Section 1

GRADUATE HANDBOOK – FALL 2022| CSE

INTRODUCTION

This graduate handbook has been developed to

inform graduate students and faculty in the

Department of Computer Science and

Engineering at Penn State of the policies and

guidelines applicable to the graduate programs in

this department. The Penn State Graduate

Degree Programs Bulletin contains additional

information—this handbook is a supplement to the

Bulletin.

The Graduate Degree Programs Bulletin

(http://bulletins.psu.edu/bulletins/whitebook/i

ndex.cfm ;

https://bulletins.psu.edu/graduate/programs/

majors/computer-science-engineering/)

is to be viewed as the authority that governs

degree programs unless a more stringent

requirement is imposed by the department.

All suggestions by graduate students or faculty to

enhance the value of this handbook should be

made to the graduate program officer of the

department. Updates to this handbook will be

provided as necessary. This department is

committed to providing a welcoming environment

to all students and faculty. Please inform the

department head immediately of any barriers—

real or perceived—that limit the educational

opportunities for students and faculty in this

department.

ADMISSION TO THE COMPUTER SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING GRADUATE PROGRAMS

GRADUATE HANDBOOK – FALL 2022 | CSE

The department of Computer Science and

Engineering offers three graduate programs: a

Doctor of Philosophy in Computer Science and

Engineering (Ph.D.); a Master of Science in

Computer Science and Engineering (M.S.) and a

one-year professional Master of Engineering in

Computer Science and Engineering (M.Eng). The

admission requirements are identical for each

program.

Admission Requirements for Graduate

Programs in Computer Science and

Engineering:

All applicants must provide a one-page statement

of purpose, three letters of recommendation, and

scores from the general aptitude test of the

Graduate Record Examination (GRE) in addition

to supplying other information requested in the on-

line application. It is expected (but not required)

that candidates seeking admission have

undergraduate degrees in Computer Science,

Computer Engineering, or a closely aligned field.

In general, an undergraduate grade point average

of 3.0 or higher (out of 4.0) in courses in the major

is expected of candidates. Additionally, applicants

are expected to have strong GRE scores.

• Background Courses: All M.S. & Ph.D.

students are expected to have completed

appropriate courses, at the undergraduate level,

to provide breadth across computer

architecture/organization, data structures and

analysis of algorithms, and operating systems

topics. Students who have not taken these

background requirements may be required to

take appropriate 400-level (undergraduate)

courses to prepare them for 500-level

(graduate) courses. Please see specific

program requirements for how many of these

credits can apply to graduate degree

requirements.

Applications and Financial Assistance:

Applications for admission for the M.S. and Ph.D.

programs in Computer Science and Engineering

will be accepted for fall and spring semesters only.

Applications are not accepted for summer

sessions. The application deadline for fall

semesters is December 15

, the application

deadline for spring semesters is August 31

M.Eng. applications are accepted for fall

admission ONLY. The application deadline for

the M.Eng. program is March 1

. There is no

separate application for financial aid such as

assistantships and fellowships.

Most students begin their studies in the fall

semester. Applicants with a B.S. degree may

indicate that they intend to seek a Ph.D. degree; it

is not necessary to have a master’s degree first.

Applicants applying to the master’s program may

later switch to the Ph.D. program. Preference for

financial support is given to those applying for the

Ph.D. program. Students applying for and

admitted into the Ph.D. program will not be

permitted to switch to the master’s program at a

later date, except under extenuating

circumstances.

• Electronic Application – This format is the

ONLY way to apply. Applying electronically

(online) reduces the processing time and receipt

of your application is assured. You can find the

electronic application site at

www.gradsch.psu.edu/prospective/apply.html

• Note – make sure that your electronic

application is correct and complete. Submit only

the required documents for the application. Do

not upload copies of passports, bank

statements, financial guarantees from sponsors,

high school transcripts or other irrelevant

materials. Do not mail any application materials

ADMISSION TO THE COMPUTER SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING

GRADUATE PROGRAMS

ADMISSION TO THE COMPUTER SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING GRADUATE PROGRAMS

GRADUATE HANDBOOK – FALL 2022 | CSE

or documents to the CSE department. Please

note that you will not be able to change your

application once it is submitted.

All application fees must be submitted to the

following address by check or money order or by

using a credit card through the Graduate School

Admissions portal:

Graduate Enrollment Services

The Pennsylvania State University

114 Kern Building

University Park, PA 16802-3391

Please note that the application fee is non-

refundable.

The PSU Graduate School FAQ is designed to

answer many of the questions that prospective

students have about the application process, such

as paying the application fee, application status,

test score reporting, financial aid, transcripts,

reference letters and housing:

http://gradschool.psu.edu/faq1/

All application materials, including transcripts,

must be uploaded to the electronic application.

Your electronic application must be submitted by

the deadline; however, recommendation letters

may be sent one or two weeks after the deadline.

You will be notified of your admission decision

via email. DO NOT contact the department

regarding your admission status.

Support and Assistantships: All M.S. and Ph.D.

applicants are considered for available fellowships

and teaching assistantships, but preference is

given to Ph.D. candidates. Support is not

provided to M.Eng. students. Please note that

additional restrictions may apply to receiving any

specific type of support or to when during one’s

graduate career one is eligible for that specific

mode of support, e.g. teaching assistantships

dependent upon having passed the AEOCPT.

A graduate research or teaching assistantship

provides a monthly stipend, tuition waiver and

80% of health insurance. A half-time graduate

assistant is expected to work approximately

twenty hours per week and must enroll in 9 to 12

credits per semester. Summer support for

graduate students is dependent on the availability

of research funds. The department provides no

guarantees regarding the availability of

assistantships during summer sessions unless

otherwise specified in the terms of offer.

About seventy percent of the graduate students in

the department receive financial assistance in the

form of an assistantship or fellowship. The

standard assistantship offered is ½ time, grade 14

for both fall and spring semesters (please see

https://guru.psu.edu/resources/rates-and-

schedules/stipends-for-graduate-assistants for

the current dollar value mappings for each grade).

Assistantship grade can be increased based upon

academic progress, experience and duties.

English Proficiency: The language of instruction

at Penn State is English. International applicants

must take and submit scores for the TOEFL (Test

of English as a Foreign Language) or the IELTS

(International English Language Testing System),

with the exceptions noted below. For admission

into the graduate program in CSE, applicants are

required to have a minimum overall iBT TOEFL

score of 80 with 19 or higher on the speaking

section. The minimum required composite score

for the IELTS is 6.5. For score reporting for

TOEFL and GRE scores, select “Penn State

University”.

International applicants are exempt from the

TOEFL/IELTS requirement who have received a

baccalaureate or a master’s degree from a

college/university/institution in any of the

ADMISSION TO THE COMPUTER SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING GRADUATE PROGRAMS

GRADUATE HANDBOOK – FALL 2022 | CSE

following: Australia, Belize, British Caribbean and

British West Indies, Canada (except Quebec),

England, Guyana, Republic of Ireland, Liberia,

New Zealand, Northern Ireland, Scotland, the

United States and Wales. Information about the

TOEFL can be found at their website:

https://www.ets.org/toefl/.

Information about the IELTS can be found at their

website: https://www.ielts.org/.

• Additional requirements related to teaching

assistantships: On April 7, 1981, the Penn

State Faculty Senate passed legislation

mandating that “all graduate teaching assistants

whose first language is not English” must take

and pass an oral language proficiency test.

Accordingly, all international students whose

first language is not English and who will be

employed as teaching assistants in Computer

Science and Engineering ARE REQUIRED to

take and pass the American English Oral

Communicative Proficiency Test (AEOCPT),

which is offered by the PSU Department of

Applied Linguistics. Depending on the score

received in the AEOCPT, students may be

required to take English as a Second Language

(ESL) courses. Unless otherwise specified in

the terms of offer, CSE graduate students

seeking teaching assistantships must have

already either passed their AEOCPT or

completed the entailed ESL course

requirements in order to be eligible to apply for

a teaching assistantship. All international

Ph.D. students are required to take the

AEOCPT as part of the CSE Ph.D.

requirements. Students should contact the

CSE graduate staff assistant to register for the

AEOCPT.

For further questions, please consult the FAQ

links below for both general CSE and degree-

specific questions:

CSE Graduate Program General FAQ:

https://www.eecs.psu.edu/students/graduate/EE

CS-Graduate-Frequently-Asked-Qs.aspx

Graduate School FAQ

https://gradschool.psu.edu/frequently-asked-

questions/

https://bulletins.psu.edu/graduate/

• Bursar’s Office -

https://www.bursar.psu.edu/

• Registrar’s Office -

https://www.registrar.psu.edu/

PROGRAM DESCRIPTIONS/DEGREE REQUIREMENTS

GRADUATE HANDBOOK – FALL 2022 | CSE

PLEASE NOTE: Students applying for and gaining

admittance to the Ph.D. program will not be permitted to

switch to the master’s program at a later date, except

under extenuating circumstances. Students who do not

already have an MS degree in CS/CSE may be eligible

for an MS-along-the-way (for details on MS-along-the-

way please see the graduate school’s documentation on

GCAC-200: https://gradschool.psu.edu/graduate-

education-policies/gcac/gcac-200/masters-along-the-

way-procedure)

1. Ph.D. Course Requirements

(Effective Fall 2017):

Students who do not have an MS degree in

Computer Science or Computer Engineering

must take a minimum of 33 credits including

6 credits of CSE 565, CSE 511 or CSE 530;

15 credits of CSE courses, excluding CSE

596 and 598; 9 credits of 400-, 500-, or 800-

level courses in CSE/EE/MATH/STAT, or

500- or 800-level IST courses (which may

include up to 3 credits of CSE 596); 2 credits

of CSE 590 (Colloquium), and 1 credit of

CSE 591.

Students who have an MS degree in

Computer Science or Computer Engineering

must take a minimum of 21 credits including

6 credits of CSE 565, CSE 511 or CSE 530,

9 credits of CSE courses, excluding CSE 596

and 598; 3 credits of 400-, 500- or 800-level

courses in CSE/EE/MATH/STAT, or 500- or

800-level IST courses (which may include up

to 3 credits of CSE 596); 2 credits of CSE

590 Colloquium and 1 credit of CSE 591.

2. Scholarship and Research Integrity (SARI)

Training:

Effective Fall 2009, Scholarship and

Research Integrity (SARI) training must be

completed during the first year of enrollment.

The SARI program has two parts:

a) During the first year of enrollment,

graduate students will be required to

complete an online Responsible Conduct

of (RCR) training program provided by

the Collaborative Institutional Training

Initiative (CITI). The Office for Research

Protections (ORP) will provide the

conduit to this training via the SARI

Resource Portal on the ORP website:

(https://www.research.psu.edu/training/s

ari). Students are required to complete

the “Responsible Conduct of Research

(RCR) Course.” After completing

theexam, print and submit to the

department’s graduate staff assistant.

b) Graduate students will also be required

to engage in an additional 5 hours of

discussion-based RCR education prior to

degree completion. These discussions

will encompass both universal and

discipline-specific material.

3. Ph.D. Qualifying Examination

(see also: GCAC 604)

a) CSE 591 Research Experience in

Computer Science and Engineering [1

credit] – must be completed within the

first two regular semesters after entering

the Ph.D. program (a grade of B or

higher must be achieved); can only be

taken once, and

b) Written examination – offered at the

beginning of each fall and spring

semester and must be taken by the third

semester in the program and completed

within the first three eligible semesters

for examination. The examination tests

the student’s background preparation

and problem-solving ability. Because the

CSE qualifying exam utilizes

undergraduate level material in its

assessment mechanisms, the

department determines all CSE students

Doctor of Philosophy in Computer Science and Engineering

PROGRAM DESCRIPTIONS/DEGREE REQUIREMENTS

GRADUATE HANDBOOK – FALL 2022 | CSE

to meet GCAC-604.Process.1.c.i

requirements at the time of program

admission. Eligibility is therefore

governed by the stipulations of GCAC-

604.Process.1.c.ii-iv: PSU Graduate

GPA >= 3.0; no incomplete/deferred

grades; In good academic standing and

appropriately registered for the term in

which the examination takes place.

In the CSE qualifying examination, students are

required to attempt and pass exams in two areas:

“Theory and Algorithms” and “Architecture and

Systems.” The exams will be held early in the

semester and will last three hours each. The goal

of these exams is to test competency in areas

deemed core computer science by the CSE

Graduate Committee. The syllabi for the exams

will be based on the following courses: (i) Theory

and Algorithms – CMPSC 360 and CMPSC 465

and (ii) Architecture and Systems – CMPEN 431

and CMPSC 473. A detailed list of topics and

reading materials will be provided by the CSE

graduate program office.

For both exams, a high and a low pass will be

determined. To pass the qualifying exam, a

student must obtain the following over the

allowed period of three semesters (i) a high pass

in both exams or (ii) a high pass in one exam and

a low pass in the other. It is allowed that a

student attempts/passes the two exams in

different semesters. In accordance with GCAC

604, students are required to have attempted the

qualifying exam no later than their third semester

after admission to the CSE PhD program, and

must pass the qualifying exam within three

semesters after they are exam-eligible; attempts

are considered consumed in every semester in

which a student is exam-eligible, whether or not

the student registers for the exam in that

semester.

