 |
Catalog Index Search the 2000-2001 Catalog: |
School of Information Technology & Engineering
Information Technology, Ph.D.The general doctoral requirements of George Mason University apply to this program. When the term information technology (IT) and engineering is used at George Mason University to describe the school and its activities, it is intended to mean information technology and the branches of engineering most closely associated with information use and management. These aspects of technology are emphasized in this geographic region, and the relevance of the IT doctoral program has grown with the increasing dependence of the nation's commerce on the effective use of information. Our focus on the science and technology of information processing complements and enhances the more traditional approaches to engineering that are more strongly based on the physical and material sciences. The information technology doctoral program offers courses designated INFT in the "Course Descriptions" chapter of this catalog. Doctoral students in information technology are selected on the basis of scholarship and potential from among applicants with appropriate degrees from institutions of high standing. Generally, a master's degree in an information technology-related area, such as engineering, computer science, operations research, statistics, mathematics, physical sciences, economics, and psychology, is required for admission to the program. Students without an appropriate master's degree who otherwise satisfy admission requirements usually are encouraged to first seek such a degree in one of the 10 master's programs offered through this school. Application packets are available from the Office of Admissions and from the Office of the Dean of IT&E. An undergraduate grade point average of B (3.000 on a 4.000 scale) and a graduate grade point average of 3.500 on a 4.000 scale are basic requirements for applicants to the program. The admission process includes submission of the application for admission, undergraduate and graduate transcripts from previous colleges and universities attended, GRE test results when available, three letters of reference, a resume and a short statement of career goals and aspirations, and a self-assessment of past background. All of an applicant's background is examined before an admission decision is made. To ensure a common ground of fundamentals, students should have a background in topics such as calculus, differential equations, linear algebra, discrete structures, probability, and statistics. In addition, students entering the doctoral program in information technology must have a sound working knowledge in computing as demonstrated by examples of programs or applications developed and tested in at least one high-level programming language environment. Because much of the course work within this program requires computational proficiency, experience with a variety of languages and computer hardware is useful, as is an understanding of computer architecture. Highly qualified students who do not present evidence of appropriate course work for the program may be admitted and then required to take appropriate articulation courses. The Ph.D. in Information Technology program is made up of a breadth requirement (assessed via the qualifying examinations) and specialized course work (assessed via the comprehensive examination), followed by preparation of a dissertation. Generally, a student will have obtained a master's degree in a field appropriate to information technology, and this master's program typically prepares a student for the qualifying examinations. Under the guidance of the doctoral supervisory committee, the student prepares a tentative plan of study. The plan lists the intended courses and their expected timing. The plan should also contain the intended dates of the qualifying and comprehensive examinations, and a tentative subject of the dissertation research. To satisfy the breadth requirement of the Ph.D. degree, each student must pass a set of qualifying examinations designed to test a student's fundamental knowledge. These examinations correspond to the individual master's programs in the School of Information Technology and Engineering. For each such program, at least two written exams will be offered, with each exam being based on a reading list that corresponds roughly to one three-credit course (a student need not take the corresponding course). These exams are offered twice a year in specified locations on campus, typically near the beginning of the fall and spring semesters. Each exam is allocated 2 hours and 45 minutes. The examinations are graded on a pass/fail basis. Each student must take a set of four exams from three different degree programs within two years of enrolling in the program, unless fewer than 24 credits of course work have been completed in that time. Otherwise, the exams must be taken no later than the first opportunity following the completion of 24 credits. A student has two chances to pass the qualifying exams:
