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Christopher Newport University – Virginia Tech Collaborative Partnership

Master of Engineering (MEng) in Computer Science and Applications (CSA)

The Virginia Tech College of Engineering is partnering with Christopher Newport University to help position students for mid-level and advanced positions in industries related to computing technology. By establishing an accelerated pathway of foundational courses at partner universities, currently enrolled students can be prepared for early admission to Virginia Tech’s MEng degree in computer science as early as spring of their junior year.  Once accepted these students during their fourth year can begin taking up to 12 credits from an approved set of courses that can be applied beyond the 120 required credit hours required for Christopher Newport University undergraduate degree towards their MEng degree (Christopher Newport University course level approved: 4XX (max. 6 credits) & 5XX from approved course list).

By outlining a clear pathway and course equivalencies, both the engineering and liberal arts student are able to participate in Virginia’s Tech Talent Pipeline.  Many students will find that they can complete their MEng degree in just one extra year.

How to Apply

The accelerated undergraduate/graduate program application is based on your intended graduation date.

The deadline for applications is May 1st each spring semester and December 1st each fall semester.
Students should apply in the semester one year before they will complete the BS. For example, a student intending to graduate from the BS program in May 2024 should apply in the semester ending in May 2023. If accepted into the program, this will allow participation in double-counted courses for the final two semesters of your undergraduate degree.

If you are unable to apply one year before completing your BS, you can still apply during your final year, in your second-to-final semester. If you apply at that time and are accepted, you will only be able to double-count courses taken in your final undergraduate semester, but are still permitted the same maximum of 12 credits of double-counted courses.

Third-year Christopher Newport University students can apply to the MEng in Computer Science and Applications in their second semester after completing CPSC 270 Data and File Structures. They can also apply for a fee waiver and are not required to submit GRE scores. 

  • Students must complete one of the approved pathways below:

Pathways

Pathway for CNU undergraduate computer science students for admission to the Master of Engineering program in computer science and applications (CSA)

CNU computer science undergraduate majors naturally meet the basic course requirements and can apply for the CSA MEng in the junior year for admission to the program. If accepted, they can also begin courses their senior year and transfer up to 12 credit hours (level permitted: up to six approved 4xx level credit hours and 5xx level courses)

Pathway for CNU undergraduate non-computer science majors for admission to the Master of Engineering program in computer science and applications (CSA)

CNU non-CS majors also may be eligible to apply in their junior year and be accepted into the CNU/VT Collaborative UG/G CSA MEng program by completing a set of introductory CS courses. To be successful for admission, CNU and Virginia Tech recommend that CNU non-CS major undergraduate students complete the following courses by the second semester of their junior year and maintain an overall minimum GPA of 3.0. These course pathways include the following scenarios:

CNU Course VT Equivalent
CPSC 150
Introduction to Programming
CS1064
Introduction to Programming in Python
CPSC 250/250L
Programming for Data Manipulation
CS2064
Intermediate Programming in Python
CPSC 255
Programming Applications
CS1114
Introduction to Software Design
CPSC 270
Data and File Structures
CS2114
Intro to Software Design and Data Structure

As soon as you submit your application please read and do the following:

You should immediately complete and submit the Collaborative UG/G Degree and Course Designation Form. You will indicate on this form the courses that you intend to take during the Collaborative UG/G period. This form will be reviewed and signed by the Virginia Tech computer science and applications department graduate program director and an appropriate authority at Christopher Newport University. The signed Collaborative UG/G Status and Course Designation form will be sent to the Virginia Tech Graduate School for processing. This completed form and the computer science and applications department admission recommendation with review from an appropriate authority at Christopher Newport University are required before an admission decision can be finalized by the Virginia Tech Graduate School.

Once accepted, the student should take up to 12 credit hours of graduate coursework during the last academic year (senior status equivalent) and earn a “B” from the following list of eligible courses for transfer to the MEng computer science degree program. Note that a maximum of 6 credit hours can be taken at the 4xx level (excluding independent study and special topic courses). The Virginia Tech approved courses for the  MEng in computer science are noted below.

CNU Course VT Equivalent
CPSC 501
Software System Design & Implementation
CS5704
Software Engineering
CPSC 502
Communications I
CS5565
Network Architecture and Protocols I
CPSC 611
Communications II
CS5566
Network Architecture and Protocols II
CPSC 510
Artificial Intelligence I
CS5804
Introduction to Artificial Intelligence
CPSC 521
Computer Architecture
CS5504
Computer Architecture
CPSC 550
Distributed Operating Systems
CS5204
Operating Systems
CPSC 560
Introduction to Compilers
CS5304
Translator Design and Construction
CPSC 570
Theoretical Computer Science
CS5104
Computability and Formal Languages
CPSC 575
Android Mobile Computing
CS5804
Introduction to Artificial Intelligence
CPSC 585
Principles & Applications of Multimedia
CS4624
Multimedia, Hypertext, and Information Access
CPSC 595
Advanced Topic in Computer Science
* Evaluated on a case-by-case basis
CPSC 621
Parallel Processing
CS5234
Advanced Parallel Computation
CPSC 642
Artificial Intelligence II
CS6804
Advanced Topics in Intelligent Systems

For questions or more information regarding the Virginia Tech MEng degree program, contact Virginia Tech MEng computer science and applications admissions.  For questions or more information regarding what courses to take at Christopher Newport University to be prepared for admission into the Virginia Tech MEng degree program, please contact Christopher Newport University PCSE graduate program director, Peter Monaghan.

To learn more about the MEng in computer science program, Click Here