School of Computational Sciences
Web: scs.gmu.edu Graduate ProgramsThe School of Computational Sciences offers the following academic programs:
AdministrationMenas Kafatos, Dean George E. Taylor Jr., Associate Dean Peter A. Becker, Associate Dean for Graduate Studies James E. Gentle, Assistant Dean for Faculty Paul S. Schopf, Assistant Dean for Research John J. Grefenstette, Assistant Dean for Prince William Operations IntroductionThe School of Computational Sciences (SCS) results from the merger of the Institute for Computational Sciences and Informatics and the Institute for Biosciences, Bioinformatics, and Biotechnology. SCS serves as the primary academic unit providing scientific and applications content to George Mason's information technology focus. This content includes applications in the biological, physical, mathematical, and data sciences. Along with other units, SCS also contributes to the university's focus on educational and research programs related to the environment. Through its interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary activities, SCS seeks to integrate computation in the sciences, mathematics, and engineering to advance human knowledge and to develop new approaches to the solution of complex problems. SCS maintains extensive facilities on both the Fairfax and Prince William Campuses. FacultyAscoli, Beach, Beall, Becker, Black, Blackwell, Blaisten-Barojas, Borne, Boybeyi, Carr, Cebral, Chiu, Cioffi-Revilla, De Jong, DelSole, Di, Gentle, Gillevet, Gomez, Grefenstette, Guillory, Huang, Jamison, Jafri, Ji, Kafatos, Kaufman, Kerschberg, Kinser, Kinter, Kirtman, Klinger, Krishnamurthy, Kwiatkowski, Lieb, Löhner, Michalski, Mishin, Morowitz, Jamison, Lieb, Lin, Olds, Papaconstantopoulos, Poland, Qu, M. Roy, S. Roy, Sambruna, Sauer, Satyapal, Schiff, Schneider, Schopf, Schum, Seto, Shukla, Singh, Solka, Straus, Summers, Taylor, Titarchuk, Tollaksen, Vaisman, Wallin, Wang, Wegman, Weller, Weingartner, Willett, Withbroe, Wong, Wood, C. Yang, P. Yang, R. Yang, W. Yang, Zhang, Zoltek Academic UnitsThe academic and research activities of the School of Computational Sciences are organized into several units termed programs. The programs are semi-autonomous units with their own faculty and chairs. The current programs are listed below, along with the respective program chairs:
The development of new programs in the future is anticipated as the school continues to evolve in its structure in response to faculty academic and research activities. Course WorkThe School of Computational Sciences offers all course work designated Bioinformatics (BINF), Climate Dynamics (CLIM), Computational Sciences and Informatics (CSI), Earth Observing and Systems (EOS), Neuroscience (NEUR), and Physical Sciences (PSCI) in the "Course Descriptions" chapter of this catalog. Admission RequirementsTo apply, prospective students should forward a completed George Mason graduate application, two transcripts from each college and graduate institution attended, a current resume, and an expanded goals statement to the SCS Graduate Admissions Processing Center. Each doctoral or master's program applicant should also include three letters of recommendation and an official report of scores obtained on the GRE-GEN exam. The GRE-SUB is recommended if it is given in the student's undergraduate major. The GRE requirement for admission to the doctoral programs will be waived if the student holds a master's degree from a U.S. institution. TOEFL scores are also required for all foreign applicants. Note that transcripts originating from foreign countries must be evaluated by a U.S.-recognized agency. Specific additional admission requirements for the various SCS programs are listed below:
Fellowships and assistantships are generally available beginning in the fall semester. Those applying for fellowships and assistantships must submit completed applications by February 1 for fall admission; all other applications for fall admission are due by March 1. Applications for spring admission should be received by November 1 of the preceding year. SCS may accept applications from local students beyond the dates stated above. These are general guidelines; for complete information on deadlines, please see the SCS web site www.scs.gmu.edu. Computational Sciences and Informatics, PhDThe computational sciences and informatics (CSI) doctoral program addresses the role ofcomputation in science, mathematics, and engineering, and is designed around a core of advanced computer technology courses. "Computational sciences" is defined as the systematic development and application of computing systems and computational solution techniques to models of scientific and engineering phenomena. "Informatics" is defined as the systematic development and application of computing systems and computational solution techniques for analyzing data obtained through experiments, modeling, database searches, and instrumentation. Computing is now part of a triad, along with theory and experimentation, that serves as a means of investigation, and it provides insight and leads to understanding that, in many cases, theory or experimentation cannot. The close relationship of the CSI doctoral program to the research and development activities in federal laboratories, scientific institutions, and high-technology firms affords students opportunities for continuing or new employment. Scheduled courses and sequences accommodate part-time students, with most