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Computer Science

Degree Awarded: Bachelor of Science (Honours)
Program Website: ryerson.ca/science/programs/undergraduate/computerscience (opens in new window) 
Administered by: School of Computer Science
Program Format: Full-time, four-year program.
Full-time, five-year co-op program.
Part-time, first-year entry program.
Part-time, Direct Entry/Advanced Standing program.

The Computer Science Accreditation Council (CSAC) has granted the Bachelor of Science (Honours) and Bachelor of Science (Honours) Co-operative programs in Computer Science full Canadian Information Processing Society (CIPS) accreditation.

We use computers and software many times each day, often without realizing it. Learning what makes computers tick and how to write software that is useful, important or just entertaining is computer science. The Computer Science program is designed to educate students in this fundamental area so that they can work effectively as software and systems practitioners in a wide variety of professional areas in the computing industry, as well as pursue graduate studies in Computer Science.

O.S.S.D. with six Grade 12 U/M courses, including Grade 12 U courses in: English, Advanced Functions (MHF4U), one of Physics (SPH4U), or Chemistry (SCH4U), or Biology (SBI4U), and either Calculus and Vectors (MCV4U) or Mathematics of Data Management (MDM4U).

Notes:

  • ENG4U/EAE4U is the preferred English.
    Grade 12 U Calculus and Vectors (MCV4U) is the preferred mathematics course.
  • The grade(s) required in the subject prerequisites (normally in the range of 70 percent) will be determined subject to competition.
  • Completion of Grade 12 U Physics (SPH4U) is recommended.
  • Subject to competition, candidates may be required to present averages/grades above the minimum.

Part-Time, First-Year Entry

Applicants for admission to the part-time, 40-course degree program must have the following qualifications: A or B

Qualification A: O.S.S.D. with six Grade 12 U/M courses, including Grade 12 U courses in: English, Advanced Functions (MHF4U), one of Physics (SPH4U), or Chemistry (SCH4U), or Biology (SBI4U), and either Calculus and Vectors (MCV4U) or Mathematics of Data Management (MDM4U).

OR

Qualification B. Ability to meet the Ryerson Mature Student guidelines (opens in new window) .

Notes:

  1. ENG4U/EAE4U is the preferred English.
  2. Grade 12 U Calculus and Vectors (MCV4U) is the preferred mathematics course.
  3. Physics is the recommended Grade 12 U Science.
  4. The grade(s) required in the subject prerequisites (normally in the range of 70 percent) will be determined subject to competition.
  5. Subject to competition, candidates may be required to present averages/grades above the minimum.

Part-Time, Direct Entry/Advanced Standing Entry

Applicants for Direct Entry/Advanced Standing admission to the part-time degree program must have the following qualifications:

A. O.S.S.D. with six Grade 12 U/M courses, including Grade 12 U courses in: English, Advanced Functions (MHF4U), one of Physics (SPH4U), or Chemistry (SCH4U), or Biology (SBI4U), and either Calculus and Vectors (MCV4U) or Mathematics of Data Management (MDM4U).

OR

B. Ability to meet the Ryerson Mature Student guidelines (opens in new window) .

AND

In addition to A or B, applicants require one of the following:

  • A university degree (obtained within the last 10 years) in mathematics, science or engineering with a minimum GPA of 2.0;
    or

  • An acceptable three-year Advanced Diploma (obtained within the last 10 years), from a public Ontario College, in computer science with a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.0/B/70%;
    or

  • Eight or more Computer Science courses from the Computer Science program, with a minimum grade of 'C' in each course.  These courses must have been completed in the last 10 years.  Courses from the G. Raymond Chang School of Continuing Education (CE) which are equivalent to courses in the full-time Computer Science program will also be accepted.

