old dominion online phd

Academic Catalog

Doctor of Philosophy Computer Science (PhD)

Yaohang Li, Graduate Program Director - Admissions Michele Weigle, Graduate Program Director – PhD

In the ODU PhD program, research is led by our graduate faculty who have interests in bioinformatics, machine intelligence and data analytics, networks, systems, security, parallel algorithms and computing, scientific computing, stochastic modeling, and web science and digital libraries. The research groups are described on the  Department of Computer Science Research webpage .

Students entering the PhD program in the Computer Science Department should meet the minimum university graduate admission requirements ( https://www.odu.edu/admission/graduate ).  Students may be admitted directly to the PhD program with either a bachelor's or a master's degree.  Prior to applying for admission, students are encouraged to visit the department's website and ensure that their research interests match with that of a faculty member.  Students are expected to show proficiency in Problem Solving and Programming, Introduction to Computer Architecture, Advanced Data Structures and Algorithms, Introduction to Theoretical Computer Science, and Operating Systems at an undergraduate level.  Those entering the PhD program with deficiencies in these areas will have to make them up.

Curriculum Requirements

A candidate for the doctoral degree in computer science must meet all of the following requirements in addition to the university requirements outlined under the Academic Information section in this Catalog:

• Complete a minimum of 78 credit hours beyond the bachelor’s degree or 48 credit hours beyond the master’s degree (credits include those for formal coursework, breadth requirements, and dissertation/research work).  All c redit hours must be in computer science unless recommended by the student’s PhD dissertation advisor and approved by the GPD.
• Develop a dissertation topic that is approved by the student’s PhD advisor.
• Pass the candidacy examination. After this step, and after formal courses are complete and the topic for the dissertation is approved by the advisor, the student is considered to be a PhD candidate.
• Write and defend the dissertation prospectus (proposal).
• Attend at least 10 departmental colloquium events and take the 1 credit hour CS 690 Colloquium.
• Complete 24 credit hours of CS 899 (Doctoral Dissertation).
• Successfully defend the dissertation.

The above must be completed within eight years after admission to the PhD program. Note that students with a degree in a discipline outside of computer science will be required to take prerequisite undergraduate courses that will not be counted towards the 78 credit hours requirement.

Course Requirements

All students must take and pass  CS 800  Research Methods (P/F graded course) during their first year in the PhD program (or within one year of completing required undergraduate prerequisites).

Students with a master's degree in computer science or related field must complete at least 48 credit hours of coursework as specified below:

• A minimum of 24 credit hours of post-master's coursework at 800-level that meets the breadth course requirements. 3 credit hours of coursework at the 600-level may be included here.
• 24 credit hours or more of dissertation work ( CS 899 ).
• A maximum of six hours may be transferred into the PhD program from post-master's coursework done elsewhere.

Students without  a master's degree in computer science or related field must complete at least 78 credit hours of coursework as specified below:

• 12 credit hours of MS level coursework (500-level or 600-level) approved by the student's PhD advisor and the GPD, which must include  CS 600  and CS 665 .
• A minimum of 42 credit hours of coursework at 600-level or above, of which at least 30 credit hours must be at 800-level and meet the breadth course requirements.
• Demonstrate proficiency in Problem Solving & Programming, Introduction to Computer Architecture, Advanced Data Structures and Algorithms, Introduction to Theoretical Computer Science, and Operating Systems at an undergraduate level

Since internship is not a degree requirement, the courses CS 667 , CS 668 , and CS 669 do not count towards PhD course requirements.  

Additional Requirements

Upon admission to the PhD program, a faculty advisor will be assigned to the student for general guidance. The student, however, is expected to find a dissertation advisor by the time he or she completes formal coursework.  The guidelines for advising are outlined under Student Advising in the University Requirements for Graduate Degrees section of the Graduate Catalog.

Breadth Course Requirements

Excellence in breadth is assessed through graduate coursework at ODU and evaluated by multiple faculty members. To demonstrate this, a student must take four (4) CS graduate courses at the 600 level or above that meet the following conditions:

• For breadth: At least one course in three (3) different research areas (“Foundations” does not count as a research area)
• For depth: At least three (3) courses at the 800 level. For instance, a student may take four 800-level courses, or three 800-level courses and one 600-level course, as long as three of the courses satisfy condition 1.
• Earn a GPA of at least 3.5 across these four courses.
• The four courses must be regular courses that also earn a letter grade (thus CS 697 , CS 800 , CS 891 , CS 896 , CS 898 , and CS 899 do not count towards this requirement). Most CS 895 Topics courses will count towards this requirement, and those eligible will be assigned to an appropriate research area.
• Courses transferred from another university do not count towards this requirement.