courses meeting once per week in the late afternoon or early evening. Each student completing the CSI doctoral program receives extensive training in a selected area of scientific concentration along with a broad background in modern computational techniques. Graduates from this program are qualified to pursue careers in academia, private industry, and many government laboratories and agencies. The CSI doctoral program provides interdisciplinary research opportunities spanning, but not limited to, the following specialty areas: atmospheric transport and dispersion; bioinformatics and computational biology; climate dynamics and global change; computational chemistry; computational finance; computational fluid dynamics; computational intelligence and knowledge mining; computational mathematics; computational neuroscience; computational physics; computational statistics; computer design of materials; Earth observing and remote sensing; and space sciences and computational astrophysics. Degree RequirementsThe program emphasizes three intellectual elements: common computational science topics; computationally intensive courses in specific areas of interest; and doctoral research. The course work is divided as follows:
The program requires 72 credits beyond the baccalaureate degree, with a minimum of 48 credits in course work, and 24 credits of dissertation research. For those holding master's degrees, the 72 required credits may be reduced by up to 30 credits, depending on graduate courses completed. At the end of the semester when course work is completed, the student must form a doctoral committee, which will write the student's candidacy examination. The examination includes written, oral, and computational components. Upon passing the candidacy examination and submitting an acceptable dissertation proposal, the student is advanced to doctoral candidacy. Students are encouraged to apply their knowledge to a broad range of natural science problems using computational skills and techniques missing from the more traditional degree programs in science and mathematics. Note that research opportunities are not limited to the listed areas, and many opportunities exist to create new areas of interdisciplinary research that would be difficult to accommodate within a traditional doctoral program. Students are to consult with their advisors to prepare their specific plans of study. Complete information regarding the curriculum requirements (including electives) for each of the areas of concentration is available at the School of Computational Sciences web site www.scs.gmu.edu. In addition to the common core of CSI 700, 701, 703, and 710, required scientific core courses for the specific areas of concentration are indicated in the following list.
Students may also pursue interdisciplinary research that combines the areas of concentration listed above with each other and also with computational neuroscience, climate dynamics, and bioinformatics, which are now separate PhD programs within SCS Bioinformatics, PhDRecent advances in molecular biology have produced an avalanche of data, including DNA sequences and genetic maps that cover thousands of genes whose functions are poorly understood or completely unknown. These advances are having a profound effect on the biological sciences and have resulted in the development of the new discipline of bioinformatics. Bioinformatics utilizes computational approaches to analyze patterns in biological data and to create complex models of biological activity, including attempts to elucidate the functions of genes and their interactions in genetic pathways. Widespread social benefits are expected from the exploitation of the wealth of new knowledge concerning the genetic mechanisms of life and related processes. The coming years will see major developments in medicine, functional genomics, and environmental sciences, as well as profound advances in our understanding of the fundamental processes of biology. These benefits are increasingly dependent on the application of advanced information technology to the analysis of biological information. The main objective of the PhD in Bioinformatics program is to train the next generation of computational biologists for careers in academia, industry, and government. The program provides students with an interdisciplinary academic environment, including fundamental biosciences courses as well as core and advanced courses in bioinformatics. In general, course requirements may be completed within the first two years of the program. The program is structured to be accessible to both full-time and part-time students. Degree RequirementsThe curriculum is divided into four areas: 12 credit hours of fundamental biosciences courses; 16 credit hours of core bioinformatics courses; 20 credit hours of electives or independent research; and 24 credit hours of dissertation research. The course work is organized as follows:
