Hi,
I enrolled in MS in CS and then converted to MCS.
So, MS is a Computer Science with a compulsory thesis. I'll get back to the thesis part later. You need to take courses according to the degree requirements (check those on the website, you need to take courses from variety of categories) and have to defend your thesis to graduate in MS.
MCS is a non-thesis CS. You just have to complete 30 credits and full-fill the degree requirements. The small difference here is that you will have to prepare a project portfolio as part of MCS. A project portfolio is something in which you prepare three page report for three different projects you did in three different courses. Projects should have at least XX% (30 - 40) weight in that particular course. Some professors allow you to submit your final project report as a portfolio report.
If you are not sure what you want to do, then I would recommend going for MS. This will make you eligible for Teaching Assistant-ship (Yes, MCS students cannot become TAs). Also, you can spend first semester in finding your mentor and the thesis topic, if you decide not to do the thesis then you can convert to MCS. Note that the deadlines for converting MS <-> MCS keep on changing. There is some $25 fees involved in doing this.
Also, you can convert only once, i.e. once you changed from MS to MCS and then you feel like doing thesis again then you might not be allowed to do that.
Thesis is a big commitment and the part which I don't like about is the uncertainty of it getting accepted. It is not like a course which you can study over a semester and then clear the exam, thesis has to be defended and if you fail to do that, your graduation might get delayed by a semester.

As I answered in an earlier question, the difference is that the MS CS is primarily a research-oriented degree. The student gets a chance to try their hands at research and decide whether they wish to move on to a PhD. In order to graduate they must write a Master's Thesis, which is an original research paper.

The MCS is project based, and while there is some theory it is considered primarily an applied degree. It is intended more as a terminal degree. The final product is a portfolio assembled from the final projects of three of the courses the student has taken rather than a thesis.

Most (if not all) of the classes are the same. It is really a matter of whether you expect to go into industry or on to a PhD. I suppose you could choose/prefer to write a research thesis, but generally jobs that require research experience want a PhD, so you would need to keep going anyway.

MCS stands for Master of Computer Science, which is a post-graduate degree that covers all aspects of computer science. It is usually offered as an undergraduate degree and students can obtain it after achieving a bachelor’s degree in any field. MSCS stands for Master of Science in Computer Science, which is also a post-graduate degree that covers all aspects of computer science. It is usually offered as a graduate assistant/associate program and provides a subset of the content taught at the MCS level.

Contact us on +91-7700926483 to book an appointment for a FREE Consultation. Grad-Dreams has been assisting students for more than 19 years with their abroad study queries

As an UFL alumni who graduated in 2010 in EE, as well as attending a temporary Masters in GIT from ASU, I would suggest the following:

1. Even if the ranking is not as good as UFL, choose ASU. Why do I suggest this?(Note: As of 2020 the ASU CS program is better ranked than UFL CS program)
2. Because, Tempe and Phoenix are the fastest growing places in Arizona(and also within the US).
3. Because,Amazon (a tech giant) is moving /has moved to Arizona.
4. Also because, more people are moving from California to Arizona because of more affordable housing, lifestyle,etc.
5. What does this imply? This means tech jobs are also increasing due to increased footfall of people in the area. (People move where opportunities exist; thereby, driving more opportunities towards the area. It is a cyclical process.).
6. If you go to ASU, you will be right in the middle of the action. There are enough tech employers, especially, in banking and insurance in Arizona as well as medical tech . Therefore, getting a job is much easier.

However, if you go to UFL, you will end up in Gainesville which is a suburb in the middle of nowhere aka a typical college town. There are very few companies around the area.

Gainesville is not a rapidly developing area; its primary economic driver is only the university. Sure, there might be that odd career fair or two, but that is not enough.

If you live in ASU right in the heart of Tempe, you are just walking distance from the big multistory office buildings,around Tempe town lake, that hire computer science tech graduates.

I’ve lived in both states; I’ve attended both universities. As such, I know both regions of the country well enough to form an opinion.

I hope this different insight helps someone out there. Rather than making a decision based solely on ranking, it is better to consider the growth potential of an area to decide which university to select, for getting an education as well as a career.

Well you definitely can’t compare it to the IVY leagues. But you are bound to do well if you take the right course and don’t get lost in the other activities in and around ASU.