Students with non-CSE majors will be allowed an

extra semester for course work they may need to

take. Students may petition to retake the

qualifying exam again if it has not been passed

by the third attempt. The student and student’s

advisor must submit such a petition to the CSE

professor-in-charge and the graduate staff

assistant. Students will need to sign up with the

graduate staff assistant for the examination. The

qualifying exam schedule and deadline for

signing up for the exams will be sent by email to

the CSE graduate listserv. Examinations taken

as an M.S. or as an M. Eng. student will count

towards the maximum limit of three attempts.

When a master’s student starts taking qualifying

exams, he/she must complete within three

semesters (the same as for Ph.D. students)

4. Comprehensive examination (see also:

GCAC-606) – students must pass the Ph.D.

comprehensive examination, and the

departmental English competency and

communication requirements. Students must

be registered in order to take the

comprehensive exam. Students must be

continuously registered each fall and spring

semesters after the comprehensive exam.

Please see the graduate staff assistant for

more information about this process.

5. Dissertation (see also: GCAC-607 and

608) – students must complete and defend a

Ph.D. dissertation. Students must be

registered in order to defend a Ph.D.

dissertation. Please see the graduate staff

assistant for more information about this

process.

6. Report to Ph.D. Committee for

Comprehensive and Final Oral Defense –

Ph.D. students must give enough time for

their committee members to properly

evaluate their work before the

comprehensive and final oral exams. For the

comprehensive exam, it is recommended

that the student submit a 15-page report to

the committee at least two weeks before the

oral comprehensive exam; note that the

committee may, at their discretion, express

different length/formatting preferences for the

comprehensive examination report, but, in all

cases, the student remains expected to

produce a draft of this document at least two

PROGRAM DESCRIPTIONS/DEGREE REQUIREMENTS

GRADUATE HANDBOOK – FALL 2022 | CSE

weeks before the oral examination. For the

final oral exam, it is recommended that the

student submit a draft of their dissertation to

the committee at least two weeks before the

final oral exam. Exceptions may be allowed

at the discretion of the Ph.D. advisor and all

other members of the committee.

7. English Proficiency Testing -

1) AEOCPT: all incoming international Ph.D.

students will have their oral English

proficiency assessed by taking the AEOCPT

(American English Oral Communicative

Proficiency Testing) which is held in August,

January and May. The AEOCPT is also

required for any international student who will

be a teaching assistant in CSE. Information

about the testing is sent by email to the CSE

graduate listserv. Students cannot register

themselves for the AEOCPT. Students

wishing to take the AEOCPT should register

for the test through the CSE graduate staff

assistant.

2) CSE Department English Proficiency

Testing: All post-qualifying exam students

will have their writing and presentational

speaking skills assessed via a departmental

assessment. The CSE English proficiency

testing takes place in both fall and spring

semesters. Information about the process

and format of the testing is sent to the

graduate student listserv early in each

Semester. Based on the results of these

assessments, students with documented

deficiencies will be required to pursue one or

several opportunities that are identified for

appropriate skill enhancement. The AEOCPT

(for international students) and

departmental proficiency must be

successfully completed before

scheduling the comprehensive

examination. The department will pay for

the AEOCPT exam fee for exams taken

during the normal schedule. You must notify

the graduate staff assistant immediately if

you are not able to attend any of the dates

provided. Should you schedule your exam on

a date that is not a normally scheduled date,

you may be responsible for the additional

fees.

NOTE: There is a Doctor of Philosophy in

Computer Science and Engineering Degree

Checklist in Appendix II.

Please refer to the Graduate Bulletin for

further information about graduate policies

and procedures:

http://bulletins.psu.edu/bulletins/whitebook/in

dex.cfm

PROGRAM DESCRIPTIONS/DEGREE REQUIREMENTS

GRADUATE HANDBOOK – FALL 2022 | CSE

8. “Grandfathering”

(Rules applying only to students entering

the program at an earlier date):

• Requirements for students entering the

PhD program prior to Fall 2017:

Students must accumulate a minimum of 48

credits of non-thesis graduate level courses,

with at least 27 credits of courses with

numbers CSE 500-589 or CSE 597*, and 21

additional credits of 400 level and above

courses. This must include 3 credits of CSE

590 [colloquium; only 3 credits of CSE 590

can be counted towards the 48 minimum

credits]. A maximum of 3 credits of X96 also

can be counted. *Note – 597 courses fall

2013 and after count. 598 courses count

prior to fall 2013. Students who are entering

the Ph.D. program with a Master of Science

degree may count up to 30 credits to satisfy

part of the minimum 48 credit requirement.

• Course Breadth Requirement (for

students entering the program prior to

Spring 2019).

In addition to the qualifying exam

requirement, all CSE Ph.D. students will

need to satisfy the following course

requirements before graduation.

1. Pass a graduate breadth course

from at least three of the eleven

qualifying exam subject areas

(copies of the exam areas and

courses can be obtained from the

CSE graduate office).

2. At least two of these three courses

must not overlap with the areas of

your qualifying exam subject areas.

3. At least one of the two subject

areas listed below must be covered

either by passing the qualifying

examination in that area or by

completing the graduate breadth

course specified.

a. Data Structures and Algorithms

b. Programming Languages

4. At least one of the two subject

areas listed below must be covered

either by passing the qualifying

examination in that area or by

completing the graduate breadth

course specified.

a. Operating System

b. Computer Architecture

PROGRAM DESCRIPTIONS/DEGREE REQUIREMENTS

GRADUATE HANDBOOK – FALL 2022 | CSE

Students pursuing an MS in CSE may select

from two different options offered by the program:

the Thesis Option and the Non-Thesis Option. By

default, all students are brought into the program

as Thesis Option students. Students wishing to

switch to the Non-Thesis option must file their

selection form by the end of their second

semester after admission. Students pursuing the

Thesis option must formally select a thesis

advisor by the end of their second semester after

admission. Common and distinct requirements

for each option are described below.

1. Common Course Requirements for both

Thesis and Non-Thesis Options:

- 31 total credits at the 400, 500, 600 or 800

level, specifically:

- CSE 590 Colloquium – (1 cr.).

- 6 credits of option-specific culminating

experience credits.

- 24 additional credits at the 400+ level, fulfilling

the following requirements:

a) At least 15 credits of CSE 500-level

courses

b) At most 9 credits of 400-level courses

c) At most 9 credits of courses from other

departments

d) Three courses (9 cr.) collectively

covering three breadth areas:

i) (Alg.) CMPSC 465 OR CSE 565

ii) (OS) CMPSC 473 OR CSE 511

iii) (Arch.) CMPEN 431 OR CSE 530

1a. Culminating Experience Requirements for

Thesis Option:

- Thesis – Students must complete 6 cr. of CSE

600 level and defend their thesis. Your thesis

advisor or co-advisor must have CSE graduate

faculty standing.

1b. Culminating Experience Requirements for

Non-Thesis Option:

- 3 additional credits of CSE 500-level

coursework

- CSE 594 (3 cr.) – must be taken during the

final semester. All CSE 594 projects must be

supervised or co-supervised by a member of the

CSE graduate faculty.

2. Scholarship and Research Integrity (SARI)

Training

- For ALL MS Students: Effective fall 2009,

Scholarship and Research Integrity (SARI)

training must be completed during first year

of enrollment.

The SARI program has two parts:

a) During the first year of enrollment,

graduate students will be required to complete

an online Responsible Conduct of Research

(RCR) training program provided by the

Collaborative Institutional Training Initiative

(CITI). The Office for Research Protections

(ORP) will provide the conduit to this training

via the SARI Resource Portal on the ORP

website:

(https://www.research.psu.edu/training/sari).

Students are required to complete the

“Responsible Conduct of Research (RCR)

Course.” After completing the exam, print and

submit the completion form to the

department’s graduate staff assistant.

b) Graduate students will also be required to

engage in an additional 5 hours of discussion-

based RCR education prior to degree

completion. These discussions will

encompass both universal and discipline-

specific material.

Master of Science in Computer Science and Engineering – 31 credits

PROGRAM DESCRIPTIONS/DEGREE REQUIREMENTS

GRADUATE HANDBOOK – FALL 2022 | CSE

3. Report to M.S. Committee –

For an M.S. student pursuing a thesis, it is

recommended that the student submit a draft of

the M.S. thesis to the M.S. committee at least

two weeks in before the final M.S. defense.

Exceptions may be allowed at the discretion of

the M.S. advisors and all other members of the

committee.

4. Composition of M.S. Committee and

Thesis

See page 18 and GCAC 642 for more

information.

NOTE: There is a Master of Science in Computer

Science and Engineering Degree Checklist in

Appendix II.

NOTE: Students admitted to the M.S. degree

and wanting to change to the M. ENG. degree

should contact CSE graduate program staff

about the process. These requests are

approved/denied on a case-by-case basis.

OTHER PROGRAMS/REQUIREMENTS

GRADUATE HANDBOOK – FALL 2022 | CSE

Admission is in the Fall semester only.

Requirements:

- Fall Semester: CmpSc 465 AND EITHER

(CmpSc 443 or CSE 543 and CmpSc 431W)

OR (CmpEn 431 and CmpEn 472) AND one

CSE graduate level course numbered CSE

500-589 or 597

- Spring Semester: 12 credits of CSE graduate

level courses number CSE 500-589 or 597.

- Summer Semester: CSE 820 (3) and CSE 594

(3) – both online. CSE 594 includes the

completion of a paper as a final project.

- Scholarship and Research Integrity (SARI)

training must be completed during the first

year of enrollment.

NOTE: There is a Master of Engineering in

Computer Science and Engineering Degree

Checklist in Appendix II.

Scholarship and Research Integrity (SARI)

Training

The SARI program has two parts:

1. During the first year of enrollment,

graduate students will be required to

complete an online Responsible Conduct of

Research (RCR) training program provided

by the Collaborative Institutional Training

Initiative (CITI). The Office for Research

Protections (ORP) will provide the conduit to

this training via the SARI Resource Portal

on the ORP website:

(https://www.research.psu.edu/training/sari)

Students are required to complete the

“Responsible Conduct of Research (RCR)

Course.” After completing the exam, print

and submit to the department’s graduate

staff assistant.

2. Graduate students will also be required to

engage in an additional 5 hours of

discussion-based RCR education prior to

degree completion. These discussions will

encompass both universal and discipline-

specific material.

NOTE: Students admitted to the M.Eng. degree

and wanting to change to the M.S. degree should

contact CSE graduate program staff about the

process. These requests are approved/denied

on a case-by-case basis. Please note, however,

that default departmental policy preference is for

M.Eng. students wishing to pursue an MS degree

to complete their M.Eng. degree and apply into

the MS program if they wish to obtain a research-

oriented master’s degree.

Master of Engineering in Computer Science and Engineering – 30 credits

OTHER PROGRAMS/REQUIREMENTS

GRADUATE HANDBOOK – FALL 2022 | CSE

OTHER

PROGRAMS/REQUIREMENTS/

DEGREE CHANGES

Exceptions–In very rare situations, petitions

will be considered for acceptance of certain CSE

597/5XX course offerings (or a related course

from another department) as meeting the

requirements for master’s and doctoral degrees.

These petitions can only be submitted with prior

approval of and strong support from your

advisor. Petitions should be submitted to the

graduate staff assistant and the Professor-in-

Charge of the CSE graduate program.

The Computer Science and Engineering

Department does not offer a minor in

Computer Science and Engineering.

Requests to Change Degree Programs in CSE

Under certain circumstances, students may

request a change from a degree program in CSE

to another degree program in CSE (M.S./M.

ENG. to Ph.D., Ph.D. to M.S./M. ENG., M. ENG.

to M.S. and M.S. to M. ENG.) These requests

are approved/denied by the CSE graduate

program professor-in-charge on a case by case

basis and need justification from the student’s

advisor or M. ENG. program director. Please see

the CSE graduate program staff about the

process of changing a degree.

Operations Research Dual-Title Degree

Program

Graduates students within computer science and

engineering can elect to participate in the

Operations Research Dual-Title Degree

Program. Operations Research is the use of

scientific methodology in the formulation,

analysis, and solution of problems of decision

making. The term Operations Research

originated in World War II to describe studies of

military operations involving man-machine

systems. Since its origin, operations researchers

have addressed a wide variety of problems,

including production and inventory control,

transportation and distribution system design,

capital investment marketing strategies, health

maintenance, pollution control, personnel

staffing, military deployment, resource

management and other regional planning

problems, just to name a few. The applications of

operations research are numerous, and more

importantly, new applications are continually

arising. The strength and versatility of operations

research lie in its ability to model the behavior of

complex systems in quantitative mathematical

terms, as well as its prescriptive power through

analysis and synthesis.

Operations Research is interdisciplinary by

nature and draws on the techniques from many

fields, including the mathematical sciences,

engineering, economics, and the physical

sciences. The unique structure of the OR

program at Penn State enables students from

rather diverse backgrounds to attain and be

identified with the tools, techniques, and

methodology of Operations Research and at the

same time maintain a close association with their

OTHER PROGRAMS/REQUIREMENTS

GRADUATE HANDBOOK – FALL 2022 | CSE

field of major interest. The opportunity to study

and work with others from such diverse

backgrounds provides an enriching experience

not usually available in graduate work. By a

judicious selection of courses, a student can

tailor a plan of graduate study to meet career

objectives in both of the chosen fields.

