Admission Requirements for Prospective Students
Our primary goal in selecting students for our graduate program is to find individuals who have demonstrated academic achievement, a solid academic background in computer science (completion of an undergraduate program comparable to the undergraduate program at UC Davis) and the potential to tackle the complex thinking and writing that graduate study requires. We evaluate this by looking at specific coursework in computer science. We also use your statement of purpose, letters of recommendation, resume/CV, and GPA (median undergraduate GPA of Fall 2022 admits is 3.736).
Admission to the Graduate Group in Computer Science is highly competitive. On average, we receive over 2,000 applications for admission and generally admit the top 10%.
The GGCS admissions committee is primarily looking for individuals who have demonstrated outstanding academic achievement in computer science. However, we know that a student with an undergraduate major in a related field (electrical engineering, mathematics, physics, etc.) may have the ability to do well in our program. In addition, in the past truly exceptional students with a background in a field not related to computer science have been admitted to our program. The latter students have demonstrated their academic potential through their undergraduate experience and letters of recommendation.
The likelihood of admission to the program in any year depends on the applicant pool. In recent years, the applicant pool has become increasingly competitive. Very few students without a solid academic background in computer science are currently able to put forth a competitive application. At the very minimum, students without a degree in computer science must complete the courses listed in the admissions requirements for the M.S. and Ph.D. degrees, though completion of this list of courses is rarely sufficient to gain admission.