Frequently Asked Questions about the 2005 Curriculum
2005 Curriculum
As the department transitions to a revised curriculum in Fall 2005, it is natural that continuing students (as well as new entrants into the major) will have concerns regarding the differences between the 2003-2005 program and the current one. This page attempts to answer some of these questions pertaining to the transition. If you have a concern that appears not to have been addressed here, you are urged to contact the department chair for assistance.
All students who enter the CS program from Fall 2005 onwards will do so exclusively under the new curriculum: they have no choice. There are two choices that are open to a student currently in the program. He/she can, by default, opt to stay with their current curricular requirements (i.e. the requirements in force when the student declared his/her major). Alternatively, he/she can choose to switch to the new curricular requirements but will then be guided by the course pre-requisites under the new curriculum. A student cannot pick and choose from the old and the new requirements if, as a result, the course selection does not fully satisfy the old or fully satisfy the new requirements.
To avoid clutter, we will use the informal moniker CS xxx rather than the full catalog number 50:198:xxx to refer to a CS course, and likewise use Math xxx for Mathematics courses.
Question: In a nutshell, what are the salient changes in the 2005 programs as compared to the 2003-2005 ones?
Answer: In the 2003-2005 programs, both the B.A. and the B.S. degree programs had identical major requirements (i.e. requirements pertaining to Computer Science courses). In contrast, the 2005 B.A. program is slightly different from the B.S. program in that CS 476 (the re-numbered Intro. to the Theory of Computation course) is required for the latter but not for the former.
The Discrete Mathematics course (Math 237) has been removed as a requirement for both degree programs; in its place, we now have a new course called Mathematical Foundations of Computer Science (CS 171) that is required. In general, the introductory course sequence (CS courses at the 100 and 200 levels) have undergone changes, and many courses have been re-numbered (check out the various links above for details). Some course requirements have been eliminated altogether (such as CS 333/334, the hardware and interfacing course, and also one CS elective).
Question: I would like to stay with the old curriculum. I have not yet taken the required courses, CS 333 and CS 334, for credit. If those courses are not offered in the next few years, how will I graduate?
Answer: CS 333, 334 is offered by the Physics department and hence, there is no guarantee that the courses will continue to be offered regularly (they are electives in the new curriculum). In all such cases, another course will be used to fulfill the requirement at the discretion of the department chair, who will authorize replacements for the credits. Please note that such a request will not be entertained for CS 376 (Theory of Computation) which will be offered regularly by the department (albeit under a new number, CS 476). Course substitutions must be approved by the department chair before the student takes those courses.
Question: I would like to switch to the new curriculum. I have taken CS 231 earlier but have not taken CS 341 (Operating Systems) for credit. What are my options here?
Answer: You must take the new Operating Systems course (CS 443) to graduate (even though the latter is not required under the new curriculum). Here is the rationale: to graduate under the new curricular requirements, you must have the requisite knowledge of OS fundamentals (taught in the new CS 231 course). You have only taken the old CS 231 (which did not cover OS) so you have the choices mentioned above.
Question: The new curriculum has fewer requirements. Would it not be to everyone's advantage to opt for the new curriculum?
Answer: For the sake of uniformity, the faculty would prefer that most of the students opt for the new curriculum. That said, your choice may well depend on what stage you are at in the old curriculum. If you have completed the core requirements but not the electives (under the old curriculum), then it is obviously an advantage to switch. On the other hand, if you switch and decide to take a required course - e.g. CS 371 (the re-numbered Algorithms course) - that lists the new CS 213 (Data Structures) as a pre-requisite, then you will first have to take CS 213 for credit before being allowed to take CS 371. In general, the pre-requisite requirements will be enforced quite strictly for students who have opted for the new curriculum.