GRADUATE HANDBOOK – FALL 2022 | CSE

Registration as a full-time student is required for

each student receiving assistantship support.

Full-time status is defined as:

Fall/Spring

Summer

¼-time

assistantship

9-14 credits/

semester

5-7 credits

½-time

assistantship

9-12

4-6

¾-time

assistantship

6-8

3-5

Students holding fellowships, traineeships, or

other awards are required to carry 9 or more

credits each semester, and 5 or more during the

summer session. All international students must

spring semesters.

The College of Engineering requires that every

new engineering teaching assistant complete

ENGR 888, the Graduate Teaching Seminar,

during their first semester as a teaching assistant

where they are responsible for teaching in the

classroom (actual classes, recitations, or labs).

The CSE department recommends that students

take ENGR 888 the first semester they TA

whether or not they are responsible for a

class/recitation/lab and therefore required to take

it.

Time Limits and Other Constraints

An M.S. degree must be completed within eight

years of admission to degree status. An M. Eng.

degree must be completed in one year. A

doctoral student is required to complete the

program, including acceptance of the doctoral

thesis, within eight years from the date of

acceptance as a candidate (passing Ph.D.

qualifying exam). A doctoral student must

schedule their comprehensive within 5 years of

advancing to candidacy.

Prior scheduling of comprehensive and final oral

exams for Ph.D. candidates is required. Both the

comprehensive and final oral exam must be

scheduled at least four weeks in advance. The

exams may be canceled if documents

(specifically, the thesis proposal and thesis,

respectively) are not delivered to committee

members at least two weeks prior to exams.

Students must be registered in order to take the

comprehensive exam. Please see the graduate

staff assistant for more information about this

process.

Final oral exams and dissertation submissions

must meet published deadlines each semester or

summer for graduation at the end of that

semester or summer.

Students must be registered in order to defend a

Ph.D. dissertation. Please see the graduate

staff assistant for more information about this

process.

NOTE: For students enrolled during COVID-19

mitigation measures, the graduate school has

extended most time limits by one year. Please

consult the relevant GCAC COVID exceptions for

specific details on whether this applies to you.

Residency Requirement

Over some twelve-month period during the

interval between admission to Ph.D. program and

completion of the program, the student must

spend at least two semesters (which may include

the semester in which the qualifying examination

is taken) as a registered full-time student

engaged in academic work at the University Park

Campus.

After passing the comprehensive exam and

meeting the two-semester full-time residency

requirement, the Ph.D. student must maintain

continuous registration for each fall and spring

REGISTRATION REQUIREMENTS

GRADUATE HANDBOOK – FALL 2022 | CSE

semester (beginning with the first semester after

both of the above requirements are met) until the

Ph.D. thesis is accepted and approved by the

doctoral committee. Note that if a student is in

residence during summers, he/she must also

sive students can maintain registration by

registering for credits in the usual way or by

registering for noncredit 601 or 611, depending

on whether they are devoting full-time or part-

time to their thesis preparation. Students who do

not register are subject to retroactive tuition

assessments.

To be eligible for candidacies, comprehensives,

and final orals, a minimum grade point average

of 3.0 is mandatory. Also, a minimum grade point

average of 3.0 is mandatory to receive a

graduate degree from Penn State. Students

whose GPA falls below 3.0 will be placed on

academic probation during the following

semester and requested to submit a GPA

remediation plan, to be reviewed and approved

by the graduate PiC and staff. Failure to return a

student’s GPA above 3.0 or meet alternative

approved remediation measures during a term

where a student is on academic probation will

lead to termination from the graduate program,

barring documented exceptional circumstances.

Courses below the 400 level and courses in

which a grade less than C is earned do not

count towards graduation.

Students who have been appointed on a

graduate assistantship or fellowship for fall and

spring semesters are eligible to apply for the

Summer Tuition Assistance Program (STAP).

Please see the graduate staff assistant for more

information about this program.

Please refer to the Graduate Bulletin for

further information about graduate policies

and procedures:

http://bulletins.psu.edu/bulletins/whitebook/in

dex.cfm

GRADUATE HANDBOOK – FALL 2022 | CSE

M.S. & Ph.D.: Students pursuing M.S. or Ph.D.

graduate degrees in the Department of Computer

Science and Engineering are expected to

complete the minimum credit requirement each

semester and to maintain a minimum GPA of

3.00/4.00. Students who fall below these

standards will be considered on academic

probation. If a student remains below this

standard for two consecutive semesters (i.e. an

initial semester wherein a student has failed to

achieve a 3.0 GPA and subsequent semester in

which the GPA has not returned to compliance),

he/she may be terminated. For Ph.D. students,

normal academic progress also entails the

undertaking of the qualifying exam, with a

strongly demonstrated effort in each exam each

time it is attempted. See the section on Ph.D.

qualifying examinations for the complete

guidelines. Please note that the normal academic

progress requirement plays a strong role in

determining continuing financial support.

Graduate studies will be terminated if a PhD

student fails the comprehensive examination or a

master’s or Ph.D. student fails their

thesis/dissertation defense, unless the

master/doctoral committee votes to allow for

another examination. A Ph.D. student will also

be terminated from their program if they fail to

pass their qualifying examinations in the allotted

time limits, although they may be allowed to

complete a master’s degree if both their research

advisor and the Graduate Program Officer

approve.

M. Eng.: The M. Eng. is a cohort-based

program. The program is started in the fall

semester and completed in one year in the

following summer semester. If a student fails to

semester or fails to earn at least a C in any

course they may be terminated from the

program.

NORMAL ACADEMIC PROGRESS

GRADUATE HANDBOOK – FALL 2022 | CSE

Those students who initially enter one of our

departmental programs with support from a

teaching assistantship are normally supported for

two 15-week semesters, provided that they show

continued acceptable (as defined above)

academic progress, and fulfill the obligations of

their teaching assistantship. In addition,

international students are expected to pass the

American English Oral Communicative

Proficiency Test (AEOCPT) or complete all

required courses remedial English courses. All

Ph.D. students must also satisfy the Ph.D.

English Proficiency testing.

The CSE Department will not support M. Eng.

students via an assistantship or other

financial aid.

DURATION OF ASSISTANTSHIP SUPPORT

CSE FACULTY WITH A FINANCIAL APPOINTMENT IN CSE

GRADUATE HANDBOOK – FALL 2022 | CSE

M. Eng. students will be advised by the Professor

in Charge of the M. Eng. program. M.S. and

Ph.D. graduate student will be assigned a

graduate advisor upon admission into the

graduate program. Note that, for MS students,

this initial advisor may be an academic, rather

than research advisor. If so, the MS student is

expected to obtain a formal research advisor

(Thesis option) or culminating experience

supervisor (Non-thesis option) by the end of

his/her second semester in the program. In either

case (research/academic), this advisor will assist

the student in planning a preliminary graduate

degree program. This key process is to both

insure that students have met background

requirements and to help prepare a schedule of

courses for the first semester of enrollment. This

advisor will remain the graduate advisor until the

student forms a committee to advise the student

on an M.S./Ph.D. thesis or until the student

formally requests a change of advisor.

It is the responsibility of the student to form a

research committee (see RESEARCH

COMMITTEES) appropriate for that student’s

degree program. The student should discuss

research opportunities with faculty in the

department. After obtaining the agreement of a

faculty member to serve as research advisor, the

student may choose to have this research

advisor serve as their academic advisor as well;

the graduate staff assistant must be notified of

this choice. The student will then form the

appropriate research committee. The following is

an abbreviated faculty research interest list.

NOTE: All Electrical Engineering tenure-track

faculty have graduate status in CSE and can

act as advisors for CSE M.S. and Ph.D.

students. Two IST faculty (Professor Lee

Giles and Professor Vasant Honavar) have

graduate faculty status in CSE.

Faculty Areas of Interest

Abutalib Aghayev

Emmert H. Bashore Faculty Development

Assistant Professor- CSE

Signal and image processing, Medical Imaging,

optimization, numerical modeling, High Intensity

Focused Ultrasound (HIFU)

Ph: 814-867-4412 | Email: aqa6214@psu.edu

Office: W336 Westgate Building

Mohamed Almekkawy

Assistant Research Professor- CSE

Signal and image processing, Medical Imaging,

optimization, numerical modeling, High Intensity

Focused Ultrasound (HIFU)

Ph: 814-863-5141 | Email: mka9@psu.edu

Office: 322 Leonhard Building

Jesse L. Barlow

Professor- CSE

Numerical linear algebra, scientific computing,

linear algebra in signal and image processing.

Ph: 814-863-1705 | Email: b58@psu.edu

Office: W315 Westgate Building

Antonio Blanca Pimentel

Assistant Professor- CSE

Data Science and Artificial Intelligence;

Theoretical Computer Science

Ph: 814-863-5141 | Email: azb1015@psu.edu

Office: W311 Westgate Building

Guohong Cao

Distinguished Professor- CSE

Mobile computing, wireless networks, distributed

fault-tolerant computing

Ph: 814-863-1241 | Email: gxc27@psu.edu

Office: W326 Westgate Building

CSE FACULTY WITH A FINANCIAL APPOINTMENT IN CSE

GRADUATE HANDBOOK – FALL 2022 | CSE

Kyusun Choi

Teaching Professor- CSE

Mixed-signal VLSI circuit design, RF ASICs, DSP

architecture for RF signal, wireless embedded

microcontroller.

Ph: 814-863-1268 | Email: kxc104@psu.edu

Office: 325 Leonhard Building

Robert Collins

Associate Professor- CSE

Data Science and Artificial Intelligence; Signal

and Image Processing.

Ph: 814-863-1944 | Email: rtc12@psu.edu

Office: W327 Westgate Building

Christopher Dancy

Harold and Inge Marcus Industrial and

Manufacturing Career Development Associate

Professor- CSE/IE

Ph: 814-865-7601 | Email: cld5070@psu.edu

Office: 310 Leonhard Building

Chita R. Das

Department Head and Distinguished

Professor- CSE

Computer architecture, parallel and distributed

computing, cluster systems, Internet QoS, mobile

computing, performance evaluation, fault-tolerant

computing, multimedia.

Ph: 814-865-0194 | Email: cx[email protected]du

Office: W209F Westgate Building

Debarati Das

Assistant Professor-CSE

Fine grained complexity, Approximation

algorithms, String algorithms, Clustering

algorithms, Graph algorithms

Ph: 814-865-3600 | Email: dxd5606@psu.edu

Office: W310 Westgate Building

Mahfuza Farooque

Director of the MEng program and Assistant

Teaching Professor-CSE

Data Science and Artificial Intelligence;

Programming Languages and Compilers;

Security and Privacy.

Ph: 814-863-5103 | Email: mff5187@psu.edu

Office: W307 Westgate Building

Martin Fürer

Professor-CSE/Science

Efficient discrete and algebraic algorithms,

approximation algorithms, computational

complexity, the graph isomorphism problem.

Ph: 814-863-1857 | Email: fhs@psu.edu

Office: W356 Westgate Building

Oren Gall

Assistant Research Professor-CSE

Electronic Materials and Devices; Integrated

Circuits and Systems; Power and Energy

Systems

Ph: 814-863-5142 | Email: ozg1@psu.edu

Office: 337 Leonhard Building

Swaroop Ghosh

Joseph and Janice M Monkowski Career

Development Associate Professor-CSE/EE

Intersection of circuits, micro-architecture and

hardware security using CMOS and post-CMOS

Nano-technologies to meet the energy-efficiency

and security/privacy of rapidly evolving mobile

computing.

Ph: 814-865-1298 | Email: szg212@psu.edu

Office: 227E EE West Building

C. Lee Giles

David Reese Professor at the College of

Information Sciences and Technology-CSE/IST

Ph: 814-865-7884 | Email: clg20@psu.edu

Office: E350 Westgate Building

Mahanth Gowda

Assistant Professor-CSE

Wireless Networking, Internet of Things (IoT),

Wearable and Mobile Computing, Drones and

Cyber Physical Systems, Mobile Security,

Applications of Machine Learning.

Ph: 814-863-0608 | Email: mkg31@psu.edu

Office: W314 Westgate Building

CSE FACULTY WITH A FINANCIAL APPOINTMENT IN CSE

GRADUATE HANDBOOK – FALL 2022 | CSE

Sean Hallgren

Professor-CSE

Quantum computation, Theoretical computer

science.

Ph: 814-863-1265 | Email: shj26@psu.edu

Office: W350 Westgate Building

John J. Hannan (CSE),

Associate Department Head and Associate

Professor-CSE

App Development, Programming language

semantics and implementation, Program analysis

and verification, Logic and computation,

Functional programming.

Ph: 814-863-0702 | Email: jjh9@psu.edu

Office: W209E Westgate Building

Ting He

Associate Professor-CSE

Statistical inference, information theory, control

theory, online learning, and graph theory.

Ph: 814-865-1265 | Email: tzh58@psu.edu

Office: W334 Westgate Building

Vasant Honavar

Professor and Edward Frymoyer Chair of

Information Sciences and Technology-

CSE/IST/Huck Life Sciences Institute/MRI

Current research and teaching interests include

Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning,

Bioinformatics, Big Data Analytics,

Computational Molecular Biology, Data Mining,

Discovery Informatics, Information Integration,

Computational Neuroscience, Neuroinformatics,

Knowledge Representation and Inference,

Semantic Technologies, Social Informatics,

Security Informatics, and Health Informatics.

