Master of Engineering in Computer Science

Computing for the AI era.

Cornell’s Master’s in Computer Science prepares you to thrive in a future shaped by AI. Elevate your technical and leadership skills through deep training in computer science and practical experience with AI.

The program is intensive, hands-on, and career-focused. You’ll tackle real problems, work on substantial projects, and develop the technical judgment to use AI well. You’ll also build the foundation to keep learning as new technologies and opportunities emerge. You can pursue technical specialization paths, cross-disciplinary applications, and business and entrepreneurship training.

Whether you’re launching your career, accelerating it, or returning to school to build new expertise, the program prepares you for what comes next. You’ll leave with greater technical depth, practical experience, and the ability to take on new challenges as AI reshapes computing, work, and the world around us.

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Degree Program:	Master of Engineering in Computer Science	Master of Science in Computer Science	Ph.D.in Computer Science
Degree Awarded:	Master of Engineering	Master of Science	Master of Science (after A Exam); Doctor of Philosophy (after B Exam)
Degree Differences:	Principle one year master’s professional degree.	Two-year research degree. Small program with strong preference for Cornell undergraduates.	Research degree; multiple years (typically 5-7 years total)
Financial Support:	Primarily focused on coursework with a capstone project that advances students' placement in industry jobs.	Specialized area coursework with the completion of a thesis; aiming to provide advanced knowledge and skills in a specific area of computer science.	Emphasizes original research and requires the completion of a dissertation; aiming to contribute new knowledge to the field.
Career Path:	Self-supported	Supported by teaching assistantships for fall and spring semesters with good standing. No guarantee of summer support.	Full support for duration of degree with good standing. Students supported by a combination of any of the following: teaching assistantships; graduate research assistantships, or fellowships.
	Development jobs in industry	Development or research jobs in industry; Ph.D. programs; teaching positions. View CS MS Program	Research jobs in industry/academia; teaching positions. View CS Ph.D. Program

Explore the curriculum - the path to your M.Eng.

The Master of Engineering in Computer Science Program is designed to allow students flexibility in their course choices so they can best tailor their program of study to match both what they are interested in and their post-graduation employment goals.

Although there is flexibility, there are several rules and requirements which must be met before a degree is conferred.

A student must complete a total of 30 credit hours
Three to six (3-6) of the 30 credits must be earned as project credit.
Students must be registered full-time for all semesters (12 credit minimum). No part-time study is permitted.

Academic Planning

Credits Required

A student must complete a total of 30 credit hours.

Three to six (3-6) of the 30 credits must be earned as project credit.
None of the 30 credits may be counted toward any other degree program.
All non-project credits must be earned from courses that are both "technical" and "advanced".

View credit distribution details on Academic Planning.

The M.Eng. CS Project

The M.Eng Project in Computer Science is defined as the development of a computer science application (software or hardware) useful in exploring and/or solving an engineering problem.

Project categories include:

Joining a faculty member's research group.
Further developing a project started within an advanced course, perhaps in collaboration with other students from that course. (NOTE: project must be done after the course is completed and have substantial new content to be considered a valid "stand-alone" project.
Working more one-on-one with a faculty member - this might either be a smaller project or a test-run for a larger initiative.
Working as a member of one of the College's large team efforts — which are becoming increasingly common
Collaborating with another Bowers or Engineering department's MEng, Ph.D. or faculty.
Providing critical computer science skills to disparate projects across the University.
Working on commercial, industrial or government projects — with appropriate coordination of NDAs.
Working with other students (typically either CS or Business School ) on exercises which may develop into 'start-ups'.

View project details on Academic Planning.

Grade Requirements

Academic Standards: The program maintains the following grading requirements to ensure graduate-level excellence.

A minimum of twenty-eight credits required must be taken for a letter grade.
No course with a grade of less than C- will be counted for MEng credit.
A grade of B or better is required for all the credits associated with the project.
A cumulative GPA of at least 2.5 must be maintained to continue in the program.

Visit Academic Planning for more information.