ASU usually has a very high acceptance rate and thus the CS classes are usually always a mix bag of students from very bright to not very bright students in the same class. But most if not all end up placed in great companies.

Also ASU is one of the biggest campuses in the US and also lets not forget it gets a lot of funding for its research as NASA and now even recently google have partnered with ASU. On-campus jobs are in plethora and with very little effort you will end up getting a very high paying job in the campus itself.

Most ASU professor’s for CS are from GATECH, CMU and UMCP so they are really good professor’s . ASU offers every course of CS which other universities can’t even think off. They give you the flexibility to specialize in whichever field you want too.

ASU CS course structure has a very wide range in terms of the difficulty and in terms of usefulness. Most courses which are deemed tough are the courses which are actually useful and will help you. There are many courses which are just there to waste your time and money and to get a good grade without having to do nothing. So you really have to spend a lot of time trying to understand the course before you actually take them.

Most companies the big ones like (Google,FB,Amazon) and many startup’s hire students from ASU. The college is quietly doing great things without making other colleges realize it. It was just recently named the No 1 college for Innovation in US.

Lastly, CS in ASU is definitely top notch provided you take the right courses and are ready to work hard and burn the midnight oil. You can’t do well if you don’t work hard at ASU. So all ASU CS aspirants please don’t come to this school if you don’t have the ability to atleast put 10 hrs of hard work everyday.

A2A

I'll try to do justice with this question by sharing my personal experiences (please don't generalize it for everyone).

As far as academic experience is concerned, to be honest, it has not been the best as per my expectations. ASU computer science department ranks in top 50 among all schools in USA but quality of its curriculum doesn't match up with it's ranking.

I'll list out both my academic and non-academic experiences below:-

1. First of all, there is a dirth of good course-faculty combination in computer science. It means even if a certain course is good, the designated faculty isn't the best possible match. On the other hand, they do have some very good courses and faculty in undergraduate as well as graduate standing but they need to do better.

2. There is a higher intake of students for graduate level courses especially in computer science department, which results in students competing to secure a seat in a course of his/her desire (happened with me consecutively for 2 semesters). They should come up with a waiting system like we have in Indian railway booking, so that a student who is ahead in waiting gets the seat (instead of getting seat based on luck)

3. Infrastructure provided is definitely A-class and worth paying for but the tuition fees is a bit on higher end in comparison to the quality of education imparted (personal opinion). Gym, sports complex, classroom, lab and library facilities are excellent and well maintained.

4. As far as I know, research work going on in labs like Yochan and Intelligent Interactive Instructional Systems under computer science department is definitely commendable and if you are planning on doing thesis, I guess you are in safe hands. (I am non-thesis guy, so just don't take my word for it)

5. If you are interested in working on open source projects or participating in hackathons, ASU computer science department has a club named "SoDA" which is doing some pretty exciting work.

6. There are loads of opportunities for participating in non-academic activities as there are lot many fraternities, clubs, associations that a student can join and engage in.

7. As far as experience of living in Arizona is concerned, it has been good so far for me. It's a cheap state to live in and is scarcely populated. It's lot like my native place Rajasthan in India, so I am a bit used to this climate. It's pretty hot in summers (touches 122°F) and considerably cold in winters.

8. Night life in Tempe, AZ is fairly good and is majorly concentrated in and around Mills Avenue. There are lot of late night clubs there, which even remain crowded during weekdays.

9. Proximity to Las Vegas and California is one plus point that can't be ignored. Job opportunities in Arizona are in sufficient numbers but obviously less in comparison to California. So the close proximity of bay area helps in securing a good full time job for computer science students.

10. Last but not the least, on an average a master's in computer science course class has 60-70℅ Indians, 20-30℅ Chinese, 5-10℅ other nationalities including Americans. ;)

In conclusion, I would say that ASU is still one of the finest institutes in USA to study computer science with its pros and cons.

Note - The above given text is based on my experiences and observations. It may or may not represent a general notion about the computer science course at ASU.

It depends on a lot of factors if you are just looking for jobs or internships, I would suggest ASU over Buffalo, as it is strategically located and companies like Ebay and Intel hire a lot of graduates from there. If you are looking for specializing in some field and are interested in research do consider Buffalo, Buffalo's computer science department is good, it will give you a lot of choices when it comes to course selection, there are a lot of good courses in fields like Systems and Software.