If the undergraduate record does not include basic biochemistry, the student will be required to take a basic biochemistry course prior to the BINF 701 Biochemical Systematics (Biochemistry). If the undergraduate record is otherwise insufficient, the student may be required to take prerequisite courses, some of which may not be applicable to the 48-hour course total for the bioinformatics PhD. The program requires 72 credits beyond the baccalaureate degree, with a minimum of 48 credits in course work, and 24 credits of dissertation research. For those holding master's degrees, the 72 required credits may be reduced by up to 30 credits, depending on graduate courses completed. By the end of the semester when course work is completed, the student must form a doctoral committee, which will supervise the student's candidacy examination. The examination includes written and oral components. Upon passing the candidacy examination and submitting an acceptable dissertation proposal, the student is advanced to doctoral candidacy. Climate Dynamics, PhDThe mission of the PhD in Climate Dynamics degree program is to train the next generation of world leaders in the science of climate dynamics. While there is no unambiguous definition of "climate," climate dynamics is generally considered to encompass processes that determine the behavior of the atmosphere, land, and oceans averaged over timescales of weeks to centuries and millennia. Understanding climate variability and predictability poses difficult mathematical, computational, and observational questions that have generated increasing intellectual excitement in recent years. Because atmospheric behavior is strongly coupled to the oceans and land surface, physical oceanography and land surface physics can also be considered part of the science of climate dynamics. Understanding climate variability has important ramifications for society, from planning for next year's electrical demand and forecasting agricultural production, to answering complex questions involving long-term global change. While it is thought to be theoretically impossible to predict day-to-day weather more than a few weeks in advance, recent progress in predicting El Niño supports the idea that seasonal averages of temperature, rainfall, etc., may be at least partly predictable months or even years in advance. The climate dynamics faculty of SCS is varied and consists of a blend of expertise in dynamics, statistics, and computational methods, while covering the traditional areas of atmospheric dynamics, physical and dynamical oceanography, and land surface physics. The faculty and students involved in the climate dynamics program work closely with the scientists of the Center for Ocean-Land-Atmosphere Studies (COLA), utilizing common models, datasets, and computational facilities. Faculty research focuses on the areas of climate prediction and predictability; climate variability; coupled ocean-atmosphere-land dynamics; and dynamical systems and retrospective analysis. Recent research topics include:
External research collaborations exist with federal agencies, private corporations, and other universities, exemplifying the commitment of SCS and George Mason University to the development of effective regional and national collaborations. The climate dynamics faculty is heavily involved with national and international climate science efforts, providing students with the opportunity for participation in such research efforts. Degree RequirementsThe degree will be awarded upon completion of the required course work and approval of a PhD thesis that makes an original and significant contribution to the field of climate dynamics. The curriculum is divided into four logical areas: 12 credit hours of fundamental climate science courses; 9 credit hours of core computational methods; 3 credit hours of seminar; a minimum of 24 credit hours of electives; and a minimum of 24 credit hours of dissertation research. The course work is organized as follows:
Close to the time that course work is completed, each student must form a dissertation committee. This committee prepares and administers a qualifying examination for the student. Following successful completion of the qualifying examination, the student presents a written dissertation proposal to the committee. The student may enroll in CSI 998 Doctoral Dissertation Proposal to complete this effort. After approval of the dissertation proposal, the student is formally advanced to candidacy for the PhD degree, and produces the dissertation. Neuroscience, PhDThe interdisciplinary doctoral program in neuroscience is offered jointly by SCS, the College of Arts and Sciences, and the Krasnow Institute for Advanced Study. The complexity of the human brain presents a major challenge to the development of an integrative understanding of human cognition and higher brain function. In response to this challenge, the rapidly developing field of neuroscience has produced an exponential increase in the amount of data available to investigators as they develop new theories of brain function and new hypotheses to test. The main objective of the PhD program in neuroscience is to prepare students to participate at the cutting edge of this exciting field in academia, industry, and government. The program provides students with a rich interdisciplinary intellectual environment that fosters the development of the skills they will need to successfully pursue research careers. Current faculty research focuses on the broad areas of behavior, anatomy, physiology, biochemistry, computational modeling, and informatics. External research collaborations exist with federal agencies, private corporations, and other universities. The scope of research ranges from the subcellular/molecular level (in the context of such phenomena as drug addiction and the biological basis of schizophrenia) to the systems/behavioral level (including cognitive studies on great apes in collaboration with the National Zoological Park). Current research projects include:
