The MSc degree with a specialization in Software Engineering is offered jointly through the Department of Computer Science and the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, with funding provided by the Province of Alberta through the Access Fund.
The learning objectives of the Software Engineering specialization are to enable students to:
There are two entry paths to the Software Engineering MSc. It is expected that students with an undergraduate degree in a science discipline will register in the graduate program of the Department of Computer Science (contact Lorraine Storey), and those with an undergraduate degree in an engineering discipline will register in the graduate program of the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering (contact Ella Gee).
Students will be registered in the Faculty of Graduate Studies in a thesis-based MSc program in Computer Science or Electrical and Computer Engineering with a specialization in Software Engineering. The Faculty entry requirements apply and students must have an undergraduate degree with a GPA of 3.0 or above. In addition, the Departments will assess the suitability of students for entry based on their academic background and industrial experience.
The course component of the MSc consists of 2.5 full course equivalents selected from a specified list of courses. The thesis component consists of an applied software engineering project written up as an MSc thesis and examined by an examination committee as specified in the Faculty regulations.
Students applying for entry to the MSc will be expected to have at least one year of experience in software development in a professional environment. Additional experience will be taken into account when assessing a student's academic background and achievements. Background knowledge in C, C++, object-oriented design, and human-computer interaction is preferred.
A software engineering research project will be carried out, normally in a software development environment in industry. A thesis on this project will be examined according to Faculty of Graduate Studies regulations.
There are no longer any mandatory residency requirements for masters students, and the Department does not have a residency requirement for the Software Engineering MSc. Students are required to attend the university to take courses but the majority are being organized as 3 hour sessions once a week in the evening so that there is no disruption of normal working hours.
The project work for the thesis is expected to be based on the ongoing activities in the workplace. It is expected that students will be employed in the software industry, and will work on their projects at the industry sites. For example, it might be an experiment in which a particular approach to process improvement is investigated, and software metrics are kept for a particular development. The final thesis need give no details relating to confidential information but would present the characteristics of the software being developed, the experience with process improvement and the plots of the relevant metrics. A similar approach will be taken for other topics.
Canadian students are liable for fees of about $4,100 for the first year in the program and about $1655 a year thereafter until they complete. (This may change without notice.) They have a maximum of 4 years in which to complete the degree.
An expected pattern for an industry student would be to take one half course a semester (3 hours contact time per week), and plan the project work from the beginning as part of the research methods course (which will be spread out throughout the project activity). It would be realistic to complete an MSc in 2 years.
There will be a two-way flow of knowledge and personnel in which the Industry Partners introduce new problems, the University researchers introduce new technologies, and the relation between the problems and technologies is investigated through joint projects. The University has a documented Intellectual Property Policy. The results of the research undertaken will come under item 5.2.3, that it be placed in the public domain and be freely available for use. Specific confidentiality and non-disclosure agreements will be drawn up with industrial sponsors for projects involving access to confidential or commercially sensitive material, but the need for such access will be minimized.
At present this option is only available to students registered in the Department of Computer Science (contact Lorraine Storey).
Students will be registered in the Faculty of Graduate Studies in a course-based MSc program in Computer Science with a specialization in Software Engineering. The Faculty entry requirements apply and students must have an undergraduate degree with a GPA of 3.0 or above. In addition, the Department will assess the suitability of students for entry based on their academic background and industrial experience.
The course component of the MSc consists of 5 full course equivalents selected from a specified list of courses. A project may be undertaken as a half or a full course as part of the 5 full courses required. There is a comprehensive examination based on the courses completed and examined by an examination committee as specified in the Faculty regulations.
Students applying for entry to the MSc will be expected to have at least one year of experience in software development in a professional environment. Additional experience will be taken into account when assessing a student's academic background and achievements. Background knowledge in C, C++, object-oriented design, and human-computer interaction is preferred.
Canadian students are liable for fees of $454 per half course ($227 per quarter course). This may change without notice. Students have a maximum of 6 years in which to complete the degree.
An expected pattern for an industry student would be to take one or two half courses a semester (3 hours contact time per week per course). It would be realistic to complete an MSc in 3 or 4 years.
The University has a documented Intellectual Property Policy. The results of any work undertaken will come under item 5.2.3, that it be placed in the public domain and be freely available for use. Specific confidentiality and non-disclosure agreements will be drawn up with industrial sponsors for projects involving access to confidential or commercially sensitive material, but the need for such access will be minimized.
There are 5 required quarter courses which form the core of the program for both thesis-based and course-based students.
The core quarter-courses are:
Quarter courses are specified by Q(x-y) where the number of class hours per week is x, and the number of lab hours is y.
An additional quarter course is required for thesis-based students:
An additional 2 half courses are taken as options from defined lists. Advanced credit may be given for recent courses taken in core topics. This must be approved as part of the offer of a place in the program.
In addition students can select the equivalent of two half-courses from the list of options below.
The course-based M.Sc. specialization will provide B.Sc. graduates with advanced academic training and industry experience in software engineering. The program is suitable for both full-time and part-time mature students who are already in the workforce with relevant work-experience and wish to obtain an advanced degree.
There are 5 required quarter courses for the course-based program as listed above. Students can select further courses from the list of options below, or from approved CPSC, ENEL or other courses relevant to software engineering, to complete their 5 full course equivalents. One half course or one full course may be a project in software development or software "best practice and experience" submitted as part of the course requirement.
No advanced credit can be given for courses unless approved as part of the offer of a place in the program.
The project courses are:
A one-hour final oral comprehensive examination is required after all courses are completed. This will be based on material from a selection of courses taken (usually 4 or 5 half course equivalents), including the project if applicable. There is no written examination.
Note: 2 quarter courses are equivalent to 1 half course; 2 half courses are equivalent to 1 full course.
All students are strongly advised to take at least one of the management half courses: MOHR 621, MOHR 691 or ENCI 691.
There are 6 required quarter courses which form the core of the program. An additional 2 half courses are taken as options from defined lists. Quarter courses are specified by Q(x-y) where the number of class hours per week is x, and the number of lab hours is y.
The core quarter-courses are:
Advanced credit may be given for recent courses taken in core topics. This must be approved as part of the offer of a place in the program.
In addition students can select the equivalent of two half-courses from the following options:
Students are strongly advised to take at least one of the management half courses: MOHR 621, MOHR 691 or ENCI 691.