There are some awesome professors like Geoffrey Challen for Operating Systems you can have a preview of the courses here : ops-class.org , Distributed Systems taught by Steve Ko, and Modern Networking Concepts taught by Dimitrios Koutsonikolas. Point being if you are interested in Systems and software, there are some very good courses here.Mostly everyone gets the courses they want,as there are a large number of courses being offered.
Also many of the professors in areas like artificial intelligence are much hyped, i didn't feel they teach that well, they are very good in their own fields, but then there is a difference in being good at one thing and teaching that thing.

So before making a decision do check the subjects you are interested in. About ASU, I dont know exactly about the courses being offered there, but the intake in ASU is pretty large and many times people dont get courses they want. Consider the fact that in Buffalo you will graduate in 1.5 years as compared to 2 years in ASU. Also if money is a factor for you Buffalo is substantially cheaper than ASU.

In our batch the intake was about 250-300 students. Finding on-campus jobs is not that tough, but when it comes to internships it is tough because of the location. I am not saying people dont get internships here, but it is quite difficult because of the location. You have to work on your own to get an internship, you won't get much help from college's career center.

So Summing up:
Jobs and Internships: ASU
On-Campus Jobs,TA,RA: Buffalo
Courses: Depends on your Interests
Budget: Buffalo.

All the best. I hope it helps :-)

(The answer is based on what I know and I may be wrong, correct me if I am wrong with something.)

These two programs are almost the same in U of I. Some differences:

1. MS program requires you to do a research and write masters thesis, MCS does not.
2. Students studying in MS program potentially get tuition waiver and stipend by doing TA/RA. Generally speaking, MCS students cannot do TA/RA. But things change this year and I think MCS students can do TA after first semester if there are not enough TAs for courses.
3. MCS students can graduate in 3 semesters while MS students generally graduate in 4.
4. MS students get opportunities to apply to transfer to PhD program. Though they will still examine your profiles and research background, I’ll argue that you get much higher chance to get into program. Because you don research with faculties here and the letter of recommendation are therefore stronger. And you also have to find an advisor who are willing to taking you as a RA before you submit the application. This means you already have someone who thinks you are good enough and are willing to work with you.

IMO, I think MS is better than MCS because of tuition waiver and because of the chance of doing research. Its like tasting the flavors of doing research before you decide whether to do a PhD or not. I know quite a few friends doing their PhD directly drop after two years. Research is not for every one and it’s always good to know how does it like before you devote 4–7 yrs doing your PhD. Even you just want to go to industry after your masters, possible tuition waiver and stipend are still great!

I am doing my Master's in Computer Science (MCS) at ASU. If you are not already aware, MCS is MS minus thesis. From my experience so far, I can say that ASU Computer Science is very, very good. Some of the courses and professors are excellent. ASU is very well known for Machine Learning/Data Mining, Databases and Systems courses. Unfortunately, this is not the right place if you are interested in Networks.

Internships and Full time - Generally very good. Companies like Microsoft, Amazon and Intel visit ASU every semester for on-campus hiring. Intel recruits heavily from ASU. I must also advice here that jobs do not depend solely on the university. If you acquire the right skills, you can apply on your own and the employers generally do not care about which university you come from. But to acquire skills, ASU is a very good place. The fact that ASU is close to CA is also a small factor in your job search, but don't count on it too much.

Prerequisites - You can waive off prerequisites if you can show that you scored 60%+ in the corresponding undergrad course. This includes lab marks of the course as well, if you had any. If you cannot waive it off, you can give a test and try to clear it. If you cannot, you will have to take the course. The details about the tests are given while you near the semester start date. You can also email the professors to know about the syllabus.

I see that you have asked whether you should accept the admit or not. Just accept the admit. You might decide not to come here ultimately, but that is okay. Prerequisites should not be a stumbling block for coming to ASU, if you ask me. The university is great with many resources available and Tempe is one of the most inexpensive places to live in.

All the best!

Placements typically happen through online applications more than on-campus interviews. Though we have career fairs happening every semester, the number of companies visiting ASU has reduced in recent times.

