Computer Science

What knowledge and skills will students acquire by majoring in Computer Science?

The Bachelor of Science in Computer Science is a rigorous program that not only covers fundamental computer science subjects - such as object-oriented programming, computer architecture, and operating systems – but provides a wide variety of elective courses, spanning artificial intelligence, game programming, natural language processing, information visualization, security and privacy, computer networking, machine learning, and smartphone application development.

What are post-graduation and career opportunities for Computer Science students?

Computer science graduates have a myriad of career paths, including: creating information technology products of the future at large and dynamic companies such as Google, Microsoft, Amazon, Apple or within exciting high-tech startups throughout the world. Entrepreneurship skills combined with computer science prowess can help in creating your own high-tech startup, pursuing careers in business or finance that leverage computer science expertise, or going on to do cutting-edge research in a PhD program. Household names such as Bill Gates, Mark Zuckerberg, Larry Page, Melisa Myers, Robin Li, and Kai-Fu Lee all began in computer science."

https://shanghai.nyu.edu/advising/programs-and-events/major-exploration

Does not satisfy the major elective requirement. Students majoring in Computer Science, Data Science, or Engineering are permitted to work on an individual basis under the supervision of a full-time faculty member in the relevant discipline if they have maintained an overall GPA of 3.0 and a GPA of 3.5 in Computer Science/Data Science/Engineering and have a study proposal that is approved by a Computer Science/Data Science/Engineering professor.

Study Away Considerations: 

• Courses:
  • Before studying abroad, students are recommended to complete Introduction to Computer Science and Data Science, Data Structures, and Computer Architecture. Some advanced-level CS major elective courses may require Linear Algebra or Machine Learning as course prerequisites. 
  • Students are expected to at least complete Computer Architecture before or during their study away semesters before their senior year (as the prerequisite of the required Operating Systems is Computer Architecture).
  • Students should NOT plan to study away during the senior fall as the CS Senior Capstone class is ONLY offered every Fall semester in person.
• Location: Students planning to study away for two semesters are strongly encouraged to spend the first semester in a location other than New York. Applicants who spend the first semester away in another location will receive priority consideration for New York in their second semester away. Students who elect to spend the spring of their junior year in New York (versus the fall of the junior year) will have more earned credit points, which will enable them to have an earlier registration time and a better chance of enrolling in high-demand courses.

Study Away Course Registration

Refer to the Fall 2023 Computer Science Pre-requisites and Equivalents for course information. Please note that students must follow the prerequisites of the school hosting the course. For example, if Shanghai does not require a course for Class X, but New York does, then you will need to have that required course. Students will participate in CS Lottery to possibly enroll in NYU New York CS courses. 

Python vs. Java

In Shanghai, there are three course sequences ICP, ICS, and Data Structures (all taught in Python). At NYU CAS, there are the same three-course sequence but teach ICS and Data Structures in Java. At NYU Tandon, their three-course sequence is ICP, Data Structure, and Object Oriented Programming. ICP and Data Structures are taught in Python,  OOP in Java.  

As an NYU Shanghai CS and Data Science major, students can take ICS or Data Structures in Python or Java. However:

• If you are a DS major, we highly recommend you take both ICS and Data Structures in Python. Python is by far the most prominent language in data science, and several of our upper-level DS courses are taught in Python. But if it is difficult to get into a Python class, then you can take these courses in Java. 
• For CS majors, either Java or Python is fine. But you should be warned that if you take ICS in Java and then return to NYU Shanghai, you’ll be taking Data Structures in Python, and may be at a disadvantage to those who took ICS in Python. 
• All students should be warned that if they take  ICS  in Python, and then take Data Structures in NY in Java, they may be at a disadvantage since this would be their first course using Java, whereas most NY students will already have ICS in Java.