Ph: 814-865-3141 | Email: vuh14@psu.edu

Office: E335 Westgate Building

Syed Hussain

Assistant Professor-CSE

Network and Mobile Systems; Programming

Languages and Compilers; Security and Privacy

Ph: 814-865-6454 | Email: sbh5767@psu.edu

Office: W305 Westgate Building

Trent Jaeger

Professor-CSE

Network and Mobile Systems; Operating

Systems and Cloud Computing; Programming

Languages and Compilers; Security and Privacy.

Ph: 814-865-1042 | Email: trj1@psu.edu

Office: W359 Westgate Building

Mahmut Kandemir

Distinguished Professor-CSE

Embedded systems, optimizing compilers,

power-aware computing, large-scale data

management.

Ph: 814-863-4888 | Email: mtk2@psu.edu

Office: W321 Westgate Building

George Kesidis

Professor-CSE/EE

Network security, anomaly detection, design and

performance evaluation of communication/

computer networking mechanisms, incentive

engineering, optimization, stochastic processes

and probability, applied statistics and machine

learning.

Ph: 814-865-9190 | Email: gik2@psu.edu

Office: W367 Westgate Building

Daniel Kifer

Professor-CSE/Huck Life Science

Institute/SoDA

Private data analysis, text models, data mining,

machine learning, Artificial Intelligence, and Data

Science.

Ph: 814-863-1187 | Email: duk17@psu.edu

Office: W333 Westgate Building

CSE FACULTY WITH A FINANCIAL APPOINTMENT IN CSE

GRADUATE HANDBOOK – FALL 2022 | CSE

Young Kun Ko

Assistant Professor-CSE

Applications of information theoretic techniques

in complexity theory and data structure lower

bounds using techniques from communication

complexity.

Ph: 814-863-6268 | Email: ykk5167@psu.edu

Office: W306 Westgate Building

David Koslicki

Associate Professor-CSE/Biology/Huck

Institutes

Statistical inference, information theory, control

theory, online learning, and graph theory.

Ph: 814-865-1611 | Email: dmk333@psu.edu

Office: W354 Westgate Building

Thomas F. La Porta

Director of EECS and Evan Pugh Professor,

William E. Leonhard Endowed Chair-CSE/EE

Mobility management, mobile data systems

including networks, protocols, and applications,

signaling and control for telecommunication

networks, security for wireless networks.

Ph: 814-865-6725 | Email: tfl12@psu.edu

Offices: 207 Electrical Engineering West

W330 Westgate Building

Wang-Chien Lee

Associate Professor-CSE/SoDA

Pervasive/mobile computing, database systems,

security, peer-to-peer systems, wireless

networks, internet technologies,

telecommunications management network

(TMN).

Ph: 814-865-1053 | Email: wul2@psu.edu

Office: W332 Westgate Building

Yanxi Liu

Professor-CSE/Huck Life Sciences Institute

Computational regularity, group theory and

applications, machine learning (particularly

discriminative subspace learning from multimedia

data), computer-aided diagnosis, computer vision

and computer graphics, biomedical image

analysis/indexing/ retrieval, robotics.

Ph: 814-865-7495 | Email: yul11@psu.edu

Office: W372 Westgate Building

Kamesh Madduri

Associate Professor-CSE/Huck Life Sciences

Institute/SoDA/

Combinatorial scientific computing; scalable

scientific data analysis and management; parallel

graph algorithms, with applications to

computational biology and social network

analysis.

Ph: 814-865-0883 | Email: kxm85@psu.edu

Office: W312 Westgate Building

Mehrdad Mahdavi

Assistant Professor-CSE

Large-scale optimization, High-dimensional

learning, Convex and non-convex Optimization,

Distributed optimization, Statistical and

computational learning theory, Online

(adversarial) learning, Applications of machine

learning in social graphs, recommender systems,

and text analysis.

Ph: 814-863-0076 | Email: mzm616@psu.edu

Office: W365 Westgate Building

Paul Medvedev

Associate Professor-CSE/BMB/

Huck Life Sciences Institute/CCBB

Computational Science; Data Science and

Artificial Intelligence; Theoretical Computer

Science.

Ph: 814-865-0193 | Email: pzm[email protected]du

Office: W205B Westgate Building

CSE FACULTY WITH A FINANCIAL APPOINTMENT IN CSE

GRADUATE HANDBOOK – FALL 2022 | CSE

Vijaykrishnan Narayanan

Distinguished Professor- CSE/EE/Huck/MRI

Energy-aware and reliable systems, soft error

testing and protection, embedded Java,

nano/VLSI systems, computer architecture.

Ph: 814-863-0392 | Email: vxn9@psu.edu

Office: W323 Westgate Building

Ruslan Nikolaev

Assistant Professor-CSE

Ph: 814-865-0772 | Email: rvn5220@psu.edu

Office: W331 Westgate Building

Rebecca Passonneau

Professor-CSE/SoDA/NLP

Computational semantic and pragmatics, natural

language processing (NLP), dialog systems,

data mining.

Ph: 814-865-9233 | Email: rjp49@psu.edu

Office: W318 Westgate Building

John Sampson

Associate Professor and Professor in Charge

(PIC)-CSE/MRI

Computer architecture, mobile/low-power

computing, application/domain-specific

architectures.

Ph: 814-865-9233 | Email: jms1257@psu.edu

Office: W318 Westgate Building

Mingfu Shao

Charles K. Etner Early Career Assistant Professor-

CSE/Huck Life Science Institute

Computational Science; Data Science and

Artificial Intelligence; Theoretical Computer

Science.

Ph: 814-865-4445 | Email: mxs2589@psu.edu

Office: W205A Westgate Building

Anand Sivasubramaniam

Distinguished Professor-CSE/IEE

Operating systems, computer architecture,

databases, mobile computing, performance

evaluation.

Ph: 814-865-1406 | Email: axs53@psu.edu

Office: W320 Westgate Building

Gang (Gary) Tan

Professor-CSE

Software security, programming languages,

computer security, software engineering, formal

methods, program verification.

Ph: 814-865-7364 | Email: gxt29@psu.edu

Office: W358 Westgate Building

Bhuvan Urgaonkar

Professor-CSE

Professor. Analytical modeling and optimization

of computer systems; Cloud computing and data

centers; Distributed computing; Fault tolerance;

Operating systems; Power management;

Sustainable information technology.

Ph: 814-865-9506 | Email: buu1@psu.edu

Office: W371 Westgate Building

Chunhao Wang

Assistant Professor-CSE

Ph: 814-867-4426 | Email: cqw5677@psu.edu

Office: W336A Westgate Building

Dong Xie

Assistant Professor-CSE

Data Science and Artificial Intelligence;

Operating Systems and Cloud Computing;

Security and Privacy

Ph: 814-865-9148 | Email: dfx5019@psu.edu

Office: W325 Westgate Building

Huijuan Xu

Assistant Professor-CSE

Data Science and Artificial Intelligence; Signal

and Image Processing

Ph: 814-865-0072 | Email: hkx5063@psu.edu

Office: W316 Westgate Building

CSE FACULTY WITH A FINANCIAL APPOINTMENT IN CSE

GRADUATE HANDBOOK – FALL 2022 | CSE

Danfeng Zhang

Associate Professor-CSE

Computer security, programming languages. Ph:

814-863-7323 | Email: dbz501[email protected]

Office: W329 Westgate Building

Rui Zhang

Assistant Professor-CSE

Data Science and Artificial Intelligence; Natural

Language Processing, Deep Learning.

Ph: 814-867-3870 | Email: rmz5227@psu.edu

Office: W369 Westgate Building

Sencun Zhu

Associate Professor-CSE

Network and systems security, software

plagiarism detection, smartphone security,

children online safety, privacy.

Ph: 814-865-0995 | Email: sxz16@psu.edu

Office: W370 Westgate Building

Timothy Zhu

Assistant Professor-CSE

Systems, performance analysis/modeling,

resource management, scheduling, cloud

computing.

Ph: 814-863-1264 | Email: tuz68@psu.edu

Office: W353 Westgate Building

GRADUATE HANDBOOK – FALL 2022 | CSE

GRADUATE

ADVISORS/RESEARCH

COMMITTEES

Rules for Choosing Graduate Advisors

A Ph.D. or an M.S. graduate student will be

assigned a graduate advisor upon admission into

the graduate program or be admitted with a

temporary advisor. Students who are admitted

with a temporary advisor must choose an advisor

within his/her first year of study and submit a

“Change of Advisor” form to the graduate staff

assistant. Advisors must be a member of the

CSE graduate faculty. This advisor will assist

the student in planning a preliminary graduate

degree program. This is done to both ensure that

students have met background requirements and

to help prepare a schedule of courses for the first

semester of enrollment. This advisor will remain

the graduate advisor until the student forms a

committee to advise the student on an M.S.

thesis, or Ph.D. dissertation. Students may

request to formally change to a different advisor,

add a co-advisor, or disassociate from their

current advisor by filing the relevant forms.

It is the responsibility of the student to form a

research committee (see Ph.D, and M.S.

committee formation below) or, in the case of a

Non-thesis MS student, select a research

supervisor for their culminating experience. The

student should discuss research opportunities

with faculty in the department. After obtaining the

agreement of a faculty member to serve as

research advisor, the student may choose to

have this research advisor serve as their

academic advisor as well; the graduate staff

assistant must be notified of this choice. The

student will then form the appropriate research

committee. M. Eng. students will be advised by

the Professor-in- Charge of the M. Eng. program.

Ph.D. Committee

During the semester in which a student passes

the qualifying examination, he/she is expected to

form the doctoral committee. The committee

chairperson or at least one co-chairperson must

be either (a) a CSE faculty member whose name

appears on the list of faculty starting on page 18

or (b) a tenure-track faculty in the EE department

at Penn State’s main campus. The committee

must have at least four graduate faculty

members (including the chairperson and any co-

chairpersons). At least one member of the

committee besides the chairperson or co-

chairpersons must be a member of the graduate

faculty of the CSE department. Finally, the

committee must have at least one graduate

faculty member from outside the School of

EECS. All students must consult with the

graduate staff assistant to ensure their committee

meets all the requirements. A public dissertation

defense is required.

The student requests the appointment of their

committee by obtaining the signature of each

graduate faculty member on the Committee

Appointment Signature form (available from the

graduate staff assistant) and returning it to the

graduate staff assistant for submission to the

Graduate Enrollment Services Offices, and

submitting in letter form to the graduate program

officer (via the graduate staff assistant), the

following:

i) Proposed title of dissertation

ii) An appropriately worded summary of

the investigation for the dissertation

iii) The name of the proposed doctoral

committee members and the role

each member will play

GRADUATE HANDBOOK – FALL 2022 | CSE

M.S. Committee

The committee chairperson or at least one co-

chairperson must be either

(a) a CSE graduate faculty member whose name

appears on the list of faculty starting on page 18

(b) a tenure-track faculty in the EE department at

Penn State’s University Park campus.

A committee must consist of at least two

members including the chairperson and co-

chairpersons and at least one of them must be a

member of the graduate faculty of the CSE

department.

The work done as part of the M.S. thesis need

not necessarily be an in-depth investigation to

extend the state of the art in some specialty area.

However, mere application of some existing

theory or technology is generally not sufficient.

All students must consult with the graduate

staff assistant to ensure their committee

meets all the requirements. A public thesis

defense is required.

The student requests the appointment of their

committee by obtaining the signature of each

graduate faculty member on the Application to

Schedule an MS Thesis Defense form (available

from the graduate staff assistant) and returning it

to the graduate staff assistant for processing and

submitting in letter form to the graduate program

officer (via the graduate staff assistant), the

following:

i) Proposed title of dissertation

ii) An appropriately worded summary of the

investigation for the thesis

iii) The name of the proposed M.S. committee

members and the role each member

will play

M. Eng.

M. Eng. students are advised by the Professor-

in-Charge of the M. Eng. program. Since the M.

Eng. is a professional degree and not a research

degree, no committee is formed nor is a thesis

written. A paper will be completed as a final

project in the course CSE 594.

Please refer to the Graduate Bulletin for further

information about graduate policies and

procedures:

http://gradschool.psu.edu/graduate-education-

policies/

GRADUATE HANDBOOK – FALL 2022 | CSE

Requirement

Person

Responsible

Suggested Completion Dates

Degree

Assign faculty member to serve as tentative

faculty advisor.

Graduate

Program Officer

Early in first semester.

MS & PhD

Select faculty member as research

advisor/supervisor for culminating expereince.

Student

End of second semester.

Prepare a list of courses to comprise graduate

plan of study; consult faculty advisor.

Student

End of first semester.

MS & PhD

Complete doctoral qualifying exam.

CSE 591

Student

Within first two semesters.

Ph.D.

Written Examination

Chairman, Ph.D.

Qualifying

Examination

Committee to

conduct exami-

nation (student

schedules

examination).

Must be taken no later than the

third regular semester, and

completed no later than the third

eligible semester. (SEE PH.D.

QUALIFYING EXAMINATIONS

for detailed information).