You have the opportunity to get into any company, be it Google, Facebook, Apple, Amazon, Microsoft, eBay, etc etc and the list goes on. Placements is driven by the candidate and not by Arizona State University. We have people who have offers from the companies mentioned above and even more.

Students apply to companies online. If your profile is picked by a recruiter or a manager, you get one or two initial phone screen interviews or an online coding test, followed by 5 or 6 rounds of on-site interviews.

Interview Process
===============
Be passionate about what you learn and start preparing towards your job from day 1. Your first task is to get an interview call. Prepare a neat and precise (1 page) resume, build a good online brand image, example LinkedIn Profile, Online portfolio. Apply online through company sites, job search portals, try to find recruiters through LinkedIn or other job search portals and mail them. Its your skill to use every possible way to get an interview call.

After you get an interview call, your skill, knowledge about computer science, coding skills, confidence, the effort you had put in for your preparation, everything comes into play. Most of the companies ask you to solve problems. If you are a good problem solver, most of your problems about placements are solved. Phone screens are typically easy.

Once you get an on-site call, you need to step up your preparations. You will have 5 rounds and each round would be for 45-60 mins, without any break. On-site interviews are tiring and draining and your brain starts getting tired after 2 or 3 rounds. So keep up the energy levels and you will get comfortable once you attend on-site interviews with one or two companies.

P.S At any point of this process, its you who is driving the process and not ASU. So your preparation level decides the company you are going to work for and not ASU.

The program is very good. As suggested by Dan Zhang, intel is one of the top recruiters being a local company. But you must have strong interest in System level coding and must have taken some system level courses to increase your chances at Intel. I know that Amazon hires a lot of interns and full-timers. It is said that you at least get a call from Amazon as you are an ASU student.
In addition to that, there are many RA and TA opportunities. If you are willing to learn and have clarity of your research interests then you will get a lot of opportunities here.
Take your courses wisely and try to find your faculty advisor at the earliest. Also, I hope you understand the difference between MS in CS and MCS, if not, check this answer: Bhumik Thakkar's answer to What is the difference between MCS and MS CS at Arizona State University?

Long ago, I put very little effort and money into getting my MS in computer science. I had a full time job the whole time I was getting the degree and put effort into that job. Then over my career, it wasn’t worth very much, but probably had enough payback to justify what it cost me.

Employers care about PHDs. They very stupidly care about PHDs, because typically software engineers with PHDs do less useful work than software engineers without PHDs.

I didn’t have the patience for continuing to show great respect for professors who knew so much less than I knew, nor for the rest of the time, money and grief needed to get a PHD. I’m sure the pay back would have justified all that time, money and grief. But I didn’t do it.

For most people, I think the MS is only worth it on the path to the PHD. If you can’t pretend to respect the arrogant fools, might as well stop before the MS. Even in the undergraduate degree, a student must pretend to respect arrogant fools. But you don’t need to interact with them as much.

From my experience you can say ASU is a great school for computer science. Like other state flagship public universities, ASU has invested heavily in computer science. Some of the courses and professors are excellent. ASU is very well known for Machine Learning/Data Mining, Databases and Systems courses. Unfortunately, this is not the right place if you are interested in Networks.

Internships and Full time - Generally very good. Companies like Microsoft, Amazon and Intel visit ASU every semester for on-campus hiring. Intel recruits heavily from ASU. I must also advice here that jobs do not depend solely on the university. If you acquire the right skills, you can apply on your own and the employers generally do not care about which university you come from. But to acquire skills, ASU is a very good place. The fact that ASU is close to CA is also a small factor in your job search, but don't count on it too much.

Prerequisites - You can waive off prerequisites if you can show that you scored 60%+ in the corresponding undergrad course. This includes lab marks of the course as well, if you had any. If you cannot waive it off, you can give a test and try to clear it. If you cannot, you will have to take the course. The details about the tests are given while you near the semester start date. You can also email the professors to know about the syllabus.

I see that you have asked whether you should accept the admit or not. Just accept the admit. You might decide not to come here ultimately, but that is okay. Prerequisites should not be a stumbling block for coming to ASU, if you ask me. The university is great with many resources available and Tempe is one of the most inexpensive places to live in.

All the best!