Important Notes about Advanced Standing Admission:

  1. There are two admission phases to the program: in both the fall and winter semesters.
  2. ENG4U/EAE4U is the preferred English.
  3. Grade 12 U Calculus and Vectors (MCV4U) is the preferred mathematics course.
  4. Physics is the recommended Grade 12 U Science.
  5. The grade(s) required in the subject prerequisites (normally in the range of 70 percent) will be determined subject to competition.
  6. Subject to competition, candidates may be required to present averages/grades above the minimum.
  7. Applicants for advanced standing will be assessed on an individual basis to determine transfer credits that they will be given.
  8. When advanced standing is granted, all or some of an applicant’s previous post-secondary studies may be used as a basis of admission. NOTE: Courses used as basis of admission are not recorded as individual transfer credits and may not be used to apply for transfer credit. The original grades obtained in the courses used for advanced standing are not recorded as graded courses on the Ryerson academic record. Original grades are not used in the calculation of a student’s Grade Point Average.
  9. Applicants admitted with advanced standing/transfer credits must complete, as a Ryerson student, studies that normally include at least one half of the program’s curriculum. No more than a total of 50 percent of the program’s requirements may consist of advanced standing/credits (transfer credits, challenge credits, credits granted on a Letter of Permission).
  10. Applicants applying for advanced standing/transfer credits must arrange to have one set of academic transcripts of their secondary and all post-secondary studies, including promotion/graduation status, submitted to Undergraduate Admissions. Applicants currently attending a post-secondary institution must submit, at the time of application, a transcript including a list of courses in progress, as well as final grades for all courses attempted to date.
  11. When applying for advanced standing admission, course descriptions and teaching outlines of all post-secondary studies are generally not required at the time of application for admission. (If this information is needed, a request will be forwarded to you by Undergraduate Admissions.) Course/teaching outlines may be required after admission has been granted when you are applying for transfer credit (opens in new window) .

Throughout their studies, Ryerson Computer Science students are provided with a solid foundation in and exposure to many areas of computer science, at both the systems and applications levels. Students learn to become versatile in many development methodologies and technologies. In the later years of their studies, they can opt to deepen their knowledge of a particular sub-discipline of computer science or continue broadening their knowledge of the entire field. An optional thesis in fourth year also provides high­ performing students with the opportunity to work on a capstone project or research thesis.

The skills acquired by Ryerson Computer Science students make them desirable in the computing industry. In addition to pursuing graduate studies, our graduates are employed as software engineers, IT specialists, developers, software architects, communications and network specialists, system and database administrators, or security consultants.

Co-operative Program (Optional)

The Department of Computer Science also offers an optional co-­op program for full-time program students, which provides graduates with up to 20 months of career-related work experience integrated into their academic program. The optional co-op extends the program from four years to five.

Students wishing to be considered for this program enrol first in the Computer Science program and then apply for admission into co-­op during the third semester of their studies. Applications are submitted to the Computer Science Department. To be admitted into the co-­op program, students must have a CLEAR Standing and a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.00 at the end of the Fall semester of their second year semester, or receive departmental approval. To stay in the co-­op program, students must maintain a CLEAR Standing and minimum cumulative GPA of 3.00, or receive departmental approval.

Students normally commence work terms upon completion of the second year of the program.

Part-Time Program

Ryerson's Bachelor of Science in Computer Science Part-­time Program is designed for individuals who are currently employed and do not have the opportunity to commit to a full-­time education schedule.

It is intended primarily for students who have some prior post­secondary education in computer science or related program in addition to the high school admission requirements.

The academic content of the program is identical to the current full-­time degree program in Computer Science, except for some modifications to allow some substitutions to be drawn from existing continuing education courses. Some courses that are not available in the evening may be offered in the late afternoon period.

Course Identification (part-time courses)

Part-time courses are administered by either the program department or The G. Raymond Chang School of Continuing Education. The mode of delivery is not reflected in this calendar. Continuing education courses are listed in your enrollment information package and are identified by with a 'C' prefix (e.g., CACC100). These identifiers are for internal use only and do not affect the equivalency.

Optional Specialization in Management Sciences (OS MS)

Students can enrich their studies and hone their management skills with the Optional Specialization in Management Sciences. Courses within the optional specialization cover four major areas in management sciences: Strategic Engineering Management, Operations Management/Operations Research, Finance and Organizational Behaviour. For eligibility, registration, and course information see Optional Specialization in Management Sciences (OS MS).