See the Department of Computer Science webpage or contact the GPD for information on the course to research area mapping.

Candidacy Examination Process

Upon completing formal coursework (not counting CS 899  credits), before becoming heavily involved in dissertation work, and no later than three years after acceptance into the PhD program (preferably during the first 24 months after admission into the program), the student must pass the Candidacy Examination process. Students may satisfy this requirement by passing the Candidacy Examination or by completing an acceptable Research Event. Both options require a written and an oral component.

Option 1:  Candidacy Examination

The topics and papers covered in the Candidacy Examination are set by the student’s PhD advisor and other members of the appropriate research area committee. The student will be provided a set of 5-10 papers to review in their research area.

Written Component: The student will write a summary of the papers, highlighting their contributions to the research area, noting how they are related and how they are different. The student must also propose areas for potential future work. Ideally, this document could form the basis for the related work section of the student’s dissertation proposal. The written summary should be 15-20 pages in the standard ODU dissertation format.

Oral Component: After the written component has been approved by the area committee, the student will give an oral presentation (about 20-30 minutes long) on the subject to the area committee. At the end of the presentation, the area committee may ask questions to further assess the student’s understanding of the papers. At the end of the examination process, the committee will make a pass/fail decision and report this to the GPD.

The goal of this exam is to assess the student’s understanding of the content of the papers and the student’s ability to critically analyze and articulate the important issues raised in the papers. The student should also be able to identify potential areas for future research that build off of these papers.

  A pass decision means that the area committee believes that the student is prepared and qualified to undertake PhD-level research in computer science.

A fail decision means that the area committee believes the student is not ready to undertake PhD-level research in computer science. The area committee should provide recommendations to the student on how to improve their performance. A student who fails the Candidacy Examination may retake the exam once or may attempt the Research Event option once. Two failures will result in the student being dismissed from the PhD program. The student may request a different set of papers to be assigned for a retake.

Option 2:  Research Event

Students who enter the PhD program with an acceptable MS thesis or are first author on a high-quality academic submission may be able to satisfy the Candidacy Examination process without taking the Candidacy Exam. Each research area committee determines its own set of conferences and journals in their research area that would be acceptable.

Written Component: The written component may be satisfied either through either an accepted publication or a high-quality, but rejected, submission to an approved conference or journal. For either option, the student must be the first author.

• Accepted: The research area committee may approve an accepted publication to count as the written component of the Candidacy Examination process.
• Rejected: The research area committee may approve a rejected, but high-quality, submission as the baseline for the written component of the Candidacy Examination process. In addition to the submitted paper, the student must construct a document that outlines how the student would address the reviewers' comments.

Oral Component : After the written component has been approved by the area committee, the student will give an oral presentation (about 20-30 minutes long) on the subject to the area committee. At the end of the presentation, the area committee may ask questions to further assess the student’s understanding of the research and related work. At the end of the examination process, the committee will make a pass/fail decision and report this to the GPD.

A pass decision means that the area committee believes that the student is prepared and qualified to undertake PhD-level research in computer science.

A fail decision means that the area committee believes the student is not ready to undertake PhD-level research in computer science. The area committee should provide recommendations to the student on how to improve their performance. A student who fails the Research Event option may attempt the Research Event option once more or may take the Candidacy Exam once. Two failures will result in the student being dismissed from the PhD program.

To use the Research Event option, the student must provide the GPD and the chair of the appropriate research area committee a copy of the document proposed to satisfy the requirement. The document will be evaluated by the area committee to determine if it meets the stated criteria. The chair of the area committee will notify the student and the GPD of the outcome of the evaluation (acceptable or unacceptable). If the publication is deemed unacceptable, the student may submit another publication or take the Candidacy Examination. This does not count as an attempt.

If a student is not first author on a submitted paper to an approved conference/journal before they have completed formal coursework, they must take the Candidacy Examination within the next 6 months.

After passing the Candidacy Exam, completing formal coursework, and having an approved dissertation topic, the student must register for at least 1 credit hour each semester (including summer) until graduation.

Dissertation Committee

After the candidacy exam has been passed and dissertation topic approved, the Dissertation Committee is formed to supervise the dissertation research.