After two unsuccessful attempts, a student is dismissed from the Ph.D. program. Students must include in the plan of study a well-defined advanced emphasis. Successful completion of this requirement should enable the student to do basic or applied research in a significant contemporary area in information technology. The doctoral supervisory committee and the associate dean of the School of Information Technology and Engineering must approve a plan of study. These approvals must occur before a student completes the courses in the emphasis. There is no guarantee that courses taken before this approval will be accepted. Students must take a set of 24 credits of graduate course work that are independent of the qualifying exams taken by the student. (That is, if a student takes a qualifying exam related to OR 541, then OR 541 cannot be counted as three credits of specialty course work.) A GPA of 3.500 is required in these 24 credits. The plan of study may include at most three credits of directed reading course work. At least 12 of the 24 credits must be in courses numbered 700 or above, and these 12 credits cannot include directed reading, project, or thesis courses. Courses that cannot be included in the plan of study are any INFS 500-level courses; INFT 500, INFT 500 599; OR 540; STAT 510, STAT 512, STAT 530; and SYST 500. Exceptions to any of these rules must be approved in advance by the associate dean. Each Ph.D. student is allowed to designate an emphasis from among the titles of the M.S. degree programs offered by the School of Information Technology and Engineering. Doctoral Supervisory Committee Upon admission to the program, a student is assigned a temporary advisor. The student is responsible for working with the temporary advisor until the student selects a dissertation director and an advisory committee as soon after the student's admission as is feasible. This is especially important for students who have completed a considerable amount of graduate work elsewhere. The doctoral supervisory committee includes the dissertation director plus a faculty member from the student's intended major, who is selected by the student to become chair of the doctoral supervisory committee. The chair of the committee need not be the dissertation director, but should be selected from a list of approved chairs. Other committee members are selected to form a committee of at least four people from the regular (teaching) full-time George Mason faculty. At least three of these faculty are from IT&E. At least two of the departments of IT&E must be represented on this committee. In addition, industrial representatives and faculty members from departments outside of the school are highly desirable but are not required on the committee. The doctoral supervisory committee administers the comprehensive examination, the dissertation proposal presentation, and the dissertation predefense and defense. Permission to take each of these, except the proposal presentation, is requested from the IT&E dean on the basis of a written request and plan that has been approved by the supervisory committee. The comprehensive examination is taken after the student has satisfactorily completed all the course work requirements in the approved plan of study filed by the student. To initiate the exam process, the student meets with the supervisory committee to prepare a memorandum to be forwarded to the associate dean requesting the comprehensive examination and the appointment of an examination committee. The examination committee consists of the doctoral supervisory committee plus any outside examiners considered appropriate. The requesting memorandum lists all courses taken by the student that form the plan of study for the Ph.D. The memorandum should also propose a date or dates for the comprehensive examination. This examination is based on all the course work taken by the student, and consists of an oral examination, and a written examination of up to eight hours in length, to be taken at a designated place on campus. The examining committee determines the specific details of the exam. The objective of the comprehensive examination is to allow the examining committee to assess the student's readiness to complete doctoral research in an area of emphasis. The result of the comprehensive examination is a grade of pass or fail with recommendations for removing any deficiencies. Dissertation Proposal Presentation Near the end of the course work, each doctoral student prepares a written dissertation proposal, which is presented to the doctoral supervisory committee. The student may enroll in INFT 500 998 Doctoral Dissertation Proposal to complete this effort. During the term the student expects to present the dissertation proposal to the committee, the student should enroll in INFT 500 990 Dissertation Topic Presentations. After successfully completing this requirement, the student is formally admitted as a candidate for the Ph.D. degree. The application for candidacy is submitted to the Office of the Dean on a standard form. Dissertation and Final Defense With concurrence of the advisory committee, the student proceeds with the doctoral research, during which time the student must continuously enroll in INFT 500 999 Doctoral Dissertation. The student must complete a minimum of 24 credits from among INFT 500 990, 998, and 999, with a minimum of 12 credits of INFT 500 999. When the central portions of the research have been completed to the point that the student is able to describe the original contributions of the dissertation effort, a candidate submits the written dissertation to the supervisory committee and schedules an oral predefense to the committee. The predefense is to be held no sooner than one month after the members of the committee have copies of the dissertation. Once the committee believes the student is ready, a final public oral defense may be scheduled no sooner than one month after the conclusion of the predefense in order to have an announcement posted for at least two weeks. Following a satisfactory evaluation of the oral defense of dissertation by the supervisory committee, the student must prepare, with supervision from the dissertation director, a final publishable dissertation that represents