Listed below are the major steps that should be completed for the Master of Science degrees (thesis Master degrees) in computer science and computer engineering at Texas A&M University. Much of this information is taken from the Steps to Fulfill Master's Degree Requirements page on the Graduate and Professional School website and from the department's graduate brochure.
As noted below, many of the steps have associated Graduate and Professional School forms that need to be submitted. Information on how to submit these forms are available on the Graduate and Professional School website. Some forms are being submitted with the use of DocuSign. In all cases, the student is responsible for filling out the form/DocuSign and correctly submitting the forms. Students must use NetID email addresses for all faculty members, not the computer science and engineering (CSE) email address. The graduate program assistant is the only email that will use the CSE graduate advisor email address. All department head information should be listed as John Keyser for the name and keyser@tamu.edu for the email.
Advisory Committee and Degree Plan
Master of Science students must form an advisory committee and file an approved degree plan. Requirements for the composition of the advisory committee and degree plans can be found in the department's graduate brochure.
Graduate and Professional School Forms: Degree Plan
Deadline: By the end of the first semester after the student has completed nine credit hours (normally their second semester) and no later than 90 days prior to the final oral or thesis defense (see Graduate and Professional School calendar for precise deadlines).
Thesis Proposal
The student must submit a Master of Science thesis proposal as described in the graduate catalog. An electronic copy in PDF format of the proposal approved by the committee must be emailed to the advising office (grad-advisor@cse.tamu.edu) before the student visits the Graduate and Professional School page, already signed by the committee, to the advising office for the department approval signature.
If the thesis research will involve human subjects, animals, infectious biohazards, or recombinant DNA, then the student must check with the Research Compliance and Biosafety Division to ensure that they have met all compliance responsibilities. A copy of the appropriate approved research compliance approval form must be submitted with the research proposal. See the Frequently Asked Questions page for information on how to submit the necessary approval forms to the Research Compliance and Biosafety Division.
The department has no additional requirements for the proposal beyond that it be approved by the student's advisory committee (as shown by the submission of the signed Proposal Approval page) and that it meets any Graduate and Professional School requirements. Thus, students should consult with their advisor for guidance on preparing their proposal. As a rule of thumb, most proposals are about 10 pages long (single spaced) and include a description of the problem to be studied, an overview of the related work, a brief summary of any preliminary results, and a description of the research objectives and the planned approach.
Graduate and Professional School Forms: Proposal Approval Page
Deadline: The thesis proposal cannot be submitted before the degree plan and it must be submitted at least 15 working days before the request to hold the final examination (defense) is submitted to the Graduate and Professional School (or about four weeks before the defense). (This is a decrease - it used to be 14 weeks before the defense). Precise deadlines are listed on the Graduate and Professional School dates and deadlines calendar.
Apply for Graduation
Students must submit a degree plan in order to graduate.
Online Degree Plan Submission System
Deadline: Normally in the first one to two weeks of the semester the student wishes to graduate. Late application will be allowed for an additional fee until later in the semester. Precise deadlines are listed on the Graduate and Professional School dates and deadlines calendar.
Final Examination (Thesis Defense)
The student must pass a final oral examination given by the Advisory Committee as described in the graduate catalog. Please consult Procedures for Master of Science Thesis Defenses page for more information on eligibility requirements, and scheduling and administration practices for Master of Science final exams in the Department of Computer Science and Engineering. The final exam is a requirement to earn the thesis degree, it is not entitled to a waiver.
Graduate and Professional School Forms: Request and Announcement of the Final Examination, Report of Final Exam (sent by the Graduate and Professional School to the Advising Office)
Deadlines: As described on the Procedures for Master of Science Thesis Defenses page, there are eligibility requirements and deadlines for scheduling and reporting on Master of Science final exams. Final exam deadlines are listed on the Graduate and Professional School dates and deadlines calendar (usually about eight weeks before graduation).
Thesis
A Master of Science thesis as described in the graduate catalog and on the Graduate and Professional School website must be submitted. After the thesis has been approved by the student's committee, the student should submit the following items to the advising office:
-
An electronic copy of the thesis in PDF format submitted by email to grad-advisor@cse.tamu.edu, and
-
A hardcopy of the thesis approval page, already signed by the committee (but not the department head)
The advising office will obtain the department approval signature. The student will receive an email notifying them that they need to pick up the approval page from the advising office. The student must submit the approval page to the Thesis and Dissertation Services office. Then, the student should submit an electronic copy (PDF format) of the thesis to the Thesis and Dissertation Services office.
Graduate and Professional School Form: Approval Form
Deadline: Thesis submission deadlines are listed on the Graduate and Professional School dates and deadlines calendar (usually about six weeks before graduation). Final corrected copies of the thesis must be accepted by the thesis clerk no later than one year after the final examination or within the seven-year time limit, whichever occurs first. Failure to do so will result in the degree not being awarded.