A Dissertation Committee is formed according to the following procedure:

• The faculty advisor selects at least three members of the Dissertation Committee in cooperation with the student and the Graduate Studies Committee.
• The Dissertation Committee consists of at least two ODU faculty members. At least one member must be from outside the student's department/school at ODU or a non-ODU academic or professional with special knowledge of the dissertation subject area. No more than one-third of the committee's membership can be individuals external to the University. All committee members must be certified for graduate instruction. The current research interests of the computer science members of the committee should be related to the research goals of the student.
• Additional members may be appointed to the committee. Adjuncts (approved for graduate instruction) and non-university members may be added with approval of the GPD.
• The committee must complete a PhD Dissertation Committee Form. This form is submitted to the GPD by the Graduate Studies Committee and to the Dean of the College of Sciences for approval.

Dissertation Prospectus

The oral examination of the written dissertation prospectus, or proposal, is designed to test the student’s knowledge of background material related to the dissertation topic and to determine if the student has identified a significant problem, has a plan of attack, and is ready to proceed with the dissertation research.

At least one week before the scheduled oral examination time (and preferably two weeks before), the student must provide the examination committee with a written dissertation research proposal. The proposal should contain the following items (not necessarily in this order):

• a comprehensive literature review on the dissertation topic that should in particular discuss limitations of current approaches and open problems in the topic area
• a description of the research problem
• a discussion of how the problem relates to other work in the field
• a detailed research plan, including proposed tasks and a timeline for completion
• a list of expected contributions.

During the examination, the student will give a 45-minute presentation of the dissertation proposal to be followed by questions from the committee. The examination committee will be made up of at least three faculty members, all of whom must be graduate certified. These are typically the members of the student’s dissertation committee.  The exam is expected to last no more than 2 hours. 

The presentation of the dissertation proposal is open to the public and will be publicized by the GPD at least one week in advance of the exam. Once the presentation has concluded and the audience has asked general questions, the audience will be excused. The examination by the committee will be held in private, but graduate faculty members are welcome to observe the exam.

Dissertation

A minimum of 24 credit hours of dissertation work ( CS 899 ) is required. The work must represent an achievement in research and must be a significant contribution in the field. Students are required to publish (or have in the revision process) at least one paper in a refereed journal or refereed conference proceedings based on their dissertation work.

Dissertation Defense

The examination will be oral and the examination committee must have the completed dissertation at least two weeks before the examination date. In addition to the examination, students are required to give a public oral presentation on their dissertation results.

Time Requirement

PhD students should normally be full-time. A full-time student can be expected to satisfy all the PhD requirements in three to five years when entering with an MS degree or four to six years with a bachelor’s degree. No student (full-time or part-time) will be allowed to study for the PhD degree beyond eight years from the date of admission into the program.

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• Prospective Students

Student Guide

The sample timelines below represent the typical paces that students progress through the English PhD Program. Many students will likely be on one of these paces, while a few may take an additional semester or year.

Please note: Once a student has passed candidacy examinations, she/he need only take 1 hour of dissertation credit to be classified as a full-time student with a university D4 form (Doctoral Candidates 1-Hour Full-time Notification) . The program requires 9 hours of dissertation; therefore, the table below reflect an apportionment of those hours over the likely amount of time required to write a dissertation.

SAMPLE TIMELINE

The information below is meant to provide an overview of the types of financial aid available to graduate students at ODU. For more detailed information, please visit the ODU Financial Aid Office Website .

Assistantships and Fellowships

Full-time students are eligible to apply for assistantships and fellowships funded by the College of Arts and Letters and the University. Assistantships involve dedication of work (teaching or aiding a professor with administration, for example) in exchange for a stipend. Fellowships provide stipend support without requiring work outside of class responsibilities. Fellowship and assistantship money also come with tuition remission. Part-time students may be eligible for other work on campus, paid at a per-hour rate, and should consult the GPD for opportunities.

Student Loans

Graduate students typically rely on Federal loan programs, graduate assistantships (teaching / research), tuition unfunded scholarships, work-study programs, fellowships, scholarships and/or work outside the University to finance graduate school. Students must be admitted as degree-seeking and enrolled at least half-time in a graduate program at the master's and doctoral levels to receive up to $20,500 in Federal Direct Stafford Loans per year. Eligible graduate students may apply by completing the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA).

Travel Grants

The Pegasus Travel Grant has been re-instated for the 2016-2017 academic. These awards are to support PhD student's travelto conferences at which they are presenting. There will be 3 awards of $300; one award each will be given for conferences that occur during this fall semester, the spring semester, and the summer semester.

Graduate Fellowships for Dissertations

Ford Foundation Dissertation Fellowships for Minorities

Doctoral fellowships are offered in order to increase the presence of underrepresented minorities on college and university faculties. Open to citizens of the US engaged in a teaching and research career or planning such a career, and who have not earned a PhD or ScD degree in any field. Awards will be made in research-based programs in the behavioral and social sciences, humanities, engineering, mathematics, physical sciences, life sciences, and education.

