Computer Science

The Academic Program

The Computer Science Department offers course majors and minors and honors majors and minors. Students interested in any of these options are encouraged to meet with the chair of the Computer Science Department as early as possible in their college career. Students who are interested in a computer science major or minor are encouraged to take CPSC 021, CPSC 031 and CPSC 035 sometime in their first four semesters at Swarthmore. The minor in computer science is designed for students who desire a coherent introduction to the core topics in the field. Students completing the minor will possess intellectual skills that are useful in many disciplines.

Course Major

The following are the requirements for a major in computer science:

1. Nine credits in computer science:
   1. CPSC 021 . (If exempted from CPSC 021 without AP credit, substitute one course from any Group listed below.)
   2. CPSC 031  and CPSC 035 .
   3. One course from each of the following three groups:
      1. Group 1: CPSC 041 , CPSC 046  or CPSC 049 .
      2. Group 2: CPSC 043 , CPSC 044 , CPSC 045 , CPSC 075  , CPSC 087  or CPSC 089  .
      3. Group 3:CPSC 040 , CPSC 056 , CPSC 063 , CPSC 065 , CPSC 066 , CPSC 068 , CPSC 071 ,CPSC 073  or CPSC 081 .
   4. Three CPSC courses numbered above CPSC 035  (different than the choices in part c).
   5. CPSC 099  , Senior Comprehensive, participation in the senior poster session held during the fall semester of the senior year.
2. Two MATH/STAT courses at the level of Linear Algebra or above (Discrete Math and Linear Algebra are recommended).  CPSC 046/MATH 046 may not be used to satisfy the Math requirement.

To be eligible for a computer science major, a student must have at least a B- average in the introductory courses (CPSC 021 , CPSC 031  and CPSC 035 ). In addition, students must have at least a C in CPSC 031  and CPSC 035  to be eligible to take upper-level computer science courses. Students who have not met this criterion may re-take CPSC 031 or CPSC 035 to obtain the necessary foundation for success in upper-level courses. Students who are deferred have one year from the date of their application to satisfy these requirements.

Course Minor

The minor in computer science provides students with a well-rounded background in computer science sufficient to develop significant, creative applications and to keep up with the rapid changes in the field.

The following are the requirements for a minor in computer science:

1. Six courses in computer science.
   1. CPSC 021 . (If exempted from CPSC 021 without AP credit, substitute one course from any Group listed below.)
   2. CPSC 031 .
   3. CPSC 035 .
   4. Two upper-level courses drawn from different groups:
      1. Group 1: CPSC 041 , CPSC 046  or CPSC 049 .
      2. Group 2: CPSC 043 , CPSC 044 , CPSC 045 , CPSC 075 , CPSC 087  or CPSC 089  .
      3. Group 3: CPSC 040 , CPSC 056 , CPSC 063 , CPSC 065 , CPSC 066  ,CPSC 068 , CPSC 068 , CPSC 071 , CPSC 073  or CPSC 081 .
   5. One CPSC course numbered above CPSC 035  (must be different than the choices in part c).
2. One MATH/STAT course at the level of Linear Algebra or above (Discrete Math recommended).  CPSC 046/MATH 046 may not be used to satisfy the Math requirement.

The requirements for acceptance into the minor are the same as for acceptance into the major.

Honors Major

An honors major in computer science must complete the regular course major requirements. The honors major includes three honors preparations: an honors thesis and two separate honors preparations of two related courses each (see below).
The following will be submitted to external examiners for evaluation:
Two 2-credit preparations to be selected from combinations of upper-level courses listed under Approved Preparations. Each preparation will be examined by a 3-hour written examination and an oral examination. The exams will focus on a single course in each preparation (the focus course), with the second course (the breadth course) providing additional background in the general area of the focus course.
The two 2-credit preparations must include at least 3 distinct courses. In certain circumstances, the Computer Science Department may be willing to consider other groupings of courses, seminars, or the inclusion of a specific Special Topics course (CS91). These are approved on a case-by-case basis by the chair. Students are required to petition for approval by September 15 of their senior year.
If the required courses and preparations would not satisfy a course major, additional computer science courses must be taken to meet course major requirements. In all cases, the Computer Science Department must approve the student’s plan of study. 
One honors thesis to be read by an external examiner and examined in an oral examination.  The paper will report on a research experience involving the student and faculty (here or elsewhere). It is expected that most of the research or scholarly groundwork will be completed before the fall semester of the senior year, either by 1 credit of work in the spring semester of the junior year or full-time summer work. Students will register for at least 1 credit of thesis work to complete the work and write the paper in the fall of the senior year. It is recommended that the paper be completed by the end of the fall semester.

Honors Minor

An honors minor in computer science will consist of completion of the course minor and one 2-credit preparation.

The following will be submitted to external examiners for evaluation:

One 2-credit preparation to be selected from the combinations of courses listed under Approved Preparations. This 2-credit preparation will be examined by a 3-hour written examination and an oral examination.  The exams will focus on a single course in each preparation (the focus course), with the second course (the breadth course) providing additional background in the general area of the focus course.  In certain circumstances, the Computer Science Department may be willing to consider other groupings of courses, seminars, or the inclusion of a specific Special Topics course (CS91). These are approved on a case-by-case basis by the chair. Students are required to petition for approval by September 15 of their senior year. 
If the required courses and preparations would not satisfy a course minor, additional computer science courses must be taken to meet course minor requirements. In all cases, the Computer Science Department must approve the student’s plan of study.

