The Computer Science Department at George Mason University is one of the largest computer science departments in the Washington, DC metropolitan area and in Virginia. The Department is part of the Volgenau School of Engineering. The department offers BS, MS, and PHD Program in Computer Science; MS programs in Software Engineering, Information Systems, and Information Security and Assurance; and a BS program in Applied Computer Science with various concentrations. The department also offers concentrations in the inter-disciplinary MS in Data Analytics Engineering and the PhD in Information Technology offered by the Volgenau School of Engineering.
Faculty in the department have research interests in networking, architecture, parallel and distributed computing, performance evaluation, software engineering, multimedia, graphics and visualization, databases, software engineering, data mining, security, information systems, artificial intelligence, computer vision, and robotics.
According to my interest, personal ambition and my company requirement, now I am pursuing a master degree in Computer Science. Actually, I also have interest in software engineering because it has more focus on software developments. In order to have better knowledges and real life experiences, I plan to join internship in the next semester. I hope, I can have an oppurtunity to work at one of the biggest IT or banking industries in US.
In addition to general university requirements, completion of the MS in Computer Science requires 30 credits of graduate courses. Courses are grouped in the following five broad areas: Artificial Intelligence and Databases, Programming Languages and Software Engineering, Systems and Networks, Theoretical Computer Science, and Visual Computing.
All the following requirements should be satisfied for the MS in CS Degree
- CS 583 – Analysis of Algorithms Credits: 3 (from the Theoretical Computer Science area) and two additional core courses from two other areas must be successfully completed with a grade of B- or better.
- At least five courses (15 credits) must be chosen from the advanced courses in The list of preapproved courses from at least three different areas.
- At least six courses, including two advanced courses, must be designated CS.
- At least eight courses must be taken from the list of preapproved courses. Up to two Computer science-related courses that are not on the list of preapproved courses may be taken with the approval of the Computer Science Department.
In order to stay on track for graduation, my plan of study table is illustrated below :
| Course Title and Number | Number of credits | Semester | Notes |
| CS 659 Theory/Application Data Mining | 3 | Summer 2015 | Advanced course |
| CS 550 – Database Systems | 3 | Fall 2015 | Prerequisite for CS 650 |
| CS 555 – Computer Communications and Networking | 3 | Fall 2015 | Prerequisite for CS 756 |
| CS 583 – Analysis of Algorithms | 3 | Fall 2015 | Core course |
| SWE 619 – Object-Oriented Software Specification and Construction | 3 | Spring 2016 | Prerequisite for SWE 621, SWE 632, ISA 681 |
| CS 650 – Advanced Database Management | 3 | Spring 2016 | Advanced course |
| CS 756 – Performance Analysis of Computer Networks | 3 | Spring 2016 | Advanced course |
| ISA 681 – Secure Software Design | 3 | Fall 2016 | Advanced course |
| SWE 632 – User Interface Design and Development | 3 | Fall 2016 | Advanced course |