Program Requirements and Guidelines

Master’s Program Requirements

Program requirements can be found on the Graduate Calendar.

You must also maintain good Academic Standing and follow the rest of the General Graduate Regulations.

Program-Specific Information

Jump to:

• Thesis
  • Thesis with Cybersecurity Specialization
  • Thesis with Data Science Specialization
• Project
• Course work
• Co-op
• Time Limits for Program Completion

Thesis

• You must consult with your supervisor(s) regarding your course selection to ensure your courses support your research and satisfy program requirements.
• Students are not permitted to register for non-COMP courses (or undergraduate COMP courses) without prior approval from their supervisor(s) and the Grad Director. Courses taken without such approval will not count toward their degree.
• Courses must satisfy the OCICS area requirement of a minimum of three COMP 5xxx courses in three different research areas. Note that a course cannot be taken to simultaneously satisfy two areas: one course counts for only one area.
• A full list of courses can be found on the Carleton Graduate Calendar. Please note: not all courses listed are offered in a given year. For an up-to-date statement of course offerings for the current session you can consult the public class schedule.
• Students enrolled in a thesis-based program must register for their thesis in their first term and remain continuously registered in every subsequent term until the thesis has been completed. This includes registering in the summer term.

Thesis with Cybersecurity Specialization

• You must consult with your supervisor(s) regarding your course selection to ensure your courses support your research and satisfy program requirements.
• Students are not permitted to register for non-COMP courses (or undergraduate COMP courses) without prior approval from their supervisor(s) and the Grad Director. Courses taken without such approval will not count toward their degree.
• You must complete CYBER 5000. You must satisfy the OCICS area requirement of a minimum of three COMP 5xxx courses in three different research areas. Note that a course cannot be taken to simultaneously satisfy two areas: one course counts for only one area.
• A full list of courses can be found on the Carleton Graduate Calendar. Please note: not all courses listed are offered in a given year. For an up-to-date statement of course offerings for the current session you can consult the public class schedule.
• Students enrolled in a thesis-based program must register for their thesis in their first term and remain continuously registered in every subsequent term until the thesis has been completed. This includes registering in the summer term.

Thesis with Data Science Specialization

• You must consult with your supervisor(s) regarding your course selection to ensure your courses support your research and satisfy program requirements.
• Students are not permitted to register for non-COMP courses (or undergraduate COMP courses) without prior approval from their supervisor(s) and the Grad Director. Courses taken without such approval will not count toward their degree.
• You must complete DATA 5000. You must satisfy the OCICS area requirement of a minimum of three COMP 5xxx courses in three different research areas. Note that a course cannot be taken to simultaneously satisfy two areas: one course counts for only one area.
• A full list of courses can be found on the Carleton Graduate Calendar. Please note: not all courses listed are offered in a given year. For an up-to-date statement of course offerings for the current session you can consult the public class schedule.
• Students enrolled in a thesis-based program must register for their thesis in their first term and remain continuously registered in every subsequent term until the thesis has been completed. This includes registering in the summer term.

Project

• You must consult with your supervisor(s) regarding your course selection to ensure your courses support your research and satisfy program requirements.
• Students are not permitted to register for non-COMP courses (or undergraduate COMP courses) without prior approval from their supervisor(s) and the Grad Director. Courses taken without such approval will not count toward their degree.
• Courses must satisfy the OCICS area requirement of a minimum of three COMP 5xxx courses in three different research areas. Note that a course cannot be taken to simultaneously satisfy two areas: one course counts for only one area.
• A full list of courses can be found on the Carleton Graduate Calendar. Please note: not all courses listed are offered in a given year. For an up-to-date statement of course offerings for the current session you can consult the public class schedule.
• Once the project is started, you must maintain continuous registration until completion. This includes registering in the summer term.

Course work

• You can consult with the Grad Director or Graduate Advisor regarding your course selection to ensure your courses satisfy program requirements.
• Students are not permitted to register for non-COMP courses (or undergraduate COMP courses) without prior approval from the Grad Director. Courses taken without such approval will not count toward their degree.
• A full list of courses can be found on the Carleton Graduate Calendar. Please note: not all courses listed are offered in a given year. For an up-to-date statement of course offerings for the current session you can consult the public class schedule.
• Courses must satisfy the OCICS area requirement of a minimum of three COMP 5xxx courses in three different research areas. Note that a course cannot be taken to simultaneously satisfy two areas: one course counts for only one area.

Co-op

• The MCS program, regardless of program pathway, offers a Co-op option.
• Graduate students are encouraged to apply to the Co-op Program during their first term of studies. Alternatively, students may delay their participation until later on, provided that they have mandatory credits remaining for degree completion.
• More information about Co-op can be found on the Co-op page, and specific Co-op regulations can be found in the Graduate Calendar.

Time Limits for Program Completion

Full-time studies

• All master’s students admitted as full-time students should complete their degree requirements within 6 terms (2 years) after the date of initial registration.

Part-time studies

• All master’s students admitted as part-time students should complete their degree requirements within 18 terms (6 years) after the date of initial registration.