Degree RequirementsThe curriculum consists of 72 credit hours, comprising 48 hours of course work and 24 hours of dissertation research. The 48 hour course work requirement may be reduced by up to 30 hours for a qualified student holding a previous master's degree. Up to 24 credit hours of previous, relevant graduate course work may be transferred into the program provided those credits have not been applied towards a previous degree. Additional requirements for graduation include a dissertation and at least one publication (in print or in press) in a refereed journal. Two concentrations are included in the program; these are behavioral, anatomical, and molecular neuroscience (BAM), and theoretical, computational, and physiological neuroscience (TCP). All students will follow almost the same curriculum for the first two years, although concentration prerequisites may vary slightly (e.g., students in the TCP concentration must have basic knowledge of integral calculus). It is expected that the selection of elective thesis topics will vary widely between the two concentrations. However, students will be allowed to "mix and match" electives from both concentrations with guidance and consent from the advisor and/or the graduate coordinator. The courses, seminars, and laboratory rotations/readings (comprising a total of 48 credit hours) are organized as follows:
When course work is nearing completion, students should form a doctoral committee and have their thesis proposal ready to defend. Candidacy examinations include written and oral components. Upon passage of the candidacy examination and approval of the dissertation proposal by the committee, the student is advanced to doctoral candidacy. Physical Sciences, PhDThe interdisciplinary doctoral program in physical sciences is offered jointly by SCS and the College of Arts and Sciences. This degree focuses on the preparation of scientists trained to perform research as members of interdisciplinary science teams, primarily involving the fields of astronomy, chemistry, and physics. The main emphasis of this program is on theoretical, experimental, or laboratory research. The program is not intended to produce graduates who are scientific generalists, because modern research in the physical sciences is, of course, highly specialized. However, the areas of specialization often cut across the traditional disciplines, for example, in the research fields mentioned above. The degree is built on a foundation of several interdisciplinary courses that expose students to fundamental research problems in modern science and provide them with an introduction to each of the general physical areas that comprise the degree (physics, chemistry, and astronomy). However, the program curriculum has been carefully designed to provide enough flexibility to accommodate both students seeking a fully interdisciplinary program, as well as ones with interests that are somewhat more closely aligned with one of the traditional physical sciences disciplines. Students are encouraged to undertake research under close faculty supervision in a number of potential areas, including, but not limited to, the following examples:
Degree RequirementsThe total curriculum consists of 72 credit hours, representing 48 credit hours of course work and 24 credit hours of dissertation research. For students entering the doctoral program with previous graduate work, the 48 hours of course work may be reduced by a maximum of 30 credits. Of the 48 hours of course work, 9 hours will consist of core courses to be taken by all students in the program, and at least 15 hours will be selected as part of a student's "contract" with a three-member faculty committee (explained below). In summary, the program consists of:
The 9 hours comprising the core consist of three courses that are intended to expose all students to current research methods and current developments across a broad spectrum of areas in the physical sciences. One of the three courses (PSCI 703see below) is only one credit, and must be repeated three times. The core courses are:
A three-member pre-dissertation committee will be formed by the student as soon as possible after admission, but not later than after completion of the 9-hour core. The committee will work with the student to define the "contract" core courses applicable to the specific student, which will be a minimum 15 credit hours. Once the student has selected a dissertation advisor and finalized the composition of the dissertation committee, he or she takes the candidacy examination, which will have written and oral components. Upon passage of the candidacy examination and approval of the dissertation proposal by the committee, the student is advanced to doctoral candidacy. Computational Science, MSThe interdisciplinary master's program in computational science addresses the growing national and regional demand for trained computational scientists. The degree combines a solid foundation in information technology skills with computational courses in a variety of scientific areas. All courses are offered in the late afternoon or early evening to accommodate students with full-time employment outside the university. The degree is centered on a strong computational component, which comprises 22 hours of course work. The remaining 9 hours represent the scientific component, which centers on specific scientific areas such as mathematics, physics, chemistry, biology, statistics, etc. This provides students with a flexible set of options that can be used to create their own customized curriculum under the guidance of a faculty advisor. Students are encouraged to undertake an optional master's thesis or research project that allows them to gain useful experience in the development of simulations and other aspects of computational science. Degree RequirementsCandidates must successfully complete 31 credit hours as follows:
