Location: Swearingen Engineering Center; Room 1A00
Columbia, SC 29208
Phone: 803-777-4177
Email: StudentServices@cec.sc.edu
Forms: Student Services' Forms

• MGSC 390 can be substituted with MGSC 290 or ITEC 447
• MGSC 490 can be substituted with CSCE 247 or ITEC 560
• ­MGSC 590 can be substituted with CSCE 594 (offered in the Spring only) or ITEC 362

You do not need to fill out a Course Substitution Request as these substitutions are already pre-approved. You might need to visit the IIT department (first floor of the Storey Innovation Center building) to ask for an override into ITEC courses.

Yes, you can take CSCE 242: Client-Server Computing (web applications) in semesters in which CSCE 205 is not offered. You will not need to submit a Course Substitution as this substitution has been pre-approved.

If you need the course for a minor, click on the CRN in Self Service and look at "Course Description." Many colleges, including this one, allow minors to register beginning a certain date after majors. This date will be indicated here. For CSCE courses, it is two weeks after registration starts. Business also sets certain sections aside for non-Business majors so check each CRN for restrictions.

If it is not a CSCE course (say MGSC, ECON, MGMT, MATH, etc) then you will have to contact the department which teaches that class and try to get them to let you in. Our Override Request Form page shows you how to contact several other departments/Colleges. You can also fill out our Override Request form so that we will know which other departments are giving students trouble. Typically, the problem is that they are only letting in their own majors in the class first and will later open up the class to all majors. Click the CRN and look at "course description" to see if there is a future date for minors and look at "course restrictions" to see if the section is exclusive to certain majors/minors.

Note that, it is impossible for the CSE department to override you into a non-CSCE course. Each department at USC can override restrictions for its own courses only, not for classes in other departments.

First, click "Process New" at the top of your DegreeWorks record to make sure it is updated. Then, consult with your advisor to make sure Degreeworks is wrong, and not you. Once you are sure there is a problem with how DegreeWorks is placing your courses then you will contact Student Services, in Swearingen 1A00 or at StudentServices@cec.sc.edu, and ask them to fix it.

Currently enrolled students may obtain credit by examination in a course in which they have had no class attendance or semester standing; permission must, however, be obtained from the dean of the college or department Chair in which the course is offered. A grade of not less than B on the examination is necessary in order to receive credit for the course. Examinations are not permitted in courses in which a student previously has been enrolled regularly or as an auditor. The applicant must pay to the Office of Financial Services in advance of the examination a fee of $25 per semester hour; this fee is not refundable. The Office of Financial Services will issue a receipt which must be shown to the head of the department conducting the examination, who shall immediately report the results of the examination to the Office of the University Registrar. Credits earned under this regulation are recorded with hours earned only.

In this department, we regularly award credit by examination for CSCE 145 and CSCE 146. If you are interested in taking the test just contact the professor teaching the class (Dr. Shepherd usually) to schedule the test.

No. As per the 145/146 question, you can get Credit By Examination for CSCE 215. If you are interested in taking the test just contact the professor teaching the class to schedule the test.

The official list is in the Bulletin, under the Degree Requirements for your major.

No. As our CS clusters page states, the graduation requirement for CS majors is to take 9 credit ours of classes in some other major, which we call the application area, and to take 9 credit hours of CSCE 500-level electives. The clusters are optional.

On the left-hand menu of this page, under "Forms", or directly at /undergraduate/forms.

See our future class offerings schedule.

Email our undergraduate director, Dr. Vidal, or drop by his office.

The degree requirements for each major are here:

• Computer Science
• Computer Engineering
• Computer Information Systems

Yes. If you have already taken MATH 374 or MATH 574 there is no need to take MATH 174/374. They are all Discrete Math. We accept any one of them. To make the substitution official you will need to submit a request for course substitution, which will be approved.

MATH 344 (3 credits) plus MATH 344L (1 credit) has replaced the old MATH 526 (4 credits). The current MATH 526 is a bit more advanced than the old one. Thus, current students should take MATH344+MATH344L instead of MATH 526.

Yes, but you have to take both MATH 544 (3 credits) as well as either MATH 344L or MATH 544L (each of which is 1 credit). You will also have to fill out a request for course substitution form, asking to substitute MATH 544 for MATH 344. It will be approved.

Note that MATH 544 has "Prerequisites: C or better in MATH 300, or consent of the Undergraduate Director". So, if you have not taken MATH 300 you will have to ask the Math department for permission.

