Department Objectives

 

The core objective of the department is to fulfill its mission as defined in its mission statement.

The following categorized objectives, when met, will serve to fulfill the mission of the department.


Undergraduate Outcomes

All students graduating with a Bachelor of Science in Computer Science from Utah State University will be expected to show mastery as follows:
  1. Graduates will be proficient in programming in at least two programming languages which have significance in industry.
  2. Graduates will master the core curriculum in:
    1. Data Structures and Algorithms
    2. Computer Architecture and Organization
    3. Programming Languages
    4. Operating Systems
    5. Theory of Computing
    6. Software Engineering
  3. Graduates will understand the practices and dynamics required to develop software whether it be a single program or a major software product developed in a team environment.
  4. Graduates will gain proficiency in the use of mathematical tools including calculus, elementary statistics, and probability.
  5. Graduates will have sufficient mastery of fundamental knowledge to be life long learners in computer science.
  6. Graduates will understand the social and ethical issues which face computer scientists, and thus be able to contribute in a positive and productive manner to society.
  7. Graduates will be able to communicate information effectively both in writing and orally.
Table of Undergraduate Outcome Objectives
Curriculum

  1. Each course delivered to computer science majors will be technically current, and pedagogically sound. Course content and pedagogy will be determined by established by curriculum committees, and approved at the department level.
  2. Where prerequisites are given, they will be appropriate and necessary.
  3. Both theory and application will be integrated into the curriculum. In this way, a student completing the program will be ready to contribute to their field, and have the necessary intellectual tools to continue to learn after graduation, whether it be in a structured educational environment or a self-taught environment.
  4. The curriculum will include sufficient course work in the liberal arts to give graduates the breadth needed to be contributing members of society. In addition, ethics and values will be taught to give students the tools to needed to be positive contributors to society.
  5. The undergraduate computer science degree, and all options within it, will be accredited by the appropriate professional organization(s).
  6. At the upper undergraduate and graduate level, students will have the opportunity to take leading-edge 5000-level courses in each of the three research areas of the department; namely, artificial intelligence, parallelism, and software systems. Courses at the 6000-level will present cutting-edge knowledge in their area of emphasis.

Teaching

  1. Quality teaching is valued.
  2. All tenure-track faculty members will be expected to have adequate breadth of background to teach computer science classes at all levels in the curriculum.
  3. Teaching is a significant component of every tenure-track faculty member's role and performance as a teacher will be considered in all faculty evaluations.
  4. Where resources and facilities permit, teaching techniques and technologies that are most effective for computer science instruction will be used.
  5. In addition to classroom instruction, laboratory and significant out-of-class homework experiences will be measurable components of the program.
  6. Student and peer evaluations of teaching performance will be sought and used.

Students

  1. The department will devote time and resources to recruit and retain the best students available to the program.
  2. Students will be frequently and meaningfully evaluated as they progress through the program.
  3. Input from students concerning curriculum, teaching, research, and the program in general will be sought and used.

Advisement

  1. Each undergraduate major will have an assigned adviser who is a tenure-track faculty member.
  2. Forms, check sheets, etc. which accurately and completely describe program requirements will be maintained and available to all majors.
  3. The department will maintain contact with its majors through electronic means and meetings with advisers.

Research

  1. Research and graduate student supervision are important components of a tenure-track faculty member's role.
  2. Research is an important means by which the department advances the state of the art in computer science.
  3. The graduate student's supervisory committee will insure that a plan A thesis contains an appropriate component of originality and a plan B report presents research results of an appropriate level.
  4. Faculty members supervising graduate students will be current in their respective area(s) of emphasis.
  5. Faculty members will seek external funding as needed to enable them to maintain their research program and support graduate research assistants.
  6. Faculty member will publish and/or present the results of their research through appropriate channels.

Service

  1. Faculty and staff will be service oriented.
  2. Where appropriate, faculty members will participate in extension and distance learning programs.
  3. Faculty members will make themselves available to the community as experts and consultants.
  4. Faculty members will actively contribute to the scientific community.