Bioinformatics, MSThe MS in Bioinformatics degree addresses the growing national and regional demand for trained computational biologists. The degree combines a solid foundation in biotechnology with computational skills required for bioinformatics. The flexibility of the degree structure permits students to custom-design their curriculum under an advisor's guidance, making the MS in Bioinformatics especially relevant for students employed in today's diverse biotechnology workplace. Students completing the program are qualified to pursue careers that require knowledge of current bioinformatics methods and the ability to develop new bioinformatics software. Courses are generally offered in the late afternoon or early evening to accommodate students with full-time employment outside the university. Persons employed at area biotechnology organizations may take up to 6 credits (out of 31) for bioinformatics work done on the job under the guidance of a faculty member. This work-related project may be applied either as a 3-credit research project or as a 6-credit master's thesis. Degree RequirementsCandidates must successfully complete 31 credit hours as follows:
Earth Systems Science, MSThe interdisciplinary master's program in Earth systems science (ESS) is offered jointly by SCS and the College of Arts and Sciences (Department of Environmental Science and Policy; Department of Geography). This degree program addresses the growing national and regional demand for trained professionals in Earth systems science and applications. The ESS MS degree emphasizes a research-oriented global systems approach to the study of the atmosphere, hydrosphere and lithosphere, including their interrelationships and their interactions with the biosphere. Emphasis is on the observation and quantitative analysis of Earth systems. Students completing the program are qualified to pursue careers that require knowledge of the basics of Earth systems science and the requisite tools. Students are encouraged to undertake either an optional master's thesis for more in-depth studies or a research project. In the latter case, students will have to pass a qualifying exam. Degree RequirementsCandidates must successfully complete 30 credit hours as follows:
Certificate in Computational Techniques and ApplicationsSCS offers a graduate certificate program in computational techniques and applications (CTA), which focuses on mastering a variety of basic computational skills. The CTA certificate is independent of the doctoral and master's programs and is designed primarily for professionals in technical fields who may wish to upgrade their computer expertise. This program is also available as an option for prospective or currently enrolled doctoral or master's students. The certificate program is composed of 15 credits of course work designed to provide an accelerated introduction to concepts in modern computation. Topics include operating systems, environments, languages, graphics, databases, and applications. Nondegree status is available for professionals who are interested in taking a limited number of courses. FacilitiesComputation is recognized as a central feature of the instructional and research programs of SCS. The school, therefore, continues to establish world-class computational facilities. In addition, high-speed Internet connections permit interactive distance learning and access to remote databases. SCS facilities on both the Fairfax Campus and the Prince William Campus include state-of-the-art computational laboratories and electronic classrooms for research and interactive instruction. The SCS Graduate Instructional Computational Facility in Fairfax houses 24 Linux workstations clustered with a 100 GB RAIDS system. These machines are configured with advanced software for symbolic manipulation, modeling, simulation, data analysis, database management, and data visualization. Other advanced computing platforms within SCS include a high-performance parallel PC cluster with 134 processors, an SGI Origin 2000 workstation with 16 processors, and numerous Octane visualization workstations. SCS students are issued computer accounts and access to the SCS instructional facilities. Other computing platforms are available for research by graduate students. SCS facilities on the Prince William Campus include computer labs, molecular biology labs, and specialized classrooms. Available computer facilities include XServe and SGI file servers, and SGI, OSX, and Linux workstations. SCS supports drop-in computer labs and computer classrooms configured with advanced bioinformatics, visualization, and data-mining software. Three wet labs for teaching and training are supported by adjacent computer labs, classrooms, prep labs, and equipment labs, including automated DNA analyzers. GMU facilities on the Prince William Campus are partially shared with the American Type Culture Collection, the world's largest collection of living biological cultures. |