a definitive contribution to knowledge in information technology. This document must meet format guidelines specified by the Guide for Preparing Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Projects. If the candidate successfully defends the dissertation, the dissertation defense committee recommends that the final form of the dissertation be completed, and that the faculty of IT&E and the graduate faculty of George Mason University accept the candidate for the Ph.D. degree. Residence Requirement and Research in Industrial Laboratories The term "residence" indicates that the student is "at home" intellectually with the faculty community. The student is expected to associate with the George Mason faculty for at least two full academic years. The advisory committee determines the equivalent of two academic years of effort at George Mason. The basis for residency is an effort to complete the basic or core study area requirements of the comprehensive examinations, to complete the advanced areas of study and the associated advanced emphasis portions of the comprehensive examinations, and to prepare a dissertation proposal that defines a definitive research contribution. Student research in industrial and government laboratories is encouraged to the extent that these facilities support quality independent research by the doctoral student. The greater Washington area is home for the largest group of information technology professionals in the world, many of whom have made definitive contributions to research. Area professionals with outstanding credentials and interests in information technology are solicited as visiting industrial professors. They may serve on doctoral advisory committees and, where permitted by available time and interests, direct doctoral dissertations. Telecommunications, M.S.The M.S. in Telecommunications degree program is an interdisciplinary, innovative blend of engineering-oriented courses in communications systems, networking, computers, and software combined with courses on telecommunications policy, law, business, international aspects, and other fields. The program is designed for students who wish to enter the field of telecommunications or who are working in the field and want to advance their knowledge of telecommunications. This degree program provides focus on the engineering and information technology aspects of telecommunications in combination with the interdisciplinary knowledge offered by courses of the M.A. in Telecommunications. Many engineering and information technology courses are designed specially for this program. A novelty of the program is its modular structure, involving 7.5-credit modules corresponding to areas of concentration. The program offers a mix of 3-credit courses with 1.5-credit short courses. This structure allows students to more clearly identify various specialties within telecommunications technology. A major share of the course material comes from the Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECE) Department and the Systems Engineering and Operations Research (SEOR) Department. Courses offered by the ECE Department are focused on networks, Internet, and wireless and satellite communications. In addition to the new courses developed for this program, the ECE Department already offers a number of other graduate courses in communications as part of the graduate Electrical and Computer Engineering program. Those courses also can be taken for credit under the M.S. in Telecommunications program, provided the student has the prerequisite background. The courses related to the business of telecommunications, e.g. the design and optimization of large-complex communication networks will be offered by the SEOR Department. Both the fields of systems engineering and operations research play significant roles in all aspects of the operations and business of telecommunications, and this knowledge is important for students of telecommunications. This particular blend of knowledge of technology with the knowledge of broader issues of telecommunications is increasingly necessary for people who intend to work in a management or decision-making position in the telecommunications industry, telecommunications-related businesses, or government institutions dealing with telecommunications. The M.S. in Telecommunications program offers courses designated TCOM in the "Course Descriptions" chapter of this catalog and some of the other disciplines' courses listed below. The program consists of the following:
To earn a master of science degree, students must complete 33 credits of course work through a combination of core courses and specialty modules. This program has both 3-credit courses and short courses that carry 1.5 credits. Specialty modules consist of 7.5-credit units with concentration in subareas of telecommunications. Credit for each specialty module can be obtained by taking an appropriate combination of full-length courses and short courses that adds up to 7.5 credits. Courses are open to students who hold a B.S. or B.A. degree from an accredited college or university in any engineering, math, science, computer science, business (with a quantitative background), economics, or other analytic-related discipline, or to students who have an equivalent work experience indicating analytical aptitude. Depending on their prior background, some applicants may be required to complete three to six credits of preliminary course work before enrolling in any of the core courses or specialty courses in the program. A minimum undergraduate grade point average of 3.000 is required. Students may be admitted for nondegree study, which allows them to take individual courses, or to the M.S. program. Each student must complete a minimum of 33 graduate credits, with a GPA 3.000 or better. The plan of study includes the following:
