CS Program's Objectives & Outcomes

The Computer Science program of William Paterson University evolved from a three-track minor program in 1974 to a Bachelor of Science in 1981. Since then, it has gone through many revisions in order to meet the needs of the community, the students, and the industry. Its last major revision was approved by the University and implemented in fall 1997. Our CS program is based on ACM/IEEE undergraduate curriculum guidelines. Throughout these years, the goal of this program has been and continues to be a high quality curriculum that prepares students for graduate studies and for leadership roles and life-long learning as they undertake professional careers in computing. The followings are the latest program educational objectives and student outcomes as part of our ABET accreditation efforts.

CS Program's Educational Objectives

The major objectives of this program:

  1. To create an environment conducive to learning through teaching, research and creative activities.
  2. To promote student success, academic excellence, and community outreach with opportunities for lifelong learning.
  3. To actively challenge students to high levels of intellectual and professional accomplishment and personal growth in preparation for careers and advanced studies in computing, and productive citizenship.
  4. To provide students with a sound foundation in mathematics, science, computer science, and the application of this knowledge, which will equip them either to enter careers or pursue advanced studies in computing.
  5. To develop students' ability to communicate well, both orally and in writing.
  6. To develop students' understanding of the ethical and moral issues for computing professionals and the impact of computing technology in society.
  7. To develop a curriculum with core materials that provide our graduates with the fundamental knowledge of algorithms, data structures, software design, concepts of programming languages, computer organization, computer networks and security, and advanced course work that provides them with breadth of knowledge, and also builds on the core materials to provide them with some depth of knowledge.
  8. To emphasize problem analysis and solution design throughout the program.

CS Program's Student Outcomes

Each graduate of the program should be able to:

  1. Communicate effectively in a variety of professional contexts.
  2. Demonstrate abilities to apply knowledge of mathematics to the discipline of computer science.
  3. Apply computer science theory and software development fundamentals to produce computing-based solutions.
  4. Function effectively as a member or leader of a team engaged in activities appropriate to the program's discipline.
  5. Demonstrate abilities to locate and make effective use of information.
  6. Design, implement, and evaluate a computing-based solution to meet a given set of computing requirements in the context of the program's discipline.
  7. Demonstrate an understanding of the major programming domains and the knowledge of the most appropriate programming language for each domain.
  8. Analyze a complex computing problem and to apply principles of computing and other relevant disciplines to identity solutions.
  9. Recognize professional responsibilities and make informed judgements in computing practice-based legal and ethical principles.