Program overview

The doctoral program in computing and information sciences is designed to produce independent scholars, well-prepared educators, and cutting-edge researchers poised to excel in their work in computing and interdisciplinary academic, industrial, or government environments. The degree highlights two of the most unique characteristics of the Golisano College: its breadth of program offerings and its scholarly focus on discovering solutions to real-world problems by balancing theory and practice.

The program focuses on the theoretical and practical aspects of cyberinfrastructure as applied to specific problems across multiple domains. It is a blend of intra-disciplinary computing knowledge areas and inter-disciplinary domain areas.

Cyberinfrastructure

Cyberinfrastructure (CI) is a comprehensive infrastructure integrating hardware, data, networks, and digitally-enabled sensors to provide secure, efficient, reliable, accessible, usable, and interoperable suites of software and middleware services and tools. Our doctorate program plays a leadership role in CI research by providing human-centered tools for the science and engineering communities. These tools and services focus on such areas as high performance computing, data analysis and visualization, cyber-services and virtual environments, and learning and knowledge management.

Intra-disciplinary knowledge

There are three intra-disciplinary computing knowledge areas: interaction, informatics, and infrastructure.

Interaction

Interaction refers to topics related to the combined action of two or more entities (human or computational) that affect one another and work together when facilitated by technology. It encompasses several subtopics relating to how people and technology interact and interface. Several common threads weave through all of these areas, many of which rely heavily and build upon foundations in the social and behavioral sciences with an emphasis on understanding human and social/organizational phenomena. To some extent, these fields follow an engineering approach to the design of interactions in which solutions are based on rules and principles derived from research and practice, but require analyses that go beyond the analytical approach. From this perspective, solutions can be measured and evaluated against goals and intended outcomes. However, while efficiency and effectiveness are often the watchwords of these fields in practice, this is also where science meets art in computing. Creative design and sensitivity to human needs and aesthetics are critical. Some of the specialties available in this area are human-computer interaction, computer-based instructional systems, and access technologies.

Informatics

Informatics is the study of computational/algorithmic techniques applied to the management and understanding of data-intensive systems. It focuses on the capture, storage, processing, analysis, and interpretation of data. Topics include algorithms, complexity, and discovery informatics. Data storage and processing require investigation into tools and techniques for modeling, storage, and retrieval. Analysis and understanding require the development of tools and techniques for the symbolic modeling, simulation, and visualization of data. The increased complexity of managing vast amounts of data requires a better understanding of the fundamentals of computation. These fundamentals include complexity, theory to determine the inherent limits of computation, communication, cryptography, and the design and analysis of algorithms to obtain optimal solutions within the limits identified. Some of the specialties available in this area are core informatics, discovery informatics, and intelligent systems.

Infrastructure

Infrastructure comprises aspects related to hardware, software (both system software and applications), communications technology, and their integration with computing systems through applications. The focus is on the best organization of these elements to provide optimal architectural solutions. On the hardware side it includes system-level design (e.g., for system-on-a-chip solutions) and their building block components. On the software side it covers all aspects of systems and applications software development, including specification and design languages and standards; validation and prototyping, and multi-dimensional Quality-of-Service management; software product lines, model-driven architectures, component-based development, and domain-specific languages; and product estimation, tracking, and oversight. The communications subtopic includes sensor networks and protocols; active, wireless, mobile, configurable, and high speed networks; and network security and privacy, quality of service, reliability, service discovery, and integration and inter-networking across heterogeneous networks. At the system level there are issues related to conformance and certification; system dependability, fault tolerance, verifiable adaptability, and reconfigurable systems; real-time, self adaptive, self-organizing, autonomic systems. Some of the specialties available in this area are networks and security, digital systems and VLSI, software design and productivity, and systems software.

Interdisciplinary domains

The program focuses on domain-specific computing, or the interaction between computing and non-computing disciplines, in the areas of science, engineering, medicine, arts, humanities, and business. By incorporating domain-specific computing, the research conducted in this program applies computing and information science principles to the solution of problems in application domains that lie outside of the scope of the traditional computing discipline. The research requirement incorporates fundamental concepts in cyberinfrastructure that are necessary for understanding the problems commonly encountered in advancing scientific discovery and product development in cross-disciplinary domains.

Active research areas

Computing technology

• Algorithm and theory
• Grid and cloud computing
• Communication and networking
• Computer vision and pattern recognition
• Database and data mining
• Graphics and visualization
• Human-computer interaction
• Machine learning
• Security and cryptology
• Software engineering

Domain applications

• Access technology
• Biomedical computing
• Computational astrophysics
• Environmental informatics
• Green computing
• Imaging and image informatics
• Service sciences
• Social computing

Curriculum

The program requires a minimum of 99 quarter credit hours beyond the baccalaureate level. These credit hours are comprised of graduate-level coursework, including seminar attendance and research credits.

Required courses

Students will complete 24 quarter credit hours of required courses and 3 quarter credit hours of teaching skills courses.

Electives

Elective courses provide foundation support of the student's dissertation research area. These courses will come from the courses (interaction, informatics, infrastructure), domain courses, and other electives.

Dissertation and research

Students are required to conduct original research involving two of the three intra-disciplinary knowledge areas (interaction, informatics, and infrastructure) and applied to a domain.

Assessments

Each student must pass three assessment examinations in the following order:

Research potential assessment

Completed after the first year, this assessment evaluates the research tasks students have worked on in their first year in the program. Passing this assessment will qualify students to continue in the doctoral program.

Thesis proposal defense

This is an oral qualifying examination completed after the thesis proposal is written. Formal admission to candidacy will be granted after successfully passing the research potential assessment requirement and having a research proposal approved by the dissertation committee. The dissertation committee will have a minimum of four members including the student's adviser.

Dissertation defense

This is the final examination. The dissertation defense includes the dissertation committee and an external reader from outside RIT. The exam consists of a formal, oral presentation of the thesis research by the student, followed by questions from the audience.

Admission requirements

To be considered for admission to the doctorate program in computing and information sciences, candidates must fulfill the following requirements:

• Hold a baccalaureate degree or its equivalent,*
• Submit official transcripts (in English) of all previously completed undergraduate and graduate course work,
• Submit scores from the Graduate Record Examination (GRE)^†,
• Submit a statement of purpose, containing, but not limited to, research experiences and interests, motivation to pursue doctorate, and long-term goals,
• Submit a recent curriculum vitae or resume,
• Submit two recommendations from individuals who are well qualified to assess the student's potential for doctoral study,
• Submit professional or research paper sample(s), if available, and
• Complete a graduate application.
• International applicants, whose native language is not English, must submit scores from the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL). A minimum score of 230 (computer-based) or 88 (Internet-based) is required.

* Since the program encompasses a wide variety of disciplines, students with diverse backgrounds (e.g.: engineering, science, humanities, fine arts, business, and disciplines with sufficient computing backgrounds) are encouraged to apply. Applicants should have the following minimum course work requirements: one full year of study in programming and computing concepts; strong mathematical background in subjects such as discrete mathematics, and probability and statistics; and aptitude, vision, and experience (if applicable) in computing and information sciences related research.

^† Basic exam score; taken within last 5 years.

Interview

An interview by one or more members of the doctoral program faculty and/or admissions committee may be required for candidates considered for admission prior to final selection. This interview may be conducted via telephone.

Additional information

Residency requirement

One year of full-time residency (minimum of 12 credits per quarter for three consecutive quarters, not including summer) is a requirement of the program.

Transfer credit

Students with previous graduate course work, or a master's degree in a computing and information sciences discipline or in a related domain-specific discipline, may be granted up to 28 quarter credit hours towards the degree requirements. The transfer credit evaluation will not be made until after the first year of study. Consideration for transfer credit will include the appropriateness to the student's intra- and inter-disciplinary program of study and research interests.

Assistantships

Assistantships, which include tuition and stipend, are available and awarded on a competitive basis. Students working on funded research projects are required to be available during the day for project commitments.