I was Graduate Advisor of Computer Science and Engineering off and on for a dozen years. In 2023, the MCS is a 30-hour coursework degree, while the MSCS is a 30-hour degree which includes a thesis, and only 24 hours of coursework. The MCS normally takes two academic years full time, including at least a summer and maybe a fall/spring semester on internship, since most full time offers come via internships. Some students will take an online course while on internship, but I would make them promise to not have any fun (they did not have time for fun). In theory the MCS can be done in as little as three semesters, doing an overload, but few students do that, since it is more important to do internships. The MCS is also available as an online degree, with asynchronous courses. The online students are typically working full time and taking courses part time. Students typically do an MSCS if they are interested in research, and some are funded as a graduate assistant. The MSCS is not a necessary predicate for a PhDCS. Many PhD students are direct PhD from a BS degree. It is uncommon for an MSCS student to continue on to a PhD. It is uncommon for an MCS graduate to later go on to a PhD, but some students do so. The same situation applies to the computer engineering degrees offered within Computer Science and Engineering (computer engineering is also offered within Electrical and Computer Engineering).

1. Msc (Master of computer science)and MCA (Master of computer application).
2. Msc come under science streams After completing 3 years bsc (comp sci) and MCA come under computer applications streams.
3. Msc is a 2 years course and MCA is a 3 years course. Many students opt for going for MCA after completing there BCA .
4. MCA is a professional course. and Msc is a general master course.
5. can do MCA after Msc but its value is only when you do your last degree from a well reputed intitute. And for MSc(IT or CS) you can option any of these as the subjects are almost same with the difference of only 1 or 2 subjects and scope of both of them is very good
6. Minimum marks that candidates need to secure in graduation in order to be eligible for an MSc course is usually 50 – 60%. However, the required percentage There is usually no age criteria to join MSc course.
7. MCA isa master degree in Computer applications. It is a 3 year post-graduate course. The criteria to apply for MCA is graduation from any recognized university and the candidate should have completed 10+2 with Mathematics.
8. After MCA you get better job in IT Field if you have best programming Skill.
9. After Msc you will get job in IT as well as computer faculty staff in computer or IT field .
10. Msc subject are most of the therotical but MCA subject are programming and practical subject so you will get more knolwedge.
11. Good to for MCA after BCA, because both are computer related. As you have a good base in computer also IT field is hiring up nowadays its better to choose MCA. IF you go for MSc their will be minimum job opportunities in IT.
12. For Fresher after MCA salary Rs. 19,000 – Rs. 36,000 in IT.
13. For Fresher after Msc salary Rs. 15,000 – Rs. 30,000 in IT.

There are multiple aspects through which you can pick either of the university. Both University are in proximity of big IT hubs , ASU is next to California and NEU us next to NY. More importantly, ASU has a better and long history then NEU in terms of program quality, whereas NEU is ahead of ASU in terms of internships (that's mostly converts to full time). ASU, especially CIDSE, is very much non-friendly in terms of facilitating student get and go on an internship where NEU's program is setup around a 9month coop. ASU, computerscience only allows you to do 3 month summer internship out-of-state and internship during fall or spring must be located in-state and in Phoenix metropolitan area (you are also required to take 6 credit hours to in-person class).

In totality , if your aim is job and you don't mind going of a low ranking program, go for NEU but if you want a program that is value for your money, while suffering through beurocracy go for ASU.

That’s a tough one, because this is totally subjective. Mind you my decision to go to ASU was it was Pac-10 (at the time) & I was receiving a full scholarship- I was also receiving the same from Florida for softball. My dream was to play in the Olympics & play in the PAC, and it just so happened ASU won the fight overall.

However, I still made this list, here are a few questions to help sort your thoughts, feelings, & concerns (I did this for ALL of my top 5 schools before making an executive decision).

1. Write pro’s & con’s for each school: (examples: weather, distance, classroom size, demographics, city life vs rural, travel costs, tuition, sports, social life, topography: beach, desert, forest, country, etc, teacher to student ratio, job placement/opportunities post school, family being close or not far enough away :), in state vs out of state tuition, guidance)
2. Envision yourself on campus and living in either Tempe or Gainesville, which city fits your needs as a student and as a person?
3. Cost of living, taxes, and community. Will you be working a job, if so does the community offer what you’re looking for? (Luckily both states are legit for taxes so you’re good there!)
4. Humidity vs. Dry Heat? That may seem like a stupid question, but some people (myself included) hate feeling like you’re living in an armpit, others could careless.
5. Whats important for you as far as your education goes? Which program fits exactly what you want to do? Will you get the guidance you need (which I would 100% call and talk to advisors and professors at Florida to see if it’s a fit).