Research Practicum

SCI 999 - Research Practicum gives students the chance to gain hands-on research experience, in a lab or in the field, by engaging in the research work of a faculty member. Ryerson records participation in the practicum on the student’s Official Transcript.

SCI 999 is a non-credit, pass-fail course that is not used to fulfil degree program requirements. Students who meet the expectations for the research will get a passing grade. These expectations will be worked out between the student and the professor at enrolment. To take part in SCI 999, students must have a CGPA of 2.5 or more, and they must commit to a minimum of 5 to 10 hours each week (on average) for one term.

There are no tuition fees associated with this practicum.

How to Enrol

  1. Students must first find a supervisor. Descriptions of faculty research are available on the Faculty of Science website (opens in new window) .
  2. Students should contact supervisors whose research interests them by email or in person. Students must give their potential supervisor an unofficial transcript (opens in new window) , a one-page resumé and a brief covering letter. This package must include their contact information, degree program and stream, a brief statement of their career goals and how this research experience would further those goals, and any relevant work experience (paid or volunteer).
  3. Fill out the Research Practicum Application Form (available at the office of the Associate Dean for Undergraduate Programs in VIC-741). When students find a faculty member who agrees to supervise them, they will both fill out and sign the Application Form.
  4. Enrol in the course. After the course director has approved the form, students must take it to the office of the Associate Dean for Undergraduate Programs (opens in new window)  at VIC-741.

Transfer Credits

Requests for transfer credits using post-secondary Computer Science courses taken ten or more years ago will normally be denied.

Liberal Studies

Students must take three lower level liberal studies courses and three upper level liberal studies courses to graduate. Students must not choose courses that are restricted for their program or major.

Please refer to the liberal studies chapter of this calendar for more information on the Liberal Studies Policy. Further information on liberal studies can also be found at the Faculty of Arts' Liberal Studies website (opens in new window) .

Table A Restrictions

PCS 111 and SCI courses are not available for credit.

Table B Restrictions

CPS 650, GEO 609, MTH 511 and MTH 599 are not available for credit.

Minors

Students may pursue any Minor offered by Ryerson (with some exceptions). Please refer to the Minors chapter of this calendar for further information on individual Minor requirements and exclusions.

The G. Raymond Chang School of Continuing Education Certificates

Undergraduate students wishing to pursue a continuing education certificate program should be aware of possible program exclusions. Please refer to the Certificate Registration section of the Curriculum Advising website (opens in new window)  for complete details.

1st & 2nd Semester

Revised curriculum begins 2017-2018.

1st Semester

REQUIRED:

CPS 109 Computer Science I
CPS 213 Computer Organization I
MTH 110 Discrete Mathematics I

REQUIRED GROUP 1: One course from the following:

BLG 143 Biology I
CHY 103 General Chemistry I
PCS 110 Physics

LIBERAL STUDIES:
One course from Table A - Lower Level Liberal Studies.

2nd Semester

REQUIRED:

CPS 209 Computer Science II
CPS 310 Computer Organization II
CPS 412 Social Issues, Ethics and Professionalism
MTH 207 Calculus and Computational Methods I

LIBERAL STUDIES:
One course from Table A - Lower Level Liberal Studies.

  

3rd & 4th Semester

Revised and last offered 2017-2018. Students admitted Fall 2017 and after, see revised curriculum below.

3rd Semester

REQUIRED:

CMN 300 Communication in the Computer Industry
CPS 305 Data Structures
CPS 506 Comparative Programming Languages
MTH 110 Discrete Mathematics I

OPEN ELECTIVES: One course* from Open Elective Table.

4th Semester

REQUIRED:

CPS 406 Introduction to Software Engineering
CPS 412 Social Issues, Ethics and Professionalism
CPS 420 Discrete Structures
CPS 590 Operating Systems I

OPEN ELECTIVES: One course* from Open Elective Table.

* Course selection may not include CPS 513 or any CPS courses between CPS 100 and CPS 499.