Approved Preparations for the Honors Major and Minor

From any of the following sets of course groupings, create two 2-credit honors preparations: one focus course and one breadth course selected from the same set. For example, CPSC 41 and 46 are a valid course preparation pairing, but CPSC 41 and 68 are not. Honors majors must have at least three distinct courses in their set of two 2-credit preparations (e.g. CPSC 63 and 65 can be used as one preparation and 65 and 68 as the other, but 63 and 65 as one prep and 65 and 63 as the other is not allowed). Honors majors may choose both of their 2-credit preparations from the same set of courses, or may choose one 2-credit preparation from one set and the other from a different set.

The following are the approved sets of course groupings. These may not all be available to all students because of the faculty’s schedules.

set 0: CPSC 41 Algorithms

CPSC 46 Theory of Computation

CPSC 49 Probabilistic Method

set 1: CPSC 63 Artificial Intelligence

CPSC 65 Natural Language Processing

CPSC 66 Machine Learning

CPSC 68 Bioinformatics

CPSC 81 Adaptive Robotics

set 2: CPSC 43 Computer Networks

CPSC 44 Database Systems

CPSC 45 Operating Systems

CPSC 87 Parallel and Distributed Computing

CPSC 89 Cloud Computing

set 3: CPSC 37 Structure and Interpretation of Computer Programs

CPSC 73 Programming Languages

CPSC 75 Compilers

set 4: CPSC 40 Computer Graphics

CPSC 87 Parallel and Distributed Computing

Thesis / Culminating Exercise

Senior Conference is the comprehensive requirement for computer science course and honors majors. It provides an opportunity to delve more deeply into a particular topic in computer science, synthesizing material from previous courses.

Application Process and Acceptance Criteria for Majors/Minors

In addition to the process described by the Dean’s Office and the Registrar’s Office for how to apply for a major, we also ask that students complete a departmental form outlining how they intend to fulfill the requirements for their intended major, minor, honors major or honors minor. Successful completion of at least two computer science courses including CPSC 031 or CPSC 035 is ordinarily required to be admitted as a computer science major or minor. If after applying a student is deferred, he or she will be re-evaluated upon completion of additional computer science courses.

Computer Science Placement

The computer science placement exam is required for all students who think that they may place out of the introductory computer science course (CPSC 21).  Students who want to start with CPSC 21 do not need to take the placement exam.  Students who think they may place out of both CPSC 21 and CPSC 35 should take the placement exam and also contact the department placement coordinator about their placement. 

The placement exam is offered during fall orientation week. Incoming first year students should take it then. Students who do not take it during orientation can contact the CS main office to schedule a time to take the exam.  Students who do not take CS21 must take the placement exam before registering for CS31 or CS35.  For more information see: https://www.cs.swarthmore.edu/program/placement_exam.html

Advanced Placement

Students who receive a 4 or 5 on the computer science Advanced Placement exam will be awarded one credit upon successful completion of one computer science course taken at Swarthmore. Students must notify the department after completion of one computer science course in order to receive AP credit. Students should consult with any computer science faculty member about placement. Students who are placed out of CPSC 021 with AP credit need to take only 8 additional courses in computer science to complete the major, and 5 additional courses in computer science to complete the minor.

Off-Campus Study

Students planning to major or minor in computer science may opt to study abroad for one semester or a whole year. Because some advanced courses in computer science are offered in only alternate years, some selections will be unavailable to some students. The Computer Science Department should preapprove all courses of study abroad in advance of the student’s departure. The department will credit appropriate courses based on sufficient evidence of work completed presented by the student upon returning to Swarthmore.

Life After Swarthmore

Computer Science Courses

• CPSC 021. Introduction to Computer Science
• CPSC 031. Introduction to Computer Systems
• CPSC 035. Data Structures and Algorithms
• CPSC 040. Computer Graphics
• CPSC 041. Algorithms
• CPSC 043. Computer Networks
• CPSC 044. Database Systems
• CPSC 045. Operating Systems
• CPSC 046. Theory of Computation
• CPSC 052. Principles of Computer Architecture
• CPSC 056. Computer Animation
• CPSC 063. Artificial Intelligence
• CPSC 065. Natural Language Processing
• CPSC 066. Machine Learning
• CPSC 068. Bioinformatics
• CPSC 071. Software Engineering
• CPSC 072. Computer Vision
• CPSC 073. Programming Languages
• CPSC 075. Compilers
• CPSC 081. Adaptive Robotics
• CPSC 082. Mobile Robotics
• CPSC 087. Parallel and Distributed Computing
• CPSC 089. Cloud Systems and Data Center Networks
• CPSC 091. Special Topics in Computer Science
• CPSC 093. Directed Reading and/or Research Project
• CPSC 099. Senior Comprehensive
• CPSC 180. Thesis
• CPSC 199. Senior Honors Study