Ph.D.

Submit plan of study and thesis project

proposal to research committee for approval

(copy to graduate staff assistant).

Student

Beginning of third semester.

M.S.

Recommend faculty members to serve on

doctoral research committee.

Student

Beginning of first semester after

completing qualifying examination.

Ph.D.

Prepare thesis research project proposal for

faculty advisor.

Student

Middle of first semester after

completing qualifying examination.

Ph.D.

Submit plan of study and thesis project

proposal to research committee for approval

(copy to graduate staff assistant).

Student

Middle of first semester after

completing qualifying examination.

Ph.D.

SUMMARY OF GRADUATE DEGREE REQUIREMENTS

SUMMARY OF DEGREE REQUIREMENTS

GRADUATE HANDBOOK – FALL 2022 | CSE

Requirement

Person

Responsible

Suggested Completion Dates

Degree

Schedule oral comprehensive examination

with graduate staff assistant.

Student

At least four weeks prior to examination

date, approved by all committee

members.

Ph.D.

Complete oral comprehensive examination.

Student to

schedule

examinations.

Upon substantial completion of

coursework, including communications

requirements. See advisor on lead time

for draft to committee members.

Students must be registered in order

to take comprehensive exam.

Ph.D.

Inform Graduate Recorder (at the Registrar’s

Office, 112 Shields) of the intention to

graduate.

Student

Beginning of (or semester just prior to)

semester or summer session in which

degree is expected.

All

Pay thesis fee at Registrar’s Office.

Student

Beginning of semester or summer

session in which degree is expected.

M.S.,

Ph.D.

Appropriate completed course requirement

sheet checked by PiC, to graduate staff

assistant.

Student

At least one semester prior to semester

in which degree is expected.

All

Submit draft copy of thesis to faculty advisor.

Student

Early in last semester.

M.S.,

Ph.D.

Distribute copies of thesis to each

committee member and graduate coordinator.

Student

AFTER thesis has been approved by

faculty advisor.

M.S.,

Ph.D.

Schedule final oral examination for M.S.

Thesis with graduate staff assistant.

Student

At least one week prior to scheduled

examination date, on approval by all

committee members.

M.S.

Schedule final oral examination for Ph.D.

Thesis with graduate staff assistant.

Student

At least four weeks prior to

scheduled examination date, on

approval by all committee members.

Check with advisor for lead time on

submitting draft to committee members.

Ph.D.

Students must be registered in order

to defend a Ph.D. dissertation.

Complete final oral examination.

Student

As soon as faculty advisor approves

thesis for oral examination. Early

enough for final draft of thesis to be

submitted before deadline date.

M.S.,

Ph.D.

Return departmental keys and any books,

software, supplies, etc., as required, to

Administrative Assistant or as appropriate.

Student

Prior to departure

All

COURSE OFFERINGS

GRADUATE HANDBOOK – FALL 2022 | CSE

COURSE OFFERINGS

The Course Offerings list will be constantly

monitored and updated as needed; the following

is a list of graduate level departmental courses

as they currently exist. It should also be noted

that the department offers individual study

courses that can include creative projects,

including nonthesis research, that are supervised

on an individual basis and that fall outside the

scope of a formal course; and special topics

courses that are formal courses meant to

explore, in depth, a subject that may be topical or

of special interest. There are several 600 level

(research/thesis) courses offered.

Disclaimer: Please note that, except for certain

pre-major entry courses available to the

exploratory students in DUS and ENGR, many

CMPSC, CMPEN, and CSE courses are

controlled for students in the Computer Science

or Computer Engineering major. Certain majors

have negotiated with the department of computer

science and engineering to allow their students to

as part of a computational option. Students

outside those majors, however, will find it difficult

and probably impossible to schedule CMPSC,

CMPEN, and CSE courses. Therefore, students

should not pursue another major with the thought

that they will be able to compliment it with

CMPSC, CMPEN, and CSE electives.

CMPSC 431W – DATABASE MANAGEMENT

SYSTEMS (3) Topics include: conceptual data

modeling, relational data model, relational query

languages, schema normalization,

database/Internet applications, and database

system issues. Prerequisite: CMPSC 221; ENGL

202C.

CMPSC 442 – ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE (3)

Introduction to the theory, research paradigms,

implementation techniques, and philosophies of

artificial intelligence. Prerequisite: CMPSC 221 or

equivalent. Concurrent: CMPSC 465.

CMPSC 443 – INTRODUCTION TO

COMPUTER AND NETWORK SECURITY (3)

Introduction to theory and practice of computer

security with an emphasis on Internet and

operating system applications. Prerequisite:

CMPSC 473, CMPEN 362.

CMPSC 448 – MACHINE LEARNING AND

ALGORITHMIC AI (3) Evaluation and use of

machine learning models; algorithmic elements

of artificial intelligence. Prerequisite: STAT 319 or

STAT 415 and CMPSC 122 or prior programming

experience.

CMPSC 450 – CONCURRENT SCIENTIFIC

PROGRAMMING (3) Problems of

synchronization, concurrent execution, and their

solution techniques. Design and implementation

of concurrent software in a distributed system.

Prerequisite: CMPSC 121, CMPSC 201 or

CMPSC 202; MATH 220; MATH 230 or MATH

231.

CMPSC 451 (MATH 451) – NUMERICAL

COMPUTATIONS (3) Algorithms for

interpolation, approximation, integration,

nonlinear equations, linear systems, fast

FOURIER transform, and differential equations

emphasizing computational properties and

implementation. Students may take only one

course for credit from CMPSC/MATH 451 and

CMPSC/MATH 455. Prerequisite: 3 credits of

programming; MATH 230 or MATH 231.

CMPSC 455 (MATH 455) – INTRODUCTION TO

NUMERICAL ANALYSIS I (3) Floating point

computation, numerical rootfinding, interpolation,

numerical quadrature, direct methods for linear

systems. Students may take only one course for

credit from MATH 451 or MATH 455.

Prerequisite: MATH 220 and MATH 230 or

MATH 231; and 3 credits of programming.

COURSE OFFERINGS

GRADUATE HANDBOOK – FALL 2022 | CSE

CMPSC 456 (MATH 456) – INTRODUCTION TO

NUMERICAL ANALYSIS II (3) Polynomials and

piecewise polynomial approximation; matrix least

square problems; numerical solution of

eigenvalue problems; numerical solutions of

ordinary differential equations. Prerequisite:

CMPSC 455.

CMPSC 458 – FUNDAMENTALS OF

COMPUTER GRAPHICS (3) Fundamentals of

computer graphics: input/output devices,

transformation, projection, clipping, hidden

line/surface elimination. Prerequisite: CMPSC

311; MATH 220; MATH 230 or MATH 231.

CMPSC 461 – PROGRAMMING LANGUAGE

CONCEPTS (3) Fundamental principles of

computer language design, stressing the

relationship between design and implementation.

In-depth study of a few representative languages.

Prerequisite: CMPSC 221; CMPSC 360.

CMPSC 464 – INTRODUCTION TO THE

THEORY OF COMPUTATION (3) This course

introduces automata, formal languages and

computability, including regular and context-free

languages, and undecidable and NP-complete

problems. Prerequisite: CMPSC 465.

CMPSC 465 – DATA STRUCTURES AND

ALGORITHMS (3) Fundamental concepts of

computer science: data structures, analysis of

algorithms, recursion, trees, sets, graphs, sorting.

Prerequisite: CMPSC 122; CMPSC 360 or MATH

311W.

CMPSC 467 (MATH 467) – FACTORIZATION

AND PRIMALITY TESTING (3) Prime sieves,

factoring, computer numeration systems,

congruences, multiplicative functions, primitive

roots, cryptography, quadratic residues. Students

who have passed MATH 465 may not schedule

this course. Prerequisite: MATH 311W.

CMPSC 471 – INTRODUCTION TO COMPILER

CONSTRUCTION (3) Design and implementation

of compilers; lexical analysis, parsing, semantic

actions, optimization, and code generation.

Prerequisite: CMPSC 461.

CMPSC 473 – OPERATING SYSTEMS DESIGN

AND CONSTRUCTION (3) Design and

implementation of computer operating systems;

management of various system resources:

processes, memory, processors, files,

input/output devices. Prerequisite: CMPSC 311

and CMPEN 331.

CMPSC 475 APPLICATIONS PROGRAMMING

(3) Development of software for devices including

smart phones, tablets, handheld units, and other

general purpose computing platforms.

Prerequisite: CMPSC 221; CMPSC 311 or

CMPSC 312; CMPSC 462 or CMPSC 465

CMPSC 483W – SOFTWARE DESIGN

METHODS (3) Applications of scientific

knowledge and methods in the design and

construction of computer software using

engineering concepts. Prerequisite: CMPSC 221,

CMPSC 465, ENGL 202C.

CMPEN 411 – VLSI DIGITAL CIRCUITS (3)

Basic building blocks of CMOS design, design

rules, chip planning, layout design, system power

and timing, simulation of VLSI structures.

Prerequisite: CMPEN 371 or CMPEN 471; EE

310.

CMPEN 416 (EE 416) – DIGITAL INTEGRATED

CIRCUITS (3) Analyses and design of digital

integrated circuit building blocks, including logic

gates, flip-flops, memory elements, analog

switches, multiplexers, and converters.

Prerequisite: EE 310.

CMPEN 417 (EE 417) – DIGITAL DESIGN

USING FIELD PROGRAMMABLE DEVICES (3)

Field programmable device architectures and

technologies; rapid prototyping using top down

design techniques; quick response systems.

Prerequisite: CMPEN 331.

COURSE OFFERINGS

GRADUATE HANDBOOK – FALL 2022 | CSE

CMPEN 431 – INTRODUCTION TO

COMPUTER ARCHITECTURE (3) Introduction

to computer architecture. Memory hierarchy and

design, CPU design, pipelining, multiprocessor

architecture. Prerequisite: CMPEN 331 or

CMPEN 371.

CMPEN 454 (EE 454) – FUNDAMENTALS OF

COMPUTER VISION (3) Introduction to topics

such as image formation, segmentation, feature

extraction, matching, shape recovery, object

recognition, and dynamic scene analysis.

Prerequisite: MATH 230 or MATH 231; CMPSC

121 or CMPSC 201.

CMPEN 455 (EE 455) – DIGITAL IMAGE

PROCESSING (3) Overview of digital image

processing techniques and their applications,

image sampling, enhancement, restoration, and

analysis; computer projects. Prerequisite: EE 353

or EE 350; CMPSC 121 or CMPSC 201.

CMPEN 472 – MICROPROCESSORS AND

EMBEDDED SYSTEMS (3) Microprocessors:

architecture, design, assembly language,

programming, interfacing, bus structure, and

interface circuits and their use in embedded

systems. Prerequisite: CMPEN 331.

CMPEN 473 – MICROCOMPUTER

LABORATORY (3) Design of digital systems

using microprocessors. Prerequisite: CMPEN

472.

CMPEN 475 – FUNCTIONAL VERIFICATION

(3) Introduce concepts, methods, and technology

for effective functional verification of modern

electronic systems. Prerequisite: CMPEN 331.

CMPEN 482 – COMPUTER ENGINEERING

PROJECT DESIGN (3) Computer engineering

design project, project management,

documentation, reporting, and group and

individual communication skills. Prerequisite: EE

310, EE 353, CMPSC 473, ENGL 202C.

CSE 511. OPERATING SYSTEM DESIGN (3)

Concurrent programming; design of I/O

subsystem, memory management, and user

interface; kernel design; deadlocks, protection

and security; case studies. Prerequisite: CMPSC

473.

CSE 513 – DISTRIBUTED SYSTEMS (3)

Protocol hierarchies; routing and flow control

algorithms; distributed operating systems;

communication and synchronization

mechanisms; resource allocation problems.

Prerequisite: CMPSC 473.

CSE 514. COMPUTER NETWORKS (3) Network

subsystems, ARPANET, SNA, DECNET, network

protocols (physical databank, network, transport,

sessions, presentation, application), routing and

congestion control, network optimization.

Prerequisite: CMPEN 362; EE 353 or EE 350.

CSE 515 (EE 565). RELIABLE DATA

COMMUNICATIONS (3) Discussion of problems

and solutions for ensuring reliable and efficient

communication over wired and wireless links and

data networks. Prerequisites: STAT/MATH 418.

CSE 516. MOBILE NETWORKING (3)

Algorithms, systems and design of mobile

telecommunication voice and data networks.

CSE 517. PERFORMANCE EVALUATION (3)

Tools and techniques for PE, analytical and

simulation models, evaluation of multiprocessors,

multicomputer and LANs, scheduling policies,

case studies.

CSE 521. COMPILER CONSTRUCTION (3)

Design and implementation of compilers.

CSE 530. FUNDAMENTALS OF COMPUTER

ARCHITECTURE (3) Advances in computer

architecture, Pipelining, parallelism and

multiprocessing. Prerequisite: CMPEN 431.

COURSE OFFERINGS

GRADUATE HANDBOOK – FALL 2022 | CSE

CSE 531. PARALLEL PROCESSORS AND

PROCESSING (3) Parallel processor

organization; basic algorithms suitable for such

systems; parallel sorting and interconnection

networks; applications and discussion of specific

processors. Prerequisite: CSE 530.

