Computer science

Applicants for the Ph.D. in computer science must meet the following degree-specific admission requirements: 

• Education level: Bachelor's
• GPA: 3.0
• GRE: No
• TOEFL/IELTS/Duolingo: 79/6.5/115 (for applicants whose education was completed in countries where English is not an official language)
• Number of references: Three

• Prerequisites: To enter the computer science Master's program, competence in the following areas must be demonstrated: 

  • Knowledge of a structured, high-level language (CS120)
  • Algorithms and data structures (CS121)
  • A full year of calculus

  If prerequisite requirements are met, a student who does not have an adequate coursework background in computer science may be admitted with deficiencies in: 

  • Computer organization and architecture (CS150)
  • Computer languages (CS210)
  • Computer operating systems (CS240)
  • Software engineering (CS383)
  • Analysis of algorithms (CS395)
  • Or theory of computation (CS385)
• Other requirements: Statement of purpose (SOP)
  • In the SOP, include a paragraph detailing at most three possible topic areas you would like to do your Ph.D. on and identify at most three faculty members in order of preference whom you would like to choose as your possible major professor. To increase your chances of a proper match with the proposed faculty members, visit their web pages, and propose a research problem you would like to tackle with your proposed major professor(s).
  • Ph.D. applicants are encouraged to include a research proposal in the SOP and justify why a specific faculty is chosen as the proposed major professor. 

Program availability:  

Semester intake: Fall and Spring

• Eligible for WRGP award
• Eligible for international admission  

Deadlines: General application deadlines

Visit Graduate Admissions to learn more and start your application.

Computer Science contact: Hasan Jamil, jamil@uidaho.edu

Graduate Admissions contact: graduateadmissions@uidaho.edu, 208-885-4001

Find Department of Computer Science faculty advisors

Faculty provide funding through a variety of external agencies and industry partners. Contact our faculty to learn more about these funding opportunities or explore graduate fellowship programs.  

To learn how you can fund your graduate degree, check out the Graduate Funding page.

Visit Financial Aid to find detailed information about the cost of attendance.

Recognized STEM Program

This program is recognized as a STEM program by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and may be eligible for the 24-month STEM optional practical training extension for international students.

Learn more about STEM approved CIP/degree codes

This program could be a good fit if you:

• Have a strong foundation in mathematics and computer science
• Want to conduct research in the field
• Like to solve complicated puzzles
• Have a strong work ethic
• Work well independently and as part of a team

Degree roadmap

Depending on your interests, your academic adviser will help you develop a focused plan of study for the Ph.D. computer science degree. Some examples include:

• Cybersecurity
• Survivable systems (fault-tolerant computing)
• Artificial intelligence and machine learning
• Collaborative virtual environments
• Data science 

Students are required to write a dissertation and give a final dissertation defense at the end of their degree program

Related clubs and organizations

Our college offers 20+ clubs and organizations tied to international and national engineering organizations, including national competition teams.

Learn about clubs related to your major:

• Cyber Defense Club
• CyberForce Competition Team
• Graduate and Professional Student Association (GPSA)
• Humanitarian Engineering Corps (HEC)
• Polymorphic Games Studio
• National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE)
• Robotics Club
• Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers (SHPE)
• Society of Women Engineers (SWE)