For more information visit the Ford Foundation webpage .

Mellon/ACLS Dissertation Completion Fellowships

Mellon/ACLS Dissertation Completion Fellowships are to assist graduate students in the humanities and related social sciences (1) in the last year of PhD dissertation writing. This program aims to encourage timely completion of the PhD.

For more information visit the Mellon/ACLS webpage .

Each year the English PhD program recruits and admits candidates who will take the program part-time and at a distance (mostly through Zoom). Students at a distance are required to meet the same admissions standards and have the same course requirements and program expectations as on-campus students. Students at a distance are expected to obtain the requisite software necessary to engage in synchronous video classes, access Blackboard, and otherwise participate as fully in class life as electronic means will allow. Students at a distance should visit the Online Student Orientation website .

All part-time students, distance or on-campus, must attend two Summer Doctoral Institutes (SDIs), the Norfolk campus portion of which is two weeks (usually sometime between July 10 - July 25). Distance and other part-time students should, therefore, plan their programs in such a way that they participate in a summer institute two of their first three or four years in the program. Students have the option of participating in SDI during the summer after the spring in which they are accepted and before the fall in which they are admitted; the student will need to speak to the GPD about moving up the start date of their entrance into the program. See more detailed information on the SDI page .

How do I apply?

Applications are accepted for entrance in fall semester only. Late applicants not applying for financial assistance may be considered, but only if openings remain after the first round of decisions on those who submitted on time. Applicants residing in other countries should mail materials well in advance. All required forms and documents should be sent directly to the Office of Graduate Admissions . Applications packets are available online at the Office of Graduate Admissions website. The following should be complete and delivered to the PhD program along with the appropriate application forms:

• a 1500-word statement of the applicant's academic and professional goals and discussion of how the PhD in English will contribute to the achievement of those goals;
• three letters of reference from sources capable of commenting on the applicant's readiness for advanced graduate study in English;
• a writing sample of 15 to 20 double-spaced pages on a topic related to the applicant's expertise (we prefer a single piece of writing but will accept two shorter pieces that total 20 pages).

The PhD program's decisions on admission are final. The program determines the size of each year's cohort based upon faculty and course availability, the quality of the pool, and externally generated factors, such as finances. Currently, a typical entering class might be 10-12 persons, but the actual number of admitted students depends on a variety of factors. Decisions on admission will be based on academic merit and quality of match between student-declared interests and the program, but the program reserves the right to allocate a certain number of slots for part-time and full-time students as well as slots for particular fields, and to take those factors into account when selecting applicants for admission.

What are the admission requirements?

Admission standards include the following, which are required, unless otherwise stated:

• A completed master's degree (or its equivalent) in English or in an appropriate field (such as rhetoric, composition, English education, communications, journalism, linguistics, science, or technology) from a regionally accredited institution of higher education;
• A minimum grade point average of 3.5 (on a 4.0 scale) overall for the master's degree;
• For students whose first language is not English, a current score for the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) of at least 600 on the paper version, 250 on the computer-based version, or 80 on the iBT version.

Note: Students without at least some significant background in an English-related field are encouraged to take master's level coursework in English before applying.

What kind of references will help my application stand out?

The best reference writers provide a letter (in addition to the reference form) in which they outline how they know a candidate, the kind of work that the candidate has produced or exhibited under their supervision, and the details of that work that indicate the candidate is ready and able to engage in the rigors of a doctoral program. Such references ideally would come from professors or work supervisors who have an opportunity to evaluate a candidate's written or digital work; occasionally, peer colleagues can provide similar information. Although character is often a part of an overall reference, character references alone do not give us the fullest picture of a candidate's appropriateness. For candidates who have been away from school or a work environment in which text production is crucial may wish to enroll in graduate English courses ahead of applying for the PhD in order to update credentials and to seek potential references.

Is there a minimum requirement for grades and board scores when applying?

The established minimum grade point average for a candidate's master's degree work is 3.5. Candidates who apply with a GPA less than 3.5 will only be considered in unusual circumstances. Although we do not have a stated minimum GRE, we hope to see candidates score 75% or above on the verbal and written portions of the exam. Similar quantitative scores are recommended for students whose research may require statistical analysis. Our practice is to consider the whole application, including writing samples and references, and look for students with the best combination of positive indicators for success.

Is there a foreign language requirement?

Because the PhD is a research degree, all students are expected to present evidence of mastery of a basic research competency over and above the usual English or related-field course work. This is most readily achieved through demonstration of expertise in a foreign language. However, the program also offers other options. Please see the Graduate Catalog Page for more information.