Revised 3rd & 4th Semester curriculum begins 2018-2019 for students admitted Fall 2017 and after.

3rd Semester

REQUIRED:

CMN 300 Communication in the Computer Industry
CPS 305 Data Structures
CPS 393 Introduction to C and UNIX
MTH 108 Linear Algebra

OPEN ELECTIVES: One course* from Open Elective Table.

4th Semester

REQUIRED:

CPS 406 Introduction to Software Engineering
CPS 420 Discrete Structures
CPS 506 Comparative Programming Languages
CPS 590 Operating Systems I

OPEN ELECTIVES: One course* from Open Elective Table.

* Course selection may not include CPS 513 or any CPS courses between CPS 100 and CPS 499.

  

5th & 6th Semester

Revised and last offered 2017-2018. Students admitted Fall 2016 and after see revised curriculum below.

5th Semester

REQUIRED:

CPS 510 Database Systems I
CPS 633 Computer Security
CPS 721 Artificial Intelligence I

LIBERAL STUDIES:
One course from Table A - Lower Level Liberal Studies (opens in new window) .

OPEN ELECTIVES: One course* from Open Elective Table.

 

6th Semester

REQUIRED:

CPS 616 Algorithms
CPS 706 Computer Networks I

PROFESSIONALLY-RELATED: One course from Table I.

OPEN ELECTIVES: One course* from Open Elective Table.

LIBERAL STUDIES:
One course from Table B - Upper Level Liberal Studies.

An optional Concentration may be selected from Table I (Computer Science Group) starting in 6th Semester.

* Course selection may not include CPS 513 or any CPS courses between CPS 100 and CPS 499.

Revised 5th & 6th Semester curriculum begins 2018-2019 for students admitted Fall 2016 and after.

5th Semester

REQUIRED:

CPS 510 Database Systems I
CPS 633 Computer Security
CPS 721 Artificial Intelligence I

PROFESSIONALLY-RELATED: One course from Table I.

LIBERAL STUDIES:
One course from Table A - Lower Level Liberal Studies (opens in new window) .

An optional Concentration may be selected from Table I (Computer Science Group) starting in 5th Semester.

6th Semester

REQUIRED:

CPS 616 Algorithms
CPS 706 Computer Networks I

PROFESSIONALLY-RELATED: Two courses from Table I.

LIBERAL STUDIES:
One course from Table B - Upper Level Liberal Studies.

  

7th & 8th Semester

Last Offered 2017-2018. (Last offered 2018-2019 to co-operative program students). Students admitted Fall 2015 and after, see revised curriculum below.

7th Semester

PROFESSIONALLY-RELATED: Four courses from Table I.

LIBERAL STUDIES:
One course from Table B - Upper Level Liberal Studies.

8th Semester

PROFESSIONALLY-RELATED: Four courses from Table I.

LIBERAL STUDIES:
One course from Table B - Upper Level Liberal Studies

Revised 7th & 8th Semester curriculum begins 2018-2019 for students admitted Fall 2015 and after. (Revised curriculum begins 2019-2020 for co-operative program students admitted Fall 2015 and after).

7th Semester

PROFESSIONALLY-RELATED: Three courses from Table I.

OPEN ELECTIVES: One course* from Open Elective Table.

LIBERAL STUDIES:
One course from Table B - Upper Level Liberal Studies.

8th Semester

PROFESSIONALLY-RELATED: Three courses from Table I.

OPEN ELECTIVES: One course* from Open Elective Table.

LIBERAL STUDIES:
One course from Table B - Upper Level Liberal Studies.

* Course selection may not include CPS 513 or any CPS courses between CPS 100 and CPS 499.

In addition to the regular curriculum, Computer Science Co-operative Program students must complete WKT 103, WKT 203, WKT 303, WKT 403, and WKT 503 before graduation. The department may waive the requirement for WKT 503. WKT (Work Term) courses are offered in the Fall, Winter and Spring/Summer semesters, and are graded on a pass/fail basis.

The following table shows the sequence of academic and work terms:


The following shows the alternative sequence of academic and work terms.