A specialty module (group of courses in an area of concentration) can be completed by a combination of courses and short courses listed under the module, for a total of at least 7.5 credits. Basic courses in each module have been specially designed for the telecommunications program. These courses do not require completion of prerequisites from other M.S. programs in IT&E. Other courses, which are marked with asterisks, are from other M.S. programs in IT&E and can represent viable options for students who have appropriate prerequisites in some technical areas. Although these courses assume certain prerequisites from their specific M.S. programs, advanced students who already know the prerequisite material can ask for the instructors' permission to enroll in those courses. Some alternatives to completion of each specialty module by using 7.5-credit combinations of courses not listed under a given module may be admissible subject to prior approval by the graduate advisor. A capstone project course, TCOM 699, is required under the Modeling of Telecommunications Systems or Systems Engineering of Telecommunications modules. Specialty Modules(Courses marked with asterisks are courses from other graduate programs in IT&E that can be taken for credit in this program if the student has the appropriate prerequisites.) Module 1 Network Technologies TCOM 503, 504, 509, 510, 551; ECE 542*, 642*, 643*; CS 656* Module 2 Network Applications TCOM 505, 509, 510, 540, 541, 555, 556; ECE 646*; CS 656*; INFS 612*, 640*, 762* Module 3 Wireless Communications TCOM 506, 507, 508, 551, 552; ECE 639*, 663*, 732*, 741* Module 4 Modeling of Telecommunications Systems TCOM 540, 541, 542, 545, 546, 547, 548, 699; OR 641*, 642*, 642*, 644* Module 5 Systems Engineering of Telecommunications This module can be taken as one of two 7.5-credit modules, or as one 15-credit module. No more than two SYST courses can be taken within this module. SYST 510*, 513*, 520*, 530*, 542*; TCOM 546, 548, 699; INFS 612*, 614*, 640*; ITRN 772* Northern Virginia Commonwealth Graduate Engineering ProgramGraduate programs in engineering and information technology are offered under the auspices of a commonwealth network in Northern Virginia. This network includes George Mason University (GMU), Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University (VPI&SU), Old Dominion University (ODU), the University of Virginia (UVA), and Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU), and employs a mix of direct classroom laboratory instruction from GMU and live interactive televised lectures from other universities. Afternoon and evening instruction is provided at the George Mason Fairfax Campus, and the UVA/VPI&SU Northern Virginia Center. Master's degree programs are offered by UVA, VPI&SU, ODU, and GMU. Discipline areas of the degree programs from UVA include the Master of Materials Engineering, Master of Engineering in Chemical Engineering, Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering (Manufacturing Systems Engineering), Electrical Engineering, Systems Engineering, or Civil Engineering (Structural Focus). From VPI&SU, the following degree programs are offered: Master of Engineering Administration; Master of Science or Master of Engineering in Electrical Engineering, Civil Engineering (Environmental), and Systems Engineering; and Master in Mechanical Engineering. ODU offers the Master of Engineering Management. GMU offers the Master of Science in Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, Information Systems, Operations Research, Software Systems Engineering, Statistical Science, Systems Engineering, Telecommunications, and Civil and Infrastructure Engineering (described in this chapter). Also offered by George Mason are the Ph.D. in Computer Science and the Ph.D. in Information Technology, and a variety of certificate programs. Students apply to a degree program at one of these four institutions on the basis of course offerings and programs sponsored by an institution and the direction a student wishes to follow. Program requirements are the responsibility of the degree-granting institution and, subject to these requirements, courses may be taken from any of the five universities. Within the framework of departmental and graduate school approval, the majority of courses must be taken through the student's home institution; and additional courses approved by the home institution may be transferred between the four cooperating institutions (VCU offers one course per year to support the other universities' degree programs). UVA, ODU, and VPI&SU degree programs are composed primarily of televised courses and are supported by additional courses from GMU. These degree programs do not generally have a thesis or research component. Course registration is contingent upon admission to a degree program or acceptance for nondegree studies. Students are responsible for learning about program requirements and obtaining course approval. Students may register while application materials are being processed as space permits and with permission from their program advisors and instructors. In addition, courses may be transferred between institutions with written approval of the home institution before registering. For program information, contact the Commonwealth Graduate Engineering Program at (703) 993-1512.
George Mason University: 2000-2001 University Catalog: Catalog Index: School of Information Technology & Engineering |
|