Major code BS7241*

Russ College of Engineering and Technology  
School of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science   
329 Stocker Center
Ohio University
Athens, OH 45701
Phone: 740.593.1568
www.ohio.edu/engineering/eecs

Costas Vasiliadis, contact person
vassilia@ohio.edu

Program Overview

The computer science program is administered by the School of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science. The School is the beneficiary of a major endowment from the late Dr. C. Paul Stocker, an electrical engineering alumnus. This endowment provides support for facilities and a level of excellence surpassed by few other electrical engineering and computer science departments in the nation. Its laboratories and offices are located in Stocker Center, and the Academic and Research Center. The program offers a Bachelor of Science (B.S.) degree in Computer Science through the Russ College of Engineering and Technology, which is accredited by the Computing Accreditation Commission of ABET, https://www.abet.org, under the commission’s General Criteria and Program Criteria for Computer Science.

Computer science involves the design, development, analysis, and maintenance of the computer software that controls complex computer systems and networks. Computer scientists work with all aspects of computer software, including graphics, multimedia, the World Wide Web, email, compilers, software engineering, computer gaming, mobile computing, artificial intelligence, theory of computer algorithms, operating systems, database systems, and Internet applications.

While writing programs is an important function for computer scientists, they do much more than that. They analyze the needs of software users, develop algorithms and interfaces to meet those needs, and work in small groups to design software components. They must be proficient at problem solving, mathematical reasoning, logical thinking, and interpersonal communication. The computer science program at Ohio University, because of its strong ties with mathematics and engineering, emphasizes both the mathematical and the practical components of computer science.

The computer science program has three major objectives for its undergraduate students (Program Educational objectives are broad statements that describe the career and professional accomplishments that the program is preparing the graduates to achieve):

1. They use their technical acumen to improve the human condition.
2. They exhibit and promote in others: integrity, ethical behavior, multi-cultural awareness, and continuous self-development.
3. They apply and grow their technical, interpersonal, and collaborative strengths to successfully lead and inspire others toward effective innovation.

Program educational objectives are statements that describe the expected accomplishments of graduates during the first few years after graduation.

*This program was previously BS7260 which awarded the Bachelor of Science in Computer Science degree. Pending Board of Trustees approval (anticipated June 2024), the new program code will be BS7241 and will award the Bachelor of Science degree effective the 2024-25 catalog year.

Admissions Information

Freshman/First-Year Admission

To best prepare for the demands of the academic programs in Russ College, four years of college preparatory math, one year of chemistry, and one year of physics are necessary. Students ranked in the top 30 percent of their classes who score at least 24 on the ACT or comparable SAT are most likely to be successful in Russ College of Engineering and Technology.  

Change of Program Policy

Students who wish to transfer into an engineering or computer science program must have earned a C or better in a math course and a science course. The math course must be equivalent to MATH 1200  or higher. The science course must be equivalent to CHEM 1210  or higher, or PHYS 2051 /PHYS 2054  & PHYS 2055  or higher. Students enrolled at any Ohio University campus who wish to transfer into any program in the Russ College cannot do so if they would be on academic probation after transferring into that major. The probation rules for Russ College are stricter than those for the University as a whole. In order not to be on probation, a student must have a GPA of 2.0 or higher for all courses taken, for all courses taken in the Russ College, and for all courses taken in the intended major. Students must also have successfully completed all required courses in three attempts and have no required course they have attempted twice without success. For some courses, success means a grade of at least a C or C-.

External Transfer Admission

Transfer students who have earned fewer than 20 semester hours of credit at another accredited collegiate institution may be admitted directly to an engineering or computer science program, if they meet the general requirements for admission to Ohio University and have completed four years of college-prep math and one year each of chemistry and physics and have scored at least a 24 on the ACT or comparable SAT.

Transfer students who have earned more than 20 semester hours of credit at another accredited collegiate institution may be admitted directly to an engineering or computer science program, if they meet the general requirements for transfer students, including a GPA greater than 2.5.Students who wish to transfer into an engineering or computer science program must have earned a C or better in a math course and a science course. The math course must be equivalent to MATH 1200  or higher. The science course must be equivalent to CHEM 1210  or higher, or PHYS 2051 /PHYS 2054  & PHYS 2055  or higher.

Opportunities Upon Graduation

Graduates of the bachelor of science degree program in computer science have pursued numerous opportunities in business, industry, government, and higher education. Several recent graduates have started their own software, networking, or consulting related businesses. Other recent graduates have taken jobs in the computer and software industries in Ohio and elsewhere. Past graduates have taken jobs at Verisign, Amazon.com, Expedia.com, Google, Microsoft, the National Security Agency, Verizon, Nortel, Boeing, Lockheed Martin, and other well-known industrial and governmental organizations. Other graduates have pursued graduate degrees (M.S. and Ph.D.) in Computer Science at Ohio University and elsewhere (Ohio State, Wisconsin, Purdue, Indiana, North Carolina, etc.)

Undergraduate research in computer science is encouraged. The School of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science receives significant research support from industrial and governmental agencies. A number of undergraduate students participate in these sponsored research projects.

Requirements