Direct Entry/Advanced Standing Entry students should refer to their Offer of Admission for details about reach back courses.

1st & 2nd Semester

1st Semester

REQUIRED:

CPS 109 Computer Science I
CPS 213 Computer Organization I
MTH 110 Discrete Mathematics I

REQUIRED GROUP 1: One course from the following:

BLG 143 Biology I
CHY 103 General Chemistry I
PCS 110 Physics

LIBERAL STUDIES:
One course from Table A - Lower Level Liberal Studies.

2nd Semester

REQUIRED:

CPS 209 Computer Science II
CPS 310 Computer Organization II
CPS 412 Social Issues, Ethics and Professionalism
MTH 207 Calculus and Computational Methods I

LIBERAL STUDIES:
One course from Table A - Lower Level Liberal Studies.

  

3rd & 4th Semester

3rd Semester

REQUIRED:

CMN 300 Communication in the Computer Industry
CPS 305 Data Structures
CPS 393 Introduction to C and UNIX
MTH 108 Linear Algebra

OPEN ELECTIVES: One course* from Open Elective Table.

4th Semester

REQUIRED:

CPS 406 Introduction to Software Engineering
CPS 420 Discrete Structures
CPS 506 Comparative Programming Languages
CPS 590 Operating Systems I

OPEN ELECTIVES: One course* from Open Elective Table.

* Course selection may not include CPS 513 or any CPS courses between CPS 100 and CPS 499.

  

5th & 6th Semester

5th Semester

REQUIRED:

CPS 510 Database Systems I
CPS 633 Computer Security
CPS 721 Artificial Intelligence I

PROFESSIONALLY-RELATED: One course from Table I.

LIBERAL STUDIES:
One course from Table A - Lower Level Liberal Studies (opens in new window) .

An optional Concentration may be selected from Table I (Computer Science Group) starting in 5th Semester.

6th Semester

REQUIRED:

CPS 616 Algorithms
CPS 706 Computer Networks I

PROFESSIONALLY-RELATED: Two courses from Table I.

LIBERAL STUDIES:
One course from Table B - Upper Level Liberal Studies.

  

7th & 8th Semester

7th Semester

PROFESSIONALLY-RELATED: Three courses from Table I.

OPEN ELECTIVES: One course* from Open Elective Table.

LIBERAL STUDIES:
One course from Table B - Upper Level Liberal Studies.

8th Semester

PROFESSIONALLY-RELATED: Three courses from Table I.

OPEN ELECTIVES: One course* from Open Elective Table.

LIBERAL STUDIES:
One course from Table B - Upper Level Liberal Studies.

* Course selection may not include CPS 513 or any CPS courses between CPS 100 and CPS 499.

A Concentration is a structured plan of study within a program (6 to 12 core or professional electives) that provides an opportunity for advanced or in-depth study in a particular area of interest.

Concentration in Software Engineering

You may focus your Table I (Computer Science Group) electives on software engineering by including this specific set of courses into your degree.  

Choose six (6) courses from the following:

CPS 610 Database Systems II
CPS 613 Human-Computer Interaction
CPS 707 Software Verification and Validation
CPS 714 Software Project Management
CPS 731 Software Engineering I
CPS 831 Software Engineering II
CPS 845 Extreme Programming and Agile Processes
CPS 847 Software Tools for Startups
CPS 853 Creating Big Data Systems


Successful completion will mean that 'Concentration in Software Engineering' will appear on your transcript. This Concentration is not a CEAB accredited engineering degree program leading to the designation Professional Engineer (P.Eng.).

Students will have to declare their intention to pursue the Concentration at the end of winter semester in Year 2. The program, at its discretion, may limit access to the Concentration based on space availability in the Concentration courses or to students achieving a minimum CGPA.

A Program Advisory Council (PAC) is a group of volunteers that provides expert advice to a school or department on program related matters such as curriculum, program review, technology and trends in the industry, discipline or profession. For more information, see  (PDF file) Senate Policy #158 (Program Advisory Councils).

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