Degree Requirements

All students are required to complete overall degree requirements in addition to their major.  Please see Degree Completion Requirements for full details for students entering in the 2024-2025 catalog year. 

Those students who started at Hiram prior to the 2024-2025 academic year will follow the Degree Requirements outlined in your catalog of record.

Major Requirements

Integrated Research Components (Capstone)

The computer science program capstone is a sequence of two integrated research components. An integrated research component (IRC) is an integration of research with a specified course and requires a formal research proposal, a significant software implementation, an oral presentation to faculty and peers, and a research paper. An IRC can be added to selected upper-division courses. Choices must be approved by your program advisor and the course instructor.

Computer Science Electives

We value breadth in coursework, as well as the experience of working in groups, which is an important aspect of software development that is highly valued in industry and graduate school. Therefore, we require that among the 6 courses that you take as CPSC electives and IRC co-requisites, you include at least one course from each of the systems, theory, and group work categories. (CPSC 49800 INTERNSHIP, if taken for 3 or more hours, can count as one of the CPSC 2xxxx courses but not as one of the CPSC 3xxxx courses.)

Alternative courses in each elective category, such as seminar courses, may be substituted for the courses in the list with approval of computer science faculty.

Required Core Courses
CPSC 17100INTRO TO COMPUTER SCI-W/LAB:MM4
CPSC 17200INTRO TO PROGRAMMING-W/LAB:MM4
CPSC 20100DATA STRUCTUR/ALRITHM-W/LAB:MM4
CPSC 24000COMPUTER ETHICS:ES3
CPSC 25200COMPUTER ORGANIZATION4
Integrated Research Components (Capstone)
The computer science capstone is a sequence of two integrated research components. An integrated research component (IRC) is an integration of research with a specified course and requires a formal research proposal, a significant software implementation, an oral presentation to faculty and peers, and a research paper. An IRC can be added to selected upper-division courses. Choices must be approved by your program advisor and the course instructor.
CPSC 40000INTEGRATED RESRCH COMPONENT I2
and CPSC 3xxxx (co-requisite)4
CPSC 40100INTEGRATED RESRCH COMPONENT II2
and CPSC 3xxxx (co-requisite)4
Computer Science Electives
One CPSC elective at the 20000-level or above3-4
Three CPSC electives at the 30000-level or above9-12
Additional Groups
Among the courses fulfilling the above requirements, select at least one course from each of the following groups:
Systems Courses
VLSI DESIGN
OPERATING SYSTEMS
COMPUTER SECURITY
COMPUTER NETWORKS
Theory Courses
PROGRAMMING LANGUAGES
INTRO DESIGN&ANALYSIS ALGORITH
ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE
COMPILER DESIGN & CONSTRUCTION
THEORY OF COMPUTATION
Group Work Courses
DESIGN & BUILD COMPUTER GAMES
SYSTEMS PROGRAMMING
USER INTERFACE DESIGN
DATABASE DESIGN
SOFTWARE ENGINEERING
Total Hours43-47

Early contact with a program advisor is critical to ensure the proper sequencing and choice of computer science courses. A student majoring in computer science must have completed CPSC 17100 INTRO TO COMPUTER SCI-W/LAB:MM and CPSC 17200 INTRO TO PROGRAMMING-W/LAB:MM by the end of their sophomore year in order to finish the major within four years.

Students majoring in computer science at Hiram are well-trained for positions in business and industry. Students considering graduate study in computer science should add mathematics courses in consultation with their computer science advisor.

Pathway

Plan of Study Grid
First Year
Fall 12 WeekHours
CPSC 17100 INTRO TO COMPUTER SCI-W/LAB:MM 1 4
UCS 10101 FIRST-YEAR ENDURING QUESTIONS 4
Hiram Core Requirement 4
 Hours12
Fall 3 Week
CPSC 24000 COMPUTER ETHICS:ES 3
 Hours3
Spring 12 Week
CPSC 17200 INTRO TO PROGRAMMING-W/LAB:MM 1 4
UCS 20201 ADDRESSING URGENT QUESTIONS 4
Hiram Core Requirement 4
 Hours12
Spring 3 Week
CPSC 2XXXXComputer Science Elective 4
 Hours4
Second Year
Fall 12 Week
CPSC 20100 DATA STRUCTUR/ALRITHM-W/LAB:MM 1 4
Hiram Core Requirement 4
Hiram Core Requirement 4
 Hours12
Fall 3 Week
Hiram Core Requirement 2 4
 Hours4
Spring 12 Week
CPSC 2XXXXComputer Science Elective 3-4
Elective, Second Major, Minor Course 4
Hiram Core Requirement 4
 Hours11-12
Spring 3 Week
Elective, Second Major, Minor Course 4
 Hours4
Third Year
Fall 12 Week
UCS 30301 URGENT CHALLENGE SEMINAR:TT 4
CPSC 3XXXXComputer Science Elective 3-4
Hiram Core Requirement 2 4
 Hours11-12
Fall 3 Week
Hiram Core Requirement 3-4
 Hours3-4
Spring 12 Week
CPSC 40000 INTEGRATED RESRCH COMPONENT I 2
& CPSC 3XXXX Computer Science IRC 4
Elective, Second Major, Minor Course(s) 6
 Hours12
Spring 3 Week
Hiram Core Requirement 3-4
 Hours3-4
Fourth Year
Fall 12 Week
CPSC 40100 INTEGRATED RESRCH COMPONENT II 2
& CPSC 3XXXX Computer Science IRC 4
Elective, Second Major, Minor Course(s) 6
 Hours12
Fall 3 Week
Elective, Second Major, Minor Course 3-4
 Hours3-4
Spring 12 Week
CPSC 25200 COMPUTER ORGANIZATION 4
CPSC 3XXXXComputer Science Elective 3-4
Elective, Second Major, Minor Course 4
 Hours11-12
Spring 3 Week
Elective, Second Major, Minor Course 3-4
 Hours3-4
 Total Hours120-127
1

"Critical'' to timely degree progression.

2

Students may choose INTD 38800 BIOINFORMATICS as an interdisciplinary course that may also fulfill an Integrated Research Component corequisite.