Integrated program (Bachelor's/Master's)

The Department of Computer Science & Engineering offers an integrated Bachelor’s and Master’s degree program.

This is exclusively available to students officially admitted to the College of Science & Engineering for a Bachelor’s of Science in Computer Science or Bachelor’s of Computer Engineering, and the College of Liberal Arts Bachelor’s of Arts in Computer Science or second major in computer science. The program allows students with strong academic performance records to take additional credits (up to 16 credits) at undergraduate tuition rates during their last few semesters which can be applied towards the Computer Science M.S. program.

Many students add double majors or minors to fill in their last undergraduate year if they are ahead in their program. This is another option for them to consider when they have time for additional coursework beyond their undergraduate requirements. Students would have more time to take additional courses to become a specialist in a given area of computer science. Students would also have more time for research opportunities through this program.

Students accepted to the integrated program will be guaranteed admission to the Computer Science M.S. as long as they complete their undergraduate program. 

Note: Admission will likely become more competitive due to the demand and our Department's current course capacity constraints

*Statistics as of February 2024

• Leave school with better credentials.
• A graduate degree can possibly lead to greater career advancements and autonomy in some companies.
• Become an expert in a field of computing.
• Make teaching and research your job if you love academia.
• Potential to get paid to go to graduate school through teaching assistantships, research assistantships, and fellowships.
• Through this program, the cost of attending a graduate program is reduced (up to 16 of the 31 credits for the Computer Science M.S. program can be completed paying an undergraduate tuition rate).

We recommend visiting the Conquer website for more information on attending graduate school.

To learn more about our graduate program in greater detail, please consider attending one of our graduate information sessions.

• Applicants must be an enrolled University of Minnesota - Twin Cities student admitted to the CSE Bachelor’s of Science Computer Science program, the CSE Bachelor’s of Computer Engineering program, the CLA Bachelor’s of Arts Computer Science program, or the CLA Second Major in Computer Science.
• Applicants must meet a technical GPA minimum of 3.5 (as defined by the College of Science & Engineering) OR they must have a strong recommendation from a Department of Computer Science & Engineering faculty member or instructor (not an ECE Faculty member).
• Applicants must have at least 75 credits completed at the time of their application.
• Applicants must have passed with a C- or better* all of the following courses:
  • CSCI 1933 or 1913
  • CSCI 2011
  • CSCI 2021 (CSCI students) or EE 2361 (CompE students)
  • CSCI 2033 or a math course containing linear algebra content
  • CSCI 2041 (CSCI students only)
  • CSCI 3081W (CSCI students only), CSCI 4041 and CSCI 4061 (applicants can have one of CSCI 3081W, CSCI 4041, or CSCI 4061 in progress at the time of application).

* Students are able to use S grades for these courses during the Spring 2020 - Summer 2021 semesters to meet eligibility requirements due to the COVID19 pandemic.

Students should meet with a departmental advisor (Computer Science students; Computer Engineering students) to discuss the program, their eligibility, and the feasibility of completing the bachelor’s degree in four years while adding additional graduate credits in their senior year and completing the remaining master’s requirements in the fifth year. Students should bring the Advisor Verification Form to their appointment.

All the required items listed below must be submitted to our Computer Science Integrated Program Application Form before our application deadlines (October 1st for spring admission consideration and March 1st for fall admission consideration).

• Advisor Verification Form
• Statement of Purpose (4000 character limit)
  • Consider writing about the "why" of your application for this program. Of all the things you could possibly be doing (entering the workforce, pursuing graduate education in a traditional M.S. program, pursuing a different graduate degree entirely, taking a gap year and working as a bartender, etc.), why is the CS Integrated Program here at the U of M the best option for you in pursuing any or all of your future goals?
  • What about having an M.S. in computer science inspires you? 
  • What sort of challenges or problems in the world are you hoping to help contribute to solving, and how will an M.S. in CS help you do that?
  • Don’t regurgitate past accomplishments; describe future goals/how you hope to contribute to the program and field .
• Resume
• Reference list with 1-3 computer science faculty or instructor names and emails.

Note: All applications are subject to review by the Grad Student Recruiting Committee.

Application timing

• March 1st, 11:59:59 PM (based on your time zone) deadline for fall consideration (the application will open January 1)
• October 1st, 11:59:59 PM (based on your time zone) deadline for spring consideration (the application will open June 1)

Application decisions

Students will be notified of the outcome of their application via email by December 1 for a spring start or June 1 for a fall start. In some cases, an admission decision will be put on hold until semester grades are finalized. Students will be notified if their application is on hold.

Credit transfer limit/minimum graduate student career time/no double dipping rule

• Students can transfer a maximum of 16 credits to the graduate program taken during their integrated senior undergraduate year.
• Students must spend a minimum of two semesters as a graduate student on the U of M's Twin Cities campus after the completion of their undergraduate degree.
• Coursework applied to the graduate degree must be taken at the graduate level (i.e., 5xxx or above).
• Credits being applied to the Computer Science M.S. program taken while the student is an undergraduate for use in the integrated program can also be applied later to a Computer Science Ph.D. within our Department if a student applies and is admitted.
  • Please note the M.S. degree will need to be completed in order for these credits to be used for the Ph.D. program.
• Credits cannot also be applied to the undergraduate degree (i.e., no “double-dipping”).
• Students may only use credits taken after being officially admitted to the Integrated Program for transfer to the graduate degree.

The undergraduate degree and graduate degree cannot be awarded simultaneously. Students who become off track to graduate in four years from their bachelor’s program may have their admission to the integrated M.S. program revoked.