What are the enrollment requirements?

Students should stay registered continuously for every major academic term (fall, spring) during their enrollment in the program; however, a student may take time off during the pre-candidacy period without penalty, provided all other guidelines are met (see university Graduate Catalog). However, once past the candidacy exams, a student (by university rules) must stay continuously enrolled for every major academic term (including summer terms) or be dismissed from the program. The doctoral program must be completed within eight years of entry into PhD coursework.

How do I become a distance student?

Distance students apply the same way as prospective on-campus students. Once accepted, a distance student must establish a link with the Norfolk campus via home-installed equipment that allows for two-way video or make arrangements to attend video classes at a designated Old Dominion University distance site, usually found at one of several Virginia community college campuses. Because most of our distance courses are live, distance students should calculate the time differential, if any, to determine if they can meet classes that begin at 4:20 or 7:10 p.m. Eastern time.

Julia Romberger PhD Graduate Program Director English 5024 Batten Arts & Letters Norfolk, VA 23529 757-683-4012 [email protected]

Announcements

Scheduling your dissertation defense or prospectus hearing:.

If your dissertation chair has granted approval for you to move forward with the dissertation defense or prospectus hearing, please complete this form and submit it by email to the GPD two weeks prior to your defense.

Reading Day

Exams begin.

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ODU Announces Captain Janet H. Days ’99 and Lawrence Weinstein, Ph.D., as May 2024 Commencement Speakers

Captain Janet H. Days ’99, commanding officer for Naval Station Norfolk, will be among the featured speakers at Old Dominion University’s 140th Commencement exercises on May 3 and 4, 2024.

Captain Days will speak at the Undergraduate Ceremony on May 4. She assumed the post as the 51st commanding officer of Naval Station Norfolk in February 2023 , becoming the first Black woman to hold that position.

Captain Days graduated summa cum laude from ODU with a bachelor’s degree in business and received her commission through the Naval ROTC. Her previous positions have included executive officer of both Naval Station Norfolk and Surface Warfare Schools Command in Newport, Rhode Island.

“Old Dominion University is excited to welcome Captain Days, a passionate and proud Monarch, as well as an impactful and trailblazing alumna, as our featured speaker this May,” said ODU President Brian O. Hemphill, Ph.D. “I know that her inspiring message of service will especially resonate with Monarchs as many of our graduates and their family members have military affiliations. As our graduates take the next step in their personal and professional journeys, Captain Days will challenge each of them to make a profound mark on the world and continue a lifelong connection to their beloved alma mater – just as she has done with such determination and distinction, as well as grace and grit!”

The Undergraduate Ceremony, scheduled for 8:30 a.m. on May 4 at Kornblau Field in S.B. Ballard Stadium, will celebrate graduates of the Batten College of Engineering and Technology, the Darden College of Education and Professional Studies, the Strome College of Business, the College of Arts and Letters, the College of Health Sciences, the College of Sciences, the School of Cybersecurity and the School of Nursing. Approximately 2,000 students will participate in the outdoor ceremony and receive their degrees.

This is the second year in a row that ODU is hosting its spring undergraduate ceremony at S.B. Ballard Stadium. In the event of inclement weather, undergraduates will receive their degrees at Chartway Arena with ceremony times to be announced 24 to 48 hours beforehand.

The Advanced Degree Ceremony for graduate students in all colleges and schools is scheduled for 6 p.m. on May 3 at Chartway Arena. More than 600 education specialists, master’s and doctoral degrees will be awarded to participate graduates.

Dr. Weinstein in the College of Sciences’ Physics Department will continue the longstanding tradition of having a faculty member serve as speaker at the Advanced Degree Ceremony on May 3.

Dr. Weinstein has taught at ODU for more than three decades and focused his scholarly efforts on studying nuclear physics and working with the Thomas Jefferson National Accelerator Facility on how protons and neutrons behave in the nucleus of an atom.

He is the author of several books and has received numerous awards, including the Virginia Outstanding Faculty Award, the ODU A. Rufus Tonelson Distinguished Faculty Award and the Southeast Section of the American Physical Society Pegram Award, among others.

Dr. Weinstein said he encourages his students to think critically by challenging them to use physics to address real-world questions, such as the trade-offs of electric vehicles and recycling.

“For more than three decades, Dr. Weinstein has served as a model to ODU students on how to find their passion through learning,” President Hemphill said. “I look forward to hearing his words of encouragement to our graduate students as they close an important chapter in their academic careers.  I know that his message will be insightful and one to remember!”

For more information about the ceremonies, visit the FAQ section on the University’s Commencement page .

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