I hope this helps! Both schools are amazing, and they both offer such diverse experiences. You can’t go wrong either way, except student loans are not fun to pay off… so be sure this is the path for you!

I went to ASU for my Masters and PhD in Electrical engineering. I am answering based on what I saw from friends and roommates who did an MS in CA at ASU. With the right mix of courses (for research and/or industry), a good internship and a good research project, most of my friends reaped the best from the program.

As with anything, it lies in what you want from the program. If it is a good job post completion, you sure have it with the right set of courses. If it is a good research field (if you're in that bent of mind), you have some brilliant research going on there.

Refining this question asking specifics will help answer this better.

Most likely the difference is science vs business. MIS is taught in the college of business. MS computer science could be taught in engineering school or a CS department ( not college of business ).

which one is “more related to technology “? This is vague to me. Both degrees require understanding of technology’s capabilities and uses.

I think of MIS as business applications. Software used by business people to make business decisions

I think of CS as sofware development used by hardware manufacturers and software manufacturers. Hardware manufacturers need to adapt their devices to operating systems. Software manufacturers make software products, such as servers and desktop tools.

I went to ASU and a lot of these observations are based on my experiences from my stay there 2005-11.

• The research in the Computer Science and Engineering department is definitely something that is exemplary and the professors there do good research. It varies from video processing, artificial intelligence, robotics, algorithms and the like. On a related note, the coursework offered by the professors is pretty relevant to the current needs of the industry.
• The intake has increased over the years, yes, and the race to register for classes is immense. This also affects your chance with respect to on-campus jobs and assistantships. But if you are able to prove your worth and stand out (as with anything) you will be successful in finding one. However, the number of internships that the students have been able to find over the summer is something that has been promising.
• The reputation of ASU as a party school is something I'd not want someone to be deterred in making a choice. If you have your priorities set, I am sure you know when to work and when to party. :-)
• ASU is closer to California where the job opportunities are great for CS grads and there are many semiconductor companies in the area (Chandler, which is 6-8 miles from Tempe) like Intel, Microship, Maxim, Freescale etc. which do hire a lot of CS grads. Apart from that, ASU has a good EE program for circuits and relevant stuff from which you can perhaps take courses to enhance your chances in the industry (you do need to take 2 courses or so that are in the field outside your major).

A2A There is not GRE cutoff; however, there is an admitted students profile that will give you ranges, that is totally irrelevant to MSCS admissions at ASU. It will be your GPA and more importantl your SOP supported by the LORs when compared to the other applicants that will determine if you are admitted.

As to your question:
Tests Taken Prior to August 1, 2011

Program Average GRE Scores for Applicants

Computer Science MS 400 verbal, 750 quantitative, and 4.0 analytical writing

Computer Science MCS400 verbal, 750 quantitative, and 4.0 analytical writing

Computer Engineering Master 400 verbal, 750 quantitative, and 4.0 analytical writing

Software Engineering Master 400 verbal, 710 quantitative, and 3.0 analytical writing

Tests Taken After August 1, 2011

Program Average GRE Scores for Applicants

Computer Science MS 146 verbal, 159 quantitative, and 4.0 analytical writing

Computer Science MCS 146 verbal, 159 quantitative, and 4.0 analytical writingComputer Engineering Master 146 verbal, 159 quantitative, and 4.0 analytical writing

Software Engineering Master 146 verbal, 155 quantitative, and 3.0 analytical writing

ASU is known for being super erratic. There is no given sure shot way of getting in ASU. They can admit people with very mediocre profile and reject people with good profile. And even if they give you admit it not sure whether they'll give you CS only, they can give you SE as well if they think you are eligible. But since you are applying for CS they you still stand better chance of getting into ASU than your fellow EE applicants.

What I am trying to say is that don't get your hopes hooked on a particular university. Rather than targeting a specific university target a specific league of university, like in your case you should target ASU and similar university.

From your profile I would say that yo have a decent chance of getting in ASU so don't worry :)