Computer science graduate concentrations
Media, Arts and Sciences concentration
The media arts and sciences program (MAS) is a transdisciplinary network of faculty and students working under a common, use-inspired research and education agenda. MAS emphasizes research on the integration of the human physical experience with computation and digital media. MAS researchers produce experiential media systems and models that evolve human ability, facilitate learning, enhance scientific discovery, empower creativity, assist the disadvantaged and improve quality of life. Within these application areas, researchers explore sensing, perception and modeling, interaction and feedback, and experiential construction and knowledge creation.
The purpose of the MAS concentration in computer science and engineering is to train hybrid engineering-arts graduates who get their inspiration from the arts and their methodology from computer science and engineering. The students will specialize in transdisciplinary media development.
This concentration is available in the MS (thesis and applied project) and PhD programs.
Cybersecurity concentration
The program is designed for graduate students who want to pursue a thorough education in the area of cybersecurity. The goal of this concentration is to provide students the knowledge, skills and the advanced development capability in science and engineering for cybersecurity, including computer and network security, software security, data and information security, applied cryptography and computer forensics. Students will have a competitive advantage to secure employment.
According to the National Security Agency, information assurance is defined as the set of measures intended to protect and defend information and information systems by ensuring their availability, integrity, authentication, confidentiality and non-repudiation. This includes providing restoration of information systems by incorporating protection, detection and reaction capabilities.
The Information Assurance Center has been certified as a National Center of Academic Excellence in Information Assurance/Cyber defence (CAE IA/CD) and as National Center of Academic Excellence in Information Assurance – Research (CAE-R) by the National Security Agency & the Department of Homeland Security. Learn more.
For more information on internships and scholarship opportunities in cybersecurity, students can visit the National Security Agency’s website.
This concentration is available in the MCS (Tempe, online), MS (thesis), and PhD programs. Scholarships are also available for domestic students for this concentration, information can be found at https://ctf.asu.edu/.
Big data systems concentration
The program is designed for graduate students who want to pursue a thorough education and research in the area of big data systems. The goal of this concentration is to provide students the knowledge, skills and the advanced research expertise in designing scalable (parallel, distributed, and real-time) systems for acquiring, storing, processing, and accessing large-scale heterogeneous multi-source data and in using analytical tools to mine information from the data. The graduates will be able to pick and deploy the appropriate data management, processing, and analysis systems with the suitable structured or unstructured data model for the particular task and domain application needs. The concentration will meet the growing need for data scientists and engineers that can architect, implement, and manage large data systems and, thus, students will have a competitive advantage to secure employment.
This concentration is available in the MCS (non-thesis) and MS (thesis) programs.
Biomedical informatics concentration
The program is designed to meet the rapidly growing need for professionals with preparation that integrates technological expertise in the information sciences, computer sciences, biosciences, and statistics with an understanding and ability to work in the clinical environment of the healthcare professions. The goal of this concentration is to provide students with the opportunity to specialize in topics such as Health Information Systems or Biomedical Imaging Informatics. The concentration is interdisciplinary and will expose Computer Science students to current issues in clinical practice and the use of information systems in healthcare settings. The concentration in Biomedical Informatics will provide an opportunity for coordinating emerging interest in biomedical informatics as an interdisciplinary discipline.
Students will focus their research in one of the following areas:
- bioinformatics
- biomedical informatics
- clinical informatics
- imaging informatics
- public health informatics
This concentration is available in the MS (thesis) program.