CSE 532. MULTIPROCESSOR

ARCHITECTURE (3) Fundamental structures of

multiprocessors; interprocess communications;

system deadlocks and protection, scheduling

strategies, and parallel algorithms; example

multiprocessor systems. Prerequisite: CSE 530.

CSE 536. FAULT TOLERANT SYSTEMS (3)

Attributes of fault-tolerant systems and their

definitions; reliability and availability techniques;

maintainability and testing techniques; practice of

reliable system design. Prerequisite: CSE 530.

CSE 539. TOPICS IN COMPUTER

ARCHITECTURE (3) Study of current advanced

issues in design, implementation and

applications of complex computer system.

Prerequisite: CSE 530.

CSE 541. DATABASE SYSTEMS I (3) Data

models and relational database design; database

integrity and concurrency control; distributed

database design and concurrency control; query

optimization. Prerequisite: CMPSC 431W.

CSE 543. COMPUTER SECURITY (3)

Specification and design of secure systems;

security models, architectural issues, verification

and validation, and applications in secure

database management systems. Prerequisite:

CMPSC 461.

CSE 544. SYSTEM SECURITY (3) Review

current research in computer and operating

system security. Prerequisite: CMPEN 362,

CMPSC 473, CSE 543.

CSE 545. NETWORK SECURITY (3) Advanced

methods and technologies for network security.

Prerequisite: CSE 543.

CSE 546. CRYPTOGRAPHY (3) Introduction to

the theory and techniques of modern

cryptography, with emphasis on rigorous analysis

and mathematical foundations. Prerequisite:

CMPSC 465.

CSE 550 (MATH 550). NUMERICAL LINEAR

ALGEBRA (3) Solution of linear systems, sparse

matrix techniques, linear least squares, singular

value decomposition, numerical computation of

eigenvalues and eigenvectors. Prerequisite:

CMPSC 456 or MATH 441.

CSE 551 (MATH 551). NUMERICAL SOLUTION

OF ORDINARY DIFFERENTIAL EQUATIONS

(3) Methods for initial value and boundary value

problems. Convergence and stability analysis,

automatic error control, stiff systems, boundary

value problems. Prerequisite: CMPSC (MATH)

451 or CMPSC (MATH) 456.

CSE 552 (MATH 552). NUMERICAL SOLUTION

OF PARTIAL DIFFERENTIAL EQUATIONS (3)

Finite difference methods for elliptic, parabolic,

and hyperbolic differential equations; solutions

techniques for discretized systems; finite element

methods for elliptic problems. Prerequisite:

CMPSC (MATH) 451 or CMPSC (MATH) 456;

MATH 402 or MATH 404.

CSE 553 (MATH 553). INTRODUCTION TO

APPROXIMATION THEORY (3) Interpolation;

remainder theory; approximation of functions;

error analysis; orthogonal polynomials;

approximation of linear functionals; functional

analysis applied to numerical analysis.

Prerequisite: MATH 401; 3 credits in Computer

Science and Engineering.

CSE 554 (EE 564). ERROR CORRECTING

CODES FOR COMPUTERS AND

COMMUNICATION (3) Block, cyclic and

convolutional codes. Circuits and algorithms for

decoding. Application to reliable communication

and fault-tolerant computing. Prerequisite:

CMPEN 362.

COURSE OFFERINGS

GRADUATE HANDBOOK – FALL 2022 | CSE

CSE 555 (MATH 555). NUMERICAL

OPTIMIZATION TECHNIQUES (3)

Unconstrained and constrained optimization

methods, linear and quadratic programming,

software issues, ellipsoid and Karmarkar’s

algorithm, global optimization, parallelism in

optimization. Prerequisite: CMPSC (MATH) 456.

CSE 556 (MATH 556). FINITE ELEMENT

METHODS (3) Sobolev spaces, variational

formulations of boundary value problems;

piecewise polynomial approximation theory,

convergence and stability, special methods and

applications. Prerequisite: MATH 502, MATH

552.

CSE 557. CONCURRENT MATRIX

COMPUTATION (3) This course discusses

matrix computations on architectures that exploit

concurrency. It will draw upon recent research in

the field. Prerequisites: Either CMPSC 451,

CMPSC 455, CMPSC 450, MATH 451 or MATH

455.

CSE 562. PROBABILISTIC ALGORITHMS (3)

Design and analysis of probabilistic algorithms,

reliability problems, probabilistic complexity

classes, lower bounds. Prerequisite: CSE 565.

CSE 564. COMPLEXITY OF COMBINATORIAL

PROBLEMS (3) NP-completeness theory;

approximation and heuristic techniques; discrete

scheduling; additional complexity classes.

Prerequisite: CSE 565.

CSE 565. ALGORITHM DESIGN AND

ANALYSIS (3) An introduction to algorithmic

design and analysis. Prerequisite: CMPSC 465.

Concurrent: CMPSC 468.

CSE 566 (BMMB 566). Algorithms and Data

Structures in Bioinformatics (3) Covers elegant

algorithmic and data structure techniques

that underpin modern biological data analysis.

Prerequisite: CMPSC 465.

CSE 575. ARCHITECTURE OF ARITHMETIC

PROCESSORS (3) Algorithms and techniques

for designing arithmetic processors; conventional

algorithms and processor design; high-speed

algorithms and resulting architectural structures.

Prerequisite: CMPEN 411.

CSE 577. VLSI SYSTEMS DESIGN (3)

Engineering design of large-scale integrated

circuits, systems, and applications; study of

advanced design techniques, architectures, and

CAD methodologies. Prerequisite: CMPEN 411.

CSE 578. VLSI COMPUTER-AIDED DESIGN

TOOLS (3) VLSI circuit design tools: placement,

routing, extraction, design rule checking, graphic

editors, simulation, verification, minimization,

silicon compilation, test pattern generation.

Prerequisite: CMPEN 411.

CSE 579. TOPICS IN COMPUTER HARDWARE

DESIGN (3) Computer hardware design;

emerging technologies in hardware design; new

challenges for nano-scale VLSI design.

Prerequisite: CMPEN 411 and CMPEN 431.

CSE 583 (EE 552). PATTERN RECOGNITION –

PRINCIPLES AND APPLICATIONS (3)

Decision-theoretic classification, discriminant

functions, pattern processing and feature

selection, syntactic pattern recognition, shape

analysis and recognition.

CSE 584 (STAT 584). Machine Learning: Tools

and Algorithms (3) Computational methods for

modern machine learning models, including

applications to big data and non-differentiable

objective functions.

CSE 585 (EE 555). DIGITAL IMAGE

PROCESSING II (3) Advanced treatment of

image processing techniques; image restoration;

image segmentation, texture, and mathematical

morphology. Prerequisite: CMPEN 455 or EE

455.

COURSE OFFERINGS

GRADUATE HANDBOOK – FALL 2022 | CSE

CSE 586 (EE 554). TOPICS IN COMPUTER

VISION (3) Discussion of recent advances and

current research trends in computer vision

theory, algorithms, and their applications.

Prerequisite: CMPEN 454 or EE 454.

CSE 590. COLLOQUIUM (1-3) Continuing

seminars that consist of a series of individual

lectures by faculty, students, or outside speakers.

CSE 591. RESEARCH EXPERIENCE IN

COMPUTER SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING (1)

Research experience for new doctoral students

in Computer Science and Engineering. Research

is performed in conjunction with another 500-

level CSE course. Concurrent: enrollment in

another 500-level CSE course.

CSE 594. RESEARCH TOPICS (1-15)

Supervised student activities on research

projects identified on an individual or small-group

basis. MS (Non-thesis) and MEng students must

POLICIES AND PROCEDURES – GENERAL INFORMATION

GRADUATE HANDBOOK – FALL 2022 | CSE

Computer Facilities and Their Use

The department of computer science and

engineering maintains 7 specialized computing

labs for graduate/undergraduate instruction and

11 experimental labs for research purposes. The

labs host diverse infrastructures that are

configured specifically to meet curricular and

research goals. All computational resources,

including HPC, storage, visualization, and

virtualized systems, are interconnected with GigE

service to Penn State’s campus backbone. The

campus backbone provides access to Internet,

I2, Lambda Rail, and other high-speed networks.

Penn State’s Information Technology Services

(ITS) provides centralized computing facilities for

many aspects of university life. The student

computing labs at University Park are available to

faculty, staff, and students. There are over fifty

computer labs and classrooms with nearly 3,000

computers in 322 rooms on the University Park

campus, as well as over 1,000 mobile computing

ports that provide users with workstations and

peripherals for Windows, Macintosh, and Unix

platforms.

The labs have any combination of Windows,

Macintosh, or Linux systems. They are equipped

with printers and scanners, as well as more

specialized hardware such as digital cameras

and CD burners. To learn more about ITS

services, please visit their website:

http://its.psu.edu/.

Employment

A student holding a fellowship or scholarship may

not accept employment of any kind for service

beyond that specifically permitted by the

appointment. Graduate assistants may accept

concurrent employment outside the University

only after obtaining permission from the head of

the department providing the assistantship and

from the person in charge of the assistant’s

graduate program. A graduate assistant may not

hold a concurrent appointment with the University

other than a Fellowship Supplement. A foreign

student may not work more than twenty hours a

week, regardless of whether it is on- or off-

campus employment.

Health Insurance

Health insurance is required for all graduate

assistants. ALL international students are

required to have health insurance; coverage

must be purchased for their spouses and

children, as well. For domestic graduate

assistants, health insurance is optional. The

University will pay a percentage of the annual

premium for the Penn State Student Health

Insurance Plan for graduate assistants. The

remaining percentage will be automatically

deducted from the student’s assistantship

stipend. The University will not supplement, nor

will a payroll deduction be made, for insurance

policies other than the Penn State Student

Insurance Plan. A waiver may be obtained by

providing the Student Insurance Office proof of

adequate alternate insurance. Failure to comply

may result in University sanctions. There is a

$100 late fee for students who fail to comply with

the mandatory health insurance requirement on

time. For more information about University

Health Services and student health insurance,

please go to:

http://studentaffairs.psu.edu/health/services/

insurance/

POLICIES AND PROCEDURES – GENERAL INFORMATION

GRADUATE HANDBOOK – FALL 2022 | CSE

Keys

Keys will be issued to an assigned office or

research lab. No key is to be transferred from

one person to another; they must be returned

to the key custodian. All keys must be returned

upon termination. Keys are processed in W209

Westgate Building.

POLICIES AND PROCEDURES – GENERAL INFORMATION

GRADUATE HANDBOOK – FALL 2022 | CSE

Mailboxes

All CSE graduate students are assigned

mailboxes in W366 Westgate Building. The

assignment will be made after the start of

classes; mail will be held for you if it arrives

before the mailbox is available.

Office Assignments

Office assignments are made only to students

holding a fellowship, or a research assistantship.

Offices are reassigned each fall semester and

are not held over the summer session for

students not registered for the summer. TA’s will

have access to space to hold office hours

Parking

Specific regulations govern student vehicle

registration and parking privileges. All students,

regardless of classification, must register their

automobiles, bicycles, and mopeds. Students

must also comply with Pennsylvania provisions,

as well as University provisions, when operating

a vehicle on campus. Parking lots are reserved.

Students may obtain instructions about vehicle

registration, use, and parking directly from the

Parking Office in 1 Eisenhower Parking Deck

(814-865-1436) at University Park and from the

Office of Student Affairs at all other campuses.

Recycling

It is the policy of the University that all faculty,

staff, students and visitors comply with applicable

federal, state, and local laws regarding the

general reduction of specified materials for later

collection and reuse for the purpose of protecting

the environment and reducing the amount of

solid waste deposited to landfills by the

University.

Registration Responsibilities

It is the responsibility of the student, in

consultation with their advisor, to be properly

registered. A student is expected to complete

registration during the officially designated period

and to attend the first meeting of all classes. A

student who fails to complete the process of

registration within the officially designated

registration period will be liable for a late charge.

Smoking Policy

Smoking of any material is prohibited in all

University facilities, at all locations, including

University-owned vehicles.

Standards of Conduct

Graduate students are expected to have learned

the meaning and value of personal honesty and

professional integrity before entering the

Graduate School. Every student is expected to

exhibit and promote the highest ethical and moral

standards. A violation of such standards is

regarded as a serious offense, raising grave

doubt that the student is worthy of continued

membership in the Graduate School community.

Violation of the University Code of Conduct may

result in suspension or dismissal from the

academic program and/or from the Graduate

School. The Code of Conduct behaviors include,

but are not limited to:

1. ABUSE/ENDANGERMENT/HAZING OF A

PERSON: Physically harming or threatening

to harm any person, intentionally or

recklessly causing harm to any person or

reasonable apprehension of such harm or

creating a condition that endangers the

health and safety of self or others, including

through the facilitation of or participation in

any mental or physical hazing activity.

