Pre-Doctoral MS in Computer Science

Below is the list of Department of Computer Science faculty who have expressed interest in advising students in the MPCS Pre-Doctoral program, and their research interest(s) for the 2023 - 2024 academic year.

Please note: these are the only CS faculty that have agreed to review Pre-Doctoral applications for the 2023-2024 academic year. If you submit an application to work with a faculty member not listed here, or in a research area not listed, your application will not be reviewed.

1. Chenhao Tan - Human-Centered AI, Natural Language Process, Computational Social Science, Human-Computer Interaction

2. Haryadi Gunawi - Operating and Distributed Systems, Machine Learning for Systems

3. Heather Zheng - Security and Privacy, Mobile Computing, Adversarial Machine Learning

4. Junchen Jiang - Computer Networks, Machine Learning, Mobile Computing

5. Ken Nakagaki  - Human-Computer Interaction, Interaction Design, Actuated and Shape-Changing Tangible User Interfaces, Interactive Media Art

6. Pedro Lopes - Wearables, Haptics and New Sensory Experiences in Virtual/Augmented Reality, Human Computer Interaction

7. Rana Hanocka - Computer Graphics, Computer Vision, Deep Learning

8. Raul Castro Fernandez - Data Markets, the Economics of Data, Data Management, Data Discovery

9. Robert Rand - Quantum Computing, Programming Languages, and Verification

10. Sarah Sebo - Human-Computer Interaction, Human-Robot Interaction

11. Yanjing Li - Computer Architecture, Emerging Technologies, Robust System Design, Systems

These research advisors are only available to students admitted to the Pre-Doctoral program.

Core course requirements (4 courses)

• ​1 Theory course (MPCS or PhD level)
• 2 Systems core classes (MPCS or approved 300-level PhD level)
• 1 Machine Learning (MPCS 53111 or approved 300-level PhD course)

Research requirements (4 courses)

• 2 Practicum courses with MS research advisor
• 2 Reading & Research courses to work on research

Elective course requirements (4 courses)

• CMSC 300-level PhD courses providing depth in a specific area.

Internship requirements

• Pre-doctoral students should plan to work with their MS research advisor in the summer after their first academic year of study.

Sample Pre-Doc Course Schedule

Pre-Doctoral students are expected to concentrate most of their research work in their first year, allowing them to build a competitive PhD application in their final quarter. A typical schedule could look like this (research courses appear highlighted in bold):