1. CS Undergraduate Advisor
Welcome to the
Computer Science Department
Advice and answers for Post-Baccalaureate students interested in Computer Science
Wu-chi Feng
CS Department Chair
Barbara Sabath
CS Undergraduate Advisor
Rebecca Sexton
CS Graduate Advisor

2. Agenda As a Post-bac, you have options!
Bachelors or Masters…what’s the difference?
Bachelor Degree Requirements
Master Degree Prerequisites
Planning your Post-bac program of study
Admissions to the Computer Science Dept.
Prior Credits and Experience
Q&A

3. Bachelor’s or Master’s?
Bachelor’s Degree:
May be quicker
Performance
Broad Study
Master’s Degree:
May be quicker
Performance
Area of Focus

4. Path #1: Second Bachelor’s degree in CS
Broader topical coverage than Master’s program
Begin any term
Must complete all undergraduate major requirements; CS credits and additional courses (Math, Science, etc.)
Must maintain a C or better
Completed in as little as four years

5. What Makes us Unique
Many of our masters students do not hold Computer Science undergraduate degrees
We value diverse academic backgrounds
We offer pathways for students to complete the necessary coursework that prepares them for our graduate program
We don’t require any prior computer science experience in order to pursue these pathways

6. Path #2: Traditional Grad Prep Track
Begin any term
Must maintain a B or better
Completed in as little as 2 years plus required time for Master’s program

7. Path #3: New Beginnings:
Accelerated Grad Prep Track
Cohorts begin fall term
Highly accelerated, full-time program
Completed in 9 months (Sept - June) plus time required for masters

8. Planning to get a Bachelor’s in CS?
Must complete all required UG courses including:
COMM 220 Public Speaking
WR 227 Technical Writing
MTH 251, 252 Calculus I, II
ECE 341 Computer Hardware
Approved Science and Math Electives
Upper Division CS Electives
CS 469, 470 Software Engineering Capstone
Courses taken for the first undergraduate degree can be used to satisfy free electives and general University requirements.

9. Planning to get a Master’s in CS?
You don’t need a Bachelor’s Degree in Computer Science in order to do the Master’s Program.
We offer two options for graduate preparatory course work for Non-CS degrees.
Grad Prep (traditional Post-bac Track)
New Beginnings (Accelerated Post-bac Track)

10. Traditional Grad Prep Track
15% of the graduating class of ; 20% of the graduating class of
Begin taking classes any term
Must complete (or demonstrate mastery) of most undergraduate computer science coursework.
Consists of Programming, Languages, and Theory
44-48 credits

11. New Beginnings Highly accelerated: 9 month cohort (Sept – June)
No prior programming experience is required
30+ hours a week out of class
Students are not allowed to work off campus
Not a vocational training program
Starting in , students will have the choice to pursue preparation for PSU’s Computer Science or OHSU’s Biomedical Informatics graduate degrees.

12. New Beginnings
Admission to New Beginnings is required and competitive.
Applicants are expected to have:
Required Qualifications:
GRE Scores are required: A Quantitative score in the 70th percentile or above and a Verbal score in the 50th percentile or above
Preferred Qualifications:
At least a year of mathematics beyond pre-calculus
An undergraduate GPA of 3.5 of better

13. Master’s Degree in Computer Science (45 credits)
Core (9)
CS 581 Theory of Computation
CS 558 Programming Languages
CS 533 Concepts of Operating Systems
Track (9)
Databases
Intelligent & Adaptive Systems
Languages
Security
Software Engineering
Systems
Theory
Electives (27)
Additional 500-level CS courses
15 credits can be outside of CS

14. Where do I Begin?
We have multiple entry points to our post-bac programs for second bachelor’s and grad prep students
No prior programming experience?
Start with CS 161
Some programming experience?
Start with CS 162
How should I know if I am ready for CS 162?
There is a self-placement available from our office to help you determine if you should begin at CS 161 or CS 162

15. Portland Community College
You may begin your Post-bac study at a community college, such as PCC.
All lower division courses for the Grad Prep and second Bachelor’s (including non-CS major requirements) can be completed at PCC.
PLEASE NOTE: PCC requires you to start with CS 140U, CS 161, and MTH 111.
PCC’s CS Advisor: Michele Maxwell

16. Keep in Mind…
Advanced courses in Computer Science build on earlier courses.
You must successfully pass or demonstrate mastery (through CPL) in order to move forward in our programs.
A weak preparation in one class can lead to issues throughout the rest of your programs.

17. IMPORTANT For many Reasons
Scheduling is
IMPORTANT For many Reasons
We enforce prerequisites! Consider this when planning your program of study
Departmental Admissions is required in order to complete upper division CS courses
Planning to do the master’s? You must have all grad prep courses completed before you start.

18. Departmental Admissions
Grad Prep or Second Bachelor’s? Same application and deadlines. Different requirements.
Admissions takes places twice a year: Fall term (July 1st deadline) and Spring term (February 1st deadline)
Students begin with CS 300 and CS 311 which are only offered in the Fall and Spring
All lower division CS courses should be completed and mastered by the term you are applying to
Documented by grades or Credit for Prior Learning (CPL)

19. CS 202 Programming Systems
If you did not complete CS 202 at PSU, you’ll need to demonstrate acceptable proficiency in programming through one of our Proficiency Demonstrations.
This examination is part of the midterm and final if you complete CS 202 at PSU.
Plan Ahead! Proficiency exams are scheduled in August each year.
This a departmental admissions requirement.

20. Departmental Admissions
for 2nd Bachelor’s Degree
CS courses: 162, 163, 201, 202*, 250, and 251 with an overall GPA of 2.0 (all attempts will be considered)
MTH 251 & 252 (Calculus I and II)
An approved Lab Science sequence
COMM 220
Required courses outside of CS must be completed with a minimum grade of a C-

21. Admissions for Grad Prep
Departmental
Admissions for Grad Prep
CS courses: 162, 163, 201, 202*, 250, and 251 with a GPA (all attempts will be considered)
Must complete all Grad Prep courses with a minimum grade of a B (for department and graduate admissions).
Recommended: Take the GRE while completing the lower division Grad Prep courses.
All A’s in the Grad Prep will not guarantee you admission to the graduate program if you do not meet with the minimum GRE scores
Quantitative: 60th percentile Verbal: 25th percentile

22. Prior Credits and Experience
Determine if your prior courses match our requirements.
Request transfer evaluation upon Post-bac admission
Additional evaluation through course’s department may be required
Some courses can be waived through documented professional experience.

23. Thank You!