Then maybe not. The CE majors from 2015-16 or earlier had a different Math Elective requirement, see the 2015-16 CE Major requirements. It says:

Mathematics Elective (3 hours) (CE majors, 2015-16)
Choose one course from MATH 526, MATH 527, MATH 544 or CSCE 561. Other courses in linear algebra or numerical analysis may be substituted with permission of the department.

So, if you use an older curriculum you can take one of those your CE Math elective. But, this is not recommended. The old MATH 526 is now MATH344+344L. We recommend you take MATH344+344L.

No. No double-counting of any kind is allowed within the majors.

Yes. You have to take all the courses required by both your major and the Data Science Minor. Several classes are in both lists. That is fine. Except that:

CS and CE majors cannot double-count any course as both a Major Elective (aka 500-level elective) and a Data Science minor course. For example, if you take CSCE 587 you can count it towards your Major or towards your minor, but not both.
CIS majors will have to Petition the department for substitution to CSCE 146 in the Data Science minor, and cannot double-count CSCE 520 or their Major Elective course.

Yes, but it is not recommended. If you do you will be placed in a team that has a half-built app. You will then be expected to learn everything about programming for that platform (Android, iOS, Meteor, ASP.net, etc), git, github, and the existing codebase, and start making code contributions by the end of January. Everyone in 492 must make significant code contributions, as evidenced in their git log, or will fail the class. If you still want to do it, discuss it with your advisor. If your advisor approves then fill out the prereq waiver request form.

Yes. As long as you have a good Internet connection and a laptop you can take the Capstone class while living elsewhere.

Yes, you have to get a C or better grade in every required CSCE course, and in Discrete Math. See your major's degree requirements. Note that USC offers grade forgiveness so when you get a better grade on class the old grade goes away (up to a limit, see link for details).

You will be kicked out of the major, and will not be able to sign up for any other major that requires that class. The College's Progression Requirements state:

A student cannot repeat courses from the College of Engineering and Computing in which they earned a grade of C or better. In addition, a student cannot repeat any course from the College a second time. For this purpose, withdrawal from a course with a grade of W is not regarded as enrollment in that course. A student that does not satisfactorily complete a degree-required College course within two attempts must change major or transfer out of the College of Engineering and Computing.

So, if you are taking a CSCE course for the second time, make sure you get a C or better.

Yes. If you are working on a research project under a faculty member for this department you can get CSCE 498 credit for it (3 credit hours). To sign up for CSCE 498 you must fill out the Undergraduate Independent Study Contract and then bring it to Student Services. They will sign you up for CSCE 498. Once you pass the class, then you can fill out our request for course substitution form and ask for CSCE 498 to be used as one of your 500-level electives.

Yes, for everyone graduating December 2017 or later.

Pretty much any laptop would be fine. We use intelliJ in our Freshmen year programming classes. It runs perfectly on Windows, Mac, and Linux machines. We make sure that all the software students need to use is available for free on the major platforms. We highly recommend students get a laptop, instead of a desktop. USC has free wifi all over campus, inside and outside buildings. A laptop makes it much easier for a student to get help from a teacher, to work in groups with other students, etc.

The College also has computer recommendations.

Yes. Visit the software section of my.sc.edu for more information.

No. The Life Scholarship Guidelines state that (same as the Palmetto Fellows)

You must earn an average of 30 credit hours for each academic year (Fall, Spring, Summer) equaling a minimum of 30 credit hours if a rising second year student, 60 credit hours if a rising third year student, or 90 credit hours if a rising fourth year student.

Any credit hours earned before high school graduation, hours exempted by examination, and advanced placement credit approved by the institution as academic credit will be used toward the credit hour requirement;

So, this means that you can

• take more than 15 one semester and then take fewer the next, or
• take a Summer class to catch up on credits, or
• use those AP credits instead of classes. Your AP credits will count towards your first-year 30-credits.

For more information, see the SC State Scholarships page.

If you are changing to another major within the College of Engineering and Computing then simply visit Student Services and tell them you want to change majors. Otherwise, see the USC Major change Advising page for more information.

Failing or Not Attending?
Student Success Center (Referral)

Cheating? Disruptive Behavior?
Office of Student Conduct and Academic Integrity (Report)

Student at Risk to Themselves or Community?
Behavioral Intervention Team (Report)

Discrimination or Harassment?
Equal Opportunity Programs (Report)

Needs Counseling or Psychiatry?
Student Health Services (Referral)

Questions about Degree Requirements?
Academic Bulletins

Exceptions to Undergraduate University- and College-Level Policies?
CEC Student Services (Academic Petition)

Crime?
USC Police Dispatch
Call 803-777-4215