 162 prior to Fall 2022) |
| CS 162 Introduction to Computer Science |
| CS 163 Data Structures |
| CS 201 Computer Systems Programming |
| CS 250 Discrete Structures I |
| CS 251 Discrete Structures II |
| Math Requirements (complete with grade C- or better) |
MTH 251 Calculus I |
| MTH 252 Calculus II |
| MTH 253 Calculus III or MTH 261 Linear Algebra |
| Science Requirements (complete with grade C- or better) |
Students must have completed all three terms of an approved lab science sequence. |
| General Education Requirements |
PSU students must have completed the Freshman and Sophomore Inquiry series with a grade of C- or better.
Transfer students must complete Maseeh College lower division general education requirements.
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Students transferring to PSU from an Oregon Community College should note that these requirements have been chosen to align with the Major Transfer Map (MTM) for Computer Science.
Undergraduate and postbac students with questions about admission and gaining access to 300-400 level courses can email the Undergraduate Adviser at uccs@pdx.edu. Prospective and/or transfer students may seek advising to prepare for admission to the CS program through the advising team in the Engineering, Computer Science, Math and Physics Pathway.
Completing the Opt-in Form
The opt-in form will be available from the CS website in September 2022. To complete the form, students will be required to attach a copy of their DARS report, which will include a new item that makes it easy to see that the requirements for admission have been satisfied. The opt-in form will also provide instructions guiding students on how to obtain a copy of their DARS report from the PSU online systems. If a student has not yet satisfied the admission requirements, the DARS report will be helpful in identifying which requirements are still to be met. Requirements are not considered complete until they are reflected on DARS. Students may need to allow extra time for courses to appear on DARS if they are being transferred from another institution and are advised to monitor their previous institution's transfer process to ensure that the transfer occurs as quickly as possible.
Note that, although there are no formal deadlines, students are strongly encouraged to complete the opt-in form as soon as possible after the have satisfied the admission requirements, so as to avoid delays in being able to register for upper division courses. Note also that students taking upper division CS courses are required to pay differential tuition rates; this is why we use an opt-in rather than a process that admits students automatically as soon as they have met the requirements.
"Dual Use Courses"
Students will usually be able to complete the opt-in during the term after they complete the last of the requirements listed above. But how will they register for upper division CS classes in that term if they have not already been admitted? To address this, the CS department has designated a small set of upper division courses as "dual use courses" that students can take in the term when they submit their opt-in request without having to be admitted. Specifically, students will be allowed to register for CS 302 and one of (CS 350, CS 486, or ECE 341) in the term after completing the admission requirements described above. (Students can take additional courses during that same term that will contribute to their degree requirements, including non-CS electives and general education requirements such as Junior Cluster courses.)
Students should pay attention to the following essential caveats when registering for dual use courses:
- Students should not take a total of more than 8 credits of upper division CS courses, including any dual use courses, before they are admitted to the CS major. Students who do take more than 8 credits before admission will likely be required to complete additional CS electives after admission to meet their degree requirements (a minimum of 44 upper division CS credits after admission).
- Students should not generally take dual use courses before they have completed the admission requirements. Students who do not follow this guidance may find that they have in a gap in available courses that could delay their progress in the major for one or more terms. This will be a particular problem for students who need to maintain a continuous enrollment with some minimum number of credits in each term.
Unfortunately, the department will not be able to make exceptions to degree or other program requirements, including individual course prerequisites, for students who do not follow these guidelines when making their course selections. If in doubt, students should work with their advisor to ensure that they have an acceptable plan for moving forward with their choice of courses. Note that the department reserves the right to administratively drop a student from a dual use course before the start of the term if the student has not completed the admission requirements and if their registration is preventing other people, who have completed the requirements, from being able to take the course.
Other Notes
The previous course "CS 202 Programming Systems" is being dropped and replaced in the curriculum by a new course, CS 302. Any student who has completed CS 202 prior to Fall 2022 will be allowed to take courses in the CS major that require CS 302 as a prerequisite. However, students who remain on the old catalog (where CS 202 is still a degree requirement) are generally still encouraged to take CS 302, which can be counted towards CS upper division elective requirements for the CS degree if the student remains on an old catalog.
[Please see https://www.pdx.edu/computer-science/new-admission-process for the most up to date version of this document.]