2. SEXUAL MISCONDUCT OR ABUSE: The

University does not tolerate sexual

misconduct or abuse, such as sexual

assault, rape or any other forms of

nonconsensual sexual activity. Sexual

misconduct and abuse can occur between

acquaintances or parties unknown to each

other. Sexual abuse is attempted or actual

unwanted sexual activity, such as sexual

touching and fondling. This includes the

POLICIES AND PROCEDURES – GENERAL INFORMATION

GRADUATE HANDBOOK – FALL 2022 | CSE

touching of an unwilling person's intimate

parts (defined as genitalia, groin, breast or

buttock, or clothing covering them), or forcing

an unwilling person to touch another's

intimate parts. Sexual misconduct includes,

but is not limited to, sexual assault, rape,

forcible sodomy or sexual penetration with an

inanimate object, intercourse without

consent, under conditions of force, threat of

force, fear or when a person is unable to give

consent because of substance abuse,

captivity, sleep or disability (also see Policy

AD-85).

3. HARASSMENT: Harassment is behavior that

is sufficiently severe or pervasive so as to

threaten an individual or substantially

interfere with the individual’s employment,

education or access to University programs,

activities or opportunities, and that would

detrimentally affect a reasonable person

under the same circumstances. Behaviors

that meet the above definition may include,

but are not limited to, the following:

• directing physical or verbal conduct at an

individual because of the individual’s

age, ancestry, color, disability or

handicap, national origin, race, religious

creed, sex, sexual orientation, gender

identity or veteran status (see AD-91);

• subjecting a person or group of persons

to unwanted physical contact or threat of

such;

• engaging in a course of conduct,

including following the person without

proper authority, under circumstances

which demonstrate intent to place the

other person in reasonable fear of bodily

injury or to cause the other person

substantial emotional distress (see AD-

85);

• or harassment of a sexual nature as

described (see AD-91).

4. WEAPONS, FIREARMS, AND PAINTBALL

DEVICES: The possession, storing, carrying,

or use of any weapon, ammunition, or

explosive by any person is prohibited on all

University property except by authorized law

enforcement officers and other persons

specifically authorized by the University. No

person shall possess, carry, or use any

fireworks on University property, except for

those persons authorized by University and

local governments to discharge such

fireworks as part of a public display. Paintball

guns and paintball markers may only be

used on the property of the University in

connection with authorized University

activities and only at approved locations

(also see SY-12).

5. FIRE SAFETY VIOLATIONS: Tampering with

fire or other safety equipment or setting

unauthorized fires.

6. ALCOHOL AND/OR DRUGS: Illegally

possessing, using, distributing,

manufacturing, selling or being under the

influence of alcohol or other drugs. Use,

possession or distribution of beverages

containing alcohol on University property

shall comply with the laws of the

Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and

University Policies and Rules. Note: Anyone,

including those under 21, serving alcohol to

persons under 21 is in violation of both

University regulations and state law.

Excessive consumption occurs when a

person is intoxicated to the degree that the

person may endanger self, other persons, or

property, or annoy persons in the vicinity.

(also see Policies AD-18, AD-33). It is also a

violation a violation of the residence hall

contract for a student to be in the presence

of the presence of the use of illegal drugs or

if under 21 years of age, alcohol, in any

residential area.

7. FALSE INFORMATION: Intentionally

providing false or inaccurate information or

records to University or local authorities.

Providing a false report of an emergency,

University rule and/or Code violation.

Knowingly providing false statements or

testimony during a University investigation or

proceeding.

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GRADUATE HANDBOOK – FALL 2022 | CSE

8. THEFT AND OTHER PROPERTY

OFFENSES: Stealing, vandalizing,

damaging, destroying, or defacing University

property or the property of others.

9. DISRUPTION OF OPERATIONS:

Obstruction or disruption of classes, research

projects, or other activities or programs of the

University; or obstructing access to

University facilities, property, or programs.

Disruption is defined as an action or

combination of actions by one or more

individuals that unreasonably interferes with,

hinders, obstructs, or prevents the operation

of the University or infringes on the rights of

others to freely participate in its programs

and services.

10. VIOLATIONS OF ACADEMIC INTEGRITY:

Academic integrity is the pursuit of scholarly

activity in an open, honest and responsible

manner. Academic integrity is a basic guiding

principle for all academic activity at The

Pennsylvania State University, and all

members of the University community are

expected to act in accordance with this

principle. Consistent with this expectation,

students should act with personal integrity,

respect other students' dignity, rights and

property, and help create and maintain an

environment in which all can succeed

through the fruits of their efforts. Academic

integrity includes a commitment not to

engage in or tolerate acts of falsification,

misrepresentation or deception. Such acts of

dishonesty violate the fundamental ethical

principles of the University community and

compromise the worth of work completed by

others (see Faculty Senate Policy 49-20 and

G-9 Procedures).

11. FAILURE TO COMPLY: Failing to comply

with reasonable directives from University or

other officials when directed to do so. Failure

to provide identification or to report to an

administrative office or, when reasonable

cause exists, failing to leave University-

controlled premises or dangerous situations

when directed to do so by properly

authorized persons, including police and/or

other University staff. This charge may be

added to other charges, e.g., when a student

fails to leave a residence hall during a fire

drill and refuses to leave when directed to do

so by a University official.

12. FORGERY/ALTERATION: Making, using or

possessing any falsified University document

or official record; altering or forging any

University document or record, including

identification, meal or access cards. This

includes but is not limited to; forging (signing

another's name and/or ID number) key

request forms, manufacturing IDs or tickets,

altering permits, misuse of forms (letterhead

stationery, University forms), and keys to

mislead.

13. UNAUTHORIZED ENTRY OR USE:

Unauthorized entry into or use of property or

University facilities including residence halls,

classrooms, offices, and other restricted

facilities. Unauthorized entry or use of

facilities is referred to in the University policy

regarding the rights of individuals and the

rights of the institution. Specifically, policy

refers to an "obligation not to infringe upon

the rights of all members of the campus to

privacy in offices, laboratories and residence

hall rooms, and in the keeping of personal

papers, confidential records and effects,

subject only to the general law and University

regulations."

The University also has the right to control

use and entry into facilities for reasons of

security, safety or protection of property. This

includes closing facilities at specified times. It

should also be recognized that an open or

unlocked door is not an invitation to enter

and use facilities. The same concept applies

to computer entry or misuse, including

violation of any University computer policy

(also see Policy AD-20).

14. DISORDERLY CONDUCT: Engaging in

disorderly, disruptive, lewd or indecent

conduct. The item includes but is not limited

to: inciting or participating in a riot or group

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GRADUATE HANDBOOK – FALL 2022 | CSE

disruption; failing to leave the scene of a riot

or group disruption when instructed by

officials; disruption of programs, classroom

activities or functions and processes of the

University; creating unreasonable noise; or

creating a physically hazardous or physically

offensive condition.

15. VIOLATIONS OF UNIVERSITY

REGULATIONS: Violating written University

policy or regulations contained in any official

publications, administrative announcements,

contracts and/or postings.

16. VIOLATION OF LAW: When it is established

that a student has violated federal, state, or

local law and the violation of law affects a

Substantial University Interest, the student

may be charged within the Code of Conduct

for Violation of Law.

Stipends

All graduate appointees are paid monthly. Direct

salary deposits are mandatory and a condition of

hire.

Background Checks

All employees of the University, including

Graduate Assistants and wage payroll graders

and learning assistants must have a background

check completed by the University. This is a

requirement for employment. There is no cost to

the student for this check. The student may not

begin work until the background check is

completed.

Travel

Travel to professional meetings for graduate

students in the final year of their Ph.D. program

may be partially supported by the department.

The student should make the travel request to

the department head. The maximum level of

support will be $500 during the last academic

year of residency of the student. Please see

Amy Hasan in W311 Westgate Building for more

information about department travel funds for

graduate students.

All student travel on University business and paid

from University funds is subject to strict

mandatory policies. BEFORE travel, students

must discuss travel policies with members of our

Finance Office (Annie Royer or Crystal Rearick).

GRADUATE HANDBOOK – FALL 2022 | CSE

PERSONNEL SUPPORT

Administrative Staff

Erin Ammerman

Staff Assistant to the Department Head

Maintains department head’s calendar; assist

with faculty recruiting; schedules committee

meetings

Ph: 814-863-1242 | Email: [email protected]

Office: W209M Westgate Building

Katelen Bair

Staff Assistant-Facilities

Maintain and assign keys; coordinate colloquia;

parking chairperson, facilities coordinator.

Ph: 814-867-4436 | Email: kdb18@psu.edu

Office: W360 Westgate Building

Amanda Collins

Undergraduate Staff Assistant

-Students Last Name A-M

Petitions (Course Substitutions), Degree Audits,

Order Faculty cap and gowns, Final Exam

Scheduling, Add Instructors and TA’s to courses

in LionPath and add Workflow %, Approves

emails to be sent out through the UGRD LIST

SERV, Commencement questions, Scholarships,

Tutoring information, Enrollment questions,

Foreign Language Requirement questions, Pre-

req Override questions, Internship/Research

questions.

Ph: 814-865-9191 | Email: arc88@psu.edu

Office: W209L Westgate Building

…..

Budget Staff Assistant

Part-time payroll coordinator, travel

reimbursements, purchasing cards, coordinates

office supplies and paper supply for labs, orders

equipment

Ph: 814-865-7320 | Email: _@psu.edu

Office: W209C Westgate Building

Diane Hockenberry

Manager, Department Administrative

Operations; Administrative Coordinator

Budget planning, reporting and development of

departmental budgets, and oversees research

grant budgets and contract management.

Supervisor of administrative support staff;

oversees scholarship coordination.

Ph: 814-863-2071 | Email: dtb115@psu.edu

Office: W209D Westgate Building

Heidi Hockenberry

Staff Assistant for Undergraduate Support

First point of contact in the curricular affairs office

and front desk to assist students and faculty,

answer telephone, create departmental technical

reports, process UPS mailings, coordinates

printing and duplication projects for faculty.

Assists with course and classroom scheduling

and processes drop/adds for students. Assists

with departmental event planning.

Ph: 814-863-2071 | Email: [email protected]du

Office: W209D Westgate Building

Brian Moore

Staff assistant to the graduate program officer,

Staff assistant for the PhD program

Maintain and secure graduate student records;

process graduate appointments and all aspects

of graduate student support. Coordinates

qualifying exams for doctoral candidates and

AEOCPT testing. Runs graduate degree audits;

Assist with financial matters related Doctoral

Students.

Ph: 814-863-0897 | Email: [email protected]u

Office: W209H Westgate Building

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Megan Peters

PhD Program Coordinator

Serves graduate students, admissions,

graduation, process drop/adds, grad applications,

and supporting documents; sets up PhD

committees & schedules PhD exams; organizes

Grad events; maintains graduate records;

coordinates grad course offerings; tracks and

certify records

Ph: 814-865-1582 | Email: mbp5460@psu.edu

Office: W209K Westgate Building

Crystal Rearick

Financial Coordinator

Faculty budget support; manages and

coordinates finances for the Department; handles

Department Accounts; Assists faculty with Grant

financials

Ph: 814-865-4007 | Email: cdf117@psu.edu

Office: W209B Westgate Building

Annie Royer

Financial/Budget Staff Assistant

Reconciliation of p-card purchases and travel;

ordering supplies, computer equipment, software,

etc. for faculty, instructors and CSE staff.

Ph: 814-865-9188 | Email: acr13@psu.edu

Office: W209C Westgate Building

Mandi Stamm

Grants and Award Generalist

Updates and maintains vitaes for all faculty;

promotion and tenure; prepares annual self-

activity reports for all faculty, prepares budgets

and assists with grant submissions, prepares

documents for student fellowship/grant

submissions.

Ph: 814-865-7152 | Email: ajm319@psu.edu

Office: W373 Westgate Building

Louise Troxell

Masters Program Coordinator

Maintain and secure graduate student records;

tracks SARI requirements (research integrity).

Runs graduate degree audits.

Ph: 814-865-9187 | Email: slt29@psu.edu

Office: W309 Westgate Building

IT Staff

John Domico

Assistant director of information systems

Budget planning for academic and research

systems, direction of systems staff and CSE’s

systems, liaison for collaborative systems

projects. Strategize and plan deployment of

emerging technologies that support research and

curriculum.

Ph: 814-865-3757 | Email: jad230@psu.edu

Office: W114 Westgate Building

Adam McMillen

Ph: 814-863-5121 | Email: [email protected]du

Office: W116 Westgate Building

Austin Powell

Ph: 814-865-9239 | Email: app87@psu.edu

Office: W111 Westgate Building

Eric Prescott

Systems Administrator III

Responsible for operations and support of

research equipment; administrative support of

departmental Linux machines.

Ph: 814-863-1142 | Email: [email protected]du

Office: W115 Westgate Building

Mark Tamminga

Senior Systems Administrator

Responsible for enterprise storage, virtualization

and Microsoft OS applications. His work supports

research, teaching, and administrative systems.

Ph: 814-867-1780 | Email: [email protected]u

Office: W113 Westgate Building

GRADUATE HANDBOOK – FALL 2022 | CSE

Tony Vallalla

Senior Systems Analyst

Responsible for the operation of all systems that

use Microsoft operating systems and

applications. His work supports research,

teaching, and administrative systems.

Ph: 814-865-1040 | Email: acv2@psu.edu

Office: W122 Westgate Building

GRADUATE HANDBOOK – FALL 2022 | CSE

APPENDIX I

GRADUATE HANDBOOK – FALL 2022 | CSE

GENERAL STANDARDS OF PROFESSIONAL ETHICS

PURPOSE:

To set forth statements of general standards of professional ethics to serve as a reminder of the variety of obligations assumed by all

members of the academic community

STATEMENTS:

I. Professors, guided by a deep conviction of the worth and dignity of the advancement of knowledge, recognize the special

responsibilities placed upon them. Their primary responsibility to their respective subjects is to seek and to state the truth

as they see it. To this end, they devote their energies to developing and improving their scholarly competence. They accept

the obligation to exercise critical self-discipline and judgment in using, extending, and transmitting knowledge. They practice

intellectual honesty. Although they may follow subsidiary interests, these interests must never seriously hamper or

compromise their freedom of inquiry.

II. As teachers, professors encourage the free pursuit of learning in their students. They hold before their students the best

scholarly standards of their respective disciplines. They demonstrate respect for the student as an individual, and adhere

to their proper role as intellectual guides and counselors. They make every reasonable effort to foster honest academic

conduct and to assure that their evaluations of students reflect the students’ true merit. They respect the confidential nature

of the relationship between professor and student. They avoid any exploitation of students for private advantage and

acknowledge significant assistance from them. They protect their students’ academic freedom.

III. As researchers/scholars, professors recognize that their goal is to discover, develop, and communicate new understanding.

This goal is rarely achieved without making use of knowledge gained from others. Researchers must always exercise

gracious and appropriate recognition of published work in the literature, conversations with colleagues, and the efforts of

students who work under the researchers’ guidance. They must be scrupulous in presentation of their own data; it must be

verifiable as a result of the highest standards in data gathering techniques. They must be extremely careful in the use of

data reported by others, especially if used in the formation of broad comparative or contradictory hypotheses, since they

may not know of any compromising circumstances in such data gathering. They must be comprehensive in consideration

of work with human subjects; they must have thoroughly researched all procedures, must have informed individuals involved

of all aspects of their cooperation, and must report all responses accurately, both positive and negative results. As open-

minded researchers, when evaluating the work of others, they must recognize the responsibility to allow publication of

theories or experiments that may contradict their own findings, as only by free inquiry and dissemination of all facts will the

fruits of the labor of the whole community be allowed to mature.

IV. As colleagues, professors have obligations that derive from common membership in the community of scholars. They

respect and defend the free inquiry of their associates. In the exchange of criticism and ideas they show due respect for

the opinions of others. They acknowledge their academic debts and strive to be objective in their professional judgment of

colleagues. They accept their share of faculty responsibilities for the governance of their institution.

V. As members of their institution, professors seek above all to be effective teachers and scholars. Although they observe the

stated regulations of the institution, provided the regulations do not contravene academic freedom, they maintain their rights

to criticize and seek revision. They determine the amount and character of the work they do outside their institution with

due regard to their paramount responsibilities within it. When considering the interruption or termination of their service,

they recognize the effect of this decision upon the programs of the institution and give due notice of their intentions.

VI. As members of the community, professors have the rights and obligations of all citizens. They measure the urgency of

these obligations in the light of their responsibilities to their respective subjects, to their students, to their profession, and to

their institution. When they speak or act as private persons they avoid creating the impression that they speak or act for

their respective colleges or the University. As citizens engaged in a profession that depends upon freedom for its health

and integrity, professors have an articular obligation to promote conditions of free inquiry and to further public understanding

of academic freedom.

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All tangible assets (including equipment, software, audio-visual material, theatrical costumes, etc.) owned, leased or operated by the

University are to be used in the conduct of University programs and activities at University owned or leased locations.

University departments may offer services only to other University departments and only for University-related work. Permitted work

includes, instructional work for credit and non-credit courses, conferences, workshops, institutes, training programs, etc.; support for

faculty research, publications, presentations, and outreach activities; services for recognized student organizations; and services for

other organized student extramural activities.

University tangible assets and services may not be used for personal gain, by employees for purposes outside the scope of their

employment (see also Policy HR35), or by students beyond their instructional requirements.

CROSS REFERENCES—Additional Policies to refer to would include:

RA10 - Handling Inquiries/Investigations into Questions of Ethics in Research and in Other Scholarly Activities,

IP02 - Coauthorship of Scholarly Reports, Papers and Publications (Formerly RA13),

HR35 - Public Service by Members of the Faculty and Staff,

HR91 - Conflict of Interest, and

RP03 - Use of Human Subjects in Research.

ADDRESSING ALLEGATIONS OF RESEARCH MISCONDUCT

(FORMERLY HANDLING INQUIRIES/INVESTIGATIONS INTO QUESTIONS OF ETHICS IN RESEARCH

AND IN OTHER SCHOLARLY ACTIVITIES)

PURPOSE:

To establish policy and procedures to address allegations of research misconduct.

PREAMBLE:

Public trust in the integrity and ethical behavior of scholars is essential if research and other scholarly activities are to play their proper

role in the University and in society. The maintenance of high ethical standards is a central and critical responsibility of faculty and

administrators of academic institutions. Policy AD47 sets forth statements of general standards of professional ethics within the

academic community.

POLICY:

Research misconduct is prohibited. Allegations of research misconduct shall be addressed in accordance with this policy and

applicable regulations.

Faculty and staff members and students are required to comply with this policy and applicable regulations. Violation of this policy by a

member of the faculty or staff, or a student, may subject the faculty or staff member or student to imposition of disciplinary sanctions,

including, but not limited to, dismissal from employment or enrollment.

DEFINITIONS:

Research Misconduct is defined as fabrication, falsification, or plagiarism in proposing, performing, or reviewing research, or in

reporting research results. It does not include honest error or differences of opinion.

Fabrication is defined as making up data or results and recording or reporting them.

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Falsification is defined as manipulating research materials, equipment, or processes, or changing or omitting data or results such that

the research is not accurately represented in the research record.

Plagiarism is defined as the appropriation of another person's ideas, processes, results, or words without giving appropriate credit.

Allegation is defined as any oral or written disclosure of possible research misconduct made to an institutional official.

Inquiry is defined as information-gathering and preliminary fact-finding to determine whether an allegation or apparent instance of

research misconduct warrants an investigation.

Investigation is defined as a formal examination and evaluation of relevant facts to determine whether research misconduct has taken

place or, if research misconduct has already been confirmed, to assess its extent and consequences and determine appropriate action.

Budget Executive - Those individuals who are responsible to the President, Executive Vice President and Provost, or a Vice President

for a section of the budget. These individuals are normally the President's administrative staff, academic Deans, and Chancellors. The

budget executive approves transactions at the upper dollar levels and specified categories, affirming the programmatic need for the

action and that the action is appropriate within University Policies and Guidelines.

Budget Administrator - Those individuals designated by the Budget Executive as being responsible for operating and controlling

specific budget areas within the Budget Executive's administrative area. These individuals approve documents in their own name within

the limits of the authorization policy stated below. This group normally includes associate deans, division heads, and department

heads. The budget administrator approves transactions at the specified dollar levels and categories, affirming the programmatic need

for the action and that the action is appropriate within University Policies and Guidelines.

Research Integrity Officer means the person appointed by the Vice President for Research to assume the responsibilities assigned to

the Research Integrity Officer under this policy and applicable regulations.

GENERAL POLICY AND PRINCIPLES:

I. Responsibility to Report Possible Research Misconduct

Anyone having reason to believe that a member of the faculty, staff or student body has engaged in research misconduct has a

responsibility to report pertinent facts in accordance with this policy. The person may discuss the situation with a Budget

Administrator or Budget Executive or the Research Integrity Officer or may report the facts through other established reporting

procedures, such as the University’s ethics hotline. A Budget Administrator or Budget Executive who receives information about

possible research misconduct shall inform the Research Integrity Officer. If the circumstances described do not meet the definition

of research misconduct, the Research Integrity Officer may refer the individual or allegation to other offices or officials with

responsibility for resolving the problem.

II. Confidentiality

The Research Integrity Officer shall endeavor to protect the confidentiality of respondents and complainants, and of research

subjects identifiable from research records or evidence, by limiting disclosure to those who need to know in order to carry out a

thorough, competent, objective, and fair research misconduct proceeding or as required by law.

III. Interim Administrative Actions and Notifying Federal Agencies of Special Circumstances

Throughout the research misconduct proceeding, the Research Integrity Officer will ensure that warranted interim actions are

taken to protect public health, sponsor funds and equipment, and the integrity of the research process, and to ensure that the

purposes of the research activity and the financial assistance are carried out. Such actions may include, for example, additional

GRADUATE HANDBOOK – FALL 2022 | CSE

monitoring of the research process and the handling of federal funds and equipment, reassignment of personnel or of responsibility

for handling federal funds and equipment, additional review of research data and results, and delay in publication.

To the extent required by regulation or by the sponsor, the Research Integrity Officer shall, at any time during a research

misconduct proceeding, notify appropriate federal or other officials of facts that may be relevant to protect public health, federal or

other sponsor funds and equipment, and the integrity of the sponsor-supported research process and shall make other interim

reports required by research sponsors.

Regulations applicable to research misconduct allegations under U.S. Public Health Service (“PHS”) jurisdiction require immediate notification

of the PHS Office of Research Integrity (“ORI”) if the University has reason to believe that any of the following conditions exist: (1) health or

safety of the public is at risk, including an immediate need to protect human or animal subjects; (2) U.S. Department of Health and Human

Services (“HHS”) resources or interests are threatened; (3) research activities should be suspended; (4) there is a reasonable indication of

possible violations of civil or criminal law; (5) federal action is required to protect the interests of those involved in the research misconduct

proceeding; (6) the University believes the research misconduct proceeding may be made public prematurely (so that HHS may take

appropriate steps to safeguard evidence and protect the rights of those involved); or (7) the research community or public should be informed.

42 C.F.R. 93.318. Regulations applicable to research misconduct allegations under National Science Foundation (“NSF”) jurisdiction require

prompt notification of the NSF Office of Inspector General (“NSF OIG”) should the University become aware during an Inquiry or Investigation

that: (1) Public health or safety is at risk; (2) NSF’s resources, reputation, or other interests need protecting; (3) There is reasonable indication

of possible violations of civil or criminal law; (4) Research activities should be suspended; (5) Federal action may be needed to protect the

interests of a subject of the Investigation or of others potentially affected; or (6) The scientific community or the public should be informed. 45

C.F.R. 689.4(c).

PROCEDURE:

I.Conducting the Inquiry

A. Assessment of Allegations

As soon as practicable after receiving an allegation of research misconduct, the Research Integrity Officer will assess

the allegation to determine whether it (1) falls within the definition of research misconduct in this Policy and any

applicable federal regulations, and (2) is sufficiently credible and specific so that potential evidence of research

misconduct may be identified. If both of these criteria are met, an Inquiry will be conducted unless the Research

Integrity Officer determines that unusual circumstances exist that make an inquiry infeasible or otherwise not

warranted (such as that the conduct at issue is too old; see 42 CFR 93.105).

B. Notice to Respondent

At the time of or before beginning an Inquiry, the Research Integrity Officer shall make a good faith effort to notify the

respondent in writing of the decision to conduct an Inquiry. If the Inquiry subsequently identifies additional

respondents, they shall also be notified in writing.

C. Sequestration of the Research Records

On or before the date on which the respondent is notified, or the Inquiry begins, whichever is earlier, the Research

Integrity Officer shall take all reasonable and practical steps to obtain custody of all the research records and

evidence needed to conduct the research misconduct proceeding, inventory the records and evidence, and

sequester them in a secure manner. Where the research records or evidence encompass scientific instruments

shared by a number of users, custody may be limited to copies of the data or evidence on such instruments, so long

as those copies have evidentiary value substantially equivalent to that of the instruments.

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D. Appointment of the Inquiry Committee

The Research Integrity Officer is responsible for conducting, or designating others to conduct, the Inquiry.

In cases

where the allegations and apparent evidence are straightforward, the Research Integrity Officer may choose to

conduct the Inquiry directly or designate another qualified individual, referred to as the inquiry official, to do so. The

inquiry official shall not have unresolved personal, professional, or financial conflicts of interest in relation to the

Inquiry and should have appropriate scientific expertise to evaluate the evidence and issues related to the allegation

and conduct the Inquiry.

Inquiry or Investigation that: (1) Public health or safety is at risk; (2) NSF’s resources, reputation, or other

interests need protecting; (3) There is reasonable indication of possible violations of civil or criminal law; (4)

Research activities should be suspended; (5) Federal action may be needed to protect the interests of a

subject of the Investigation or of others potentially affected; or (6) The scientific community or the public

should be informed. 45 C.F.R. 689.4(c).

In complex cases, the Research Integrity Officer, in consultation with other University officials, as appropriate, will

normally appoint a committee of three or more persons, including a committee chair, to conduct the Inquiry. Where

warranted, the Research Integrity Officer may determine that a smaller or larger committee is appropriate. The

members of the inquiry committee shall consist of individuals who do not have unresolved personal, professional, or

financial conflicts of interest in relation to the Inquiry and should include individuals with the appropriate scientific

expertise to evaluate the evidence and issues related to the allegation and conduct the Inquiry. When necessary to

secure expertise or to avoid conflicts of interest, the Research Integrity Officer may select committee members from

outside the University.

The Research Integrity Officer, in consultation with the inquiry committee, will determine whether additional experts

are needed to provide special expertise to the inquiry committee regarding the analysis of specific evidence. If

experts are utilized, