NOVA SOUTHEASTERN UNIVERSITY

Graduate School of Computer and Information Sciences
Fort Lauderdale, Florida

A major force in educational innovation, the Graduate School of Computer and Information Sciences (GSCIS) provides educational programs of distinction to prepare students for leadership roles in its disciplines. Its strengths include a distinguished faculty, a cutting-edge curriculum, and flexible online formats for its five M.S. and five Ph.D. programs and for its graduate certificate program in information security. All programs enable working professionals to earn their degrees without interrupting their careers. Online master's degree programs require no campus attendance and are available to part-time or full-time students worldwide. A unique online doctoral program requires only four weekends or two weeklong campus visits each year. The school has online students living in every state in the United States and in more than twenty-five countries. Ranked by Forbes magazine as one of the nation's top twenty cyber universities and listed in the Princeton Review's The Best Distance Learning Graduate Schools , the School currently offers more than 300 online classes annually. A leader in online graduate education, the School began offering online programs in 1983 and created the first electronic classroom in 1985.

In addition to its regional accreditation by the Commission on Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools, Nova Southeastern University (NSU) has been designated a National Center for Academic Excellence in Information Assurance Education by the U.S. National Security Agency and the Department of Homeland Security. Its curriculum in information security has been certified by the NSA for compliance with CNSS standards. Collaborative programs include DANTES, the U.S. Army's eArmyU initiative, and the Southern Regional Education Board's Electronic Campus. The school has a chapter of Upsilon Pi Epsilon (UPE), the International Honor Society for the Computing and Information Disciplines, and a student chapter of the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers (IEEE), the largest in Florida.

Located on a beautiful 300-acre campus in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, NSU has more than 25,000 students and is the largest independent institution of higher education in the southeast United States. The eighth-largest private university in the United States, it awards associate, bachelor's, master's, educational specialist, doctoral, and first-professional degrees in more than 90 disciplines. It has a college of arts and sciences, as well as schools of medicine, dentistry, pharmacy, allied health, optometry, law, computer and information sciences, psychology, education, business and entrepreneurship, oceanography, and humanities and social sciences.

Distance Learning Program

All of the school's graduate programs are offered in distance learning formats. Online master's programs require no on-campus classroom attendance. Students may complete the M.S. degree in twelve to eighteen months. Doctoral programs use one of two formats: cluster or institute. Cluster students attend four cluster meetings per year, held quarterly over an extended weekend (Friday, Saturday, and half-day Sunday) at the University. Cluster terms start in September and March. Cluster weekends take place in September, December, March, and June. Institute students attend a weeklong institute twice a year at the University. Institutes are held in mid-January and mid-July at the start of each five-month term. Clusters and institutes bring together students and faculty members for participation in courses, workshops, and dissertation counseling. Doctoral courses also have an online component. Between meetings, students complete assignments, research papers, and projects and participate in a range of online activities.

Delivery Media

Online students use the Web to access course materials, announcements, e-mail, distance library services, the Electronic Library, and other information and for interaction with faculty and fellow students. Online, interactive learning methods are used throughout the instructional sequence based on the use of WebCT as a course management system. Online activities facilitate frequent student-to-faculty and student-to-student interaction. They are supported by threaded discussion boards, white boards, chat rooms, and e-mail. In addition, WebCT enables students to submit assignments online in multimedia formats and to receive their professor's reviews of assignments online in the same formats.

Programs of Study

The School offers distance programs leading to the M.S. in computer information systems (including an optional specialization in information security), computer science, computing technology in education, information security, and management information systems (including optional specializations in information security and e-commerce); the Ph.D. in computer information systems (including an optional concentration in information security), computer science, computing technology in education, information science, and information systems, (including an optional concentration in information security); the Ed.D. in computing technology in education, and a graduate certificate in information security. The School's M.S. students may apply for early admission into the doctoral program, which provides the opportunity to earn the Ph.D. or Ed.D. in a shorter time. The M.S. requires 36 credit hours (thesis optional). Terms are twelve weeks long, and there are four terms each year. To earn the M.S. in twelve months, the student must enroll in three courses each term. To complete the M.S. in eighteen months, the student must enroll in two courses each term. Master's terms start in September, January, April, and July. Doctoral programs require 64 credits, including eight 3-credit courses, four 4-credit projects, and the dissertation. It may be completed in three years. The Ph.D. in computer information systems and computer science are offered only in cluster format. Doctoral programs in computing technology in education, information science, and information systems are offered in cluster and institute formats. Students attend clusters or institutes during their first two years of the program while completing course work.

Special Programs

All of the School's programs are offered through the Southern Regional Education Board's Electronic Campus and the U.S. Army's eArmyU program.

Credit Options

Up to 6 graduate credits from a regionally accredited institution may be transferred to one of the master's degree program. Courses proposed for transfer must have received grades of at least B. Credit is not awarded for life or work experience.

Faculty

GSCIS has 20 full-time and 10 part-time faculty members. All faculty members teaching at the graduate level have doctoral degrees.

Admission

The master's applicant must have an appropriate undergraduate degree with a GPA of at least 2.5 and a GPA of at least 3.0 in an appropriate major. The doctoral applicant must have a master's degree with an appropriate graduate major and a graduate GPA of at least 3.25. Degrees must be from regionally accredited institutions. All applicants must submit a summary of professional experience or score report of the GRE. English proficiency is a requirement for admission.

Tuition and Fees

Tuition is $425 per credit for master's students; for doctoral students, tuition is $500 per credit hour for coursework and $450 per credit hour for the dissertation.

Financial Aid

To qualify for financial assistance, a student must be admitted, must be a U.S. citizen or an eligible permanent resident, and must plan on registering for a minimum of 6 credit hours per term. A prospective student who re quires financial assistance should apply for it while still a candidate for admission. For financial assistance information or application forms, students should call 800-806-3680 (toll-free).

Applying

Admission decisions are made on a rolling basis. To ensure evaluation for the desired starting term, reviewable applications must be received at least one month prior to the start of that term. The application fee is $50. Late applications that cannot be processed in time for the desired starting term are considered for the next term. Applicants may be granted provisional admission status pending completion of the application process. Admission forms, brochures, and the graduate catalog may be downloaded from the School's Web site. Master's terms start in September, January, April, and July. Doctoral cluster terms start in September and March. Doctoral institute terms start in January and July.

CONTACT

Graduate School of Computer and Information Sciences
Nova Southeastern University
Carl DeSantis Building, Fourth Floor
3301 College Avenue
Fort Lauderdale, Florida 33314-9918
Phone: 954-262-2000
800-986-2247 (toll-free)
E-mail: [email protected]
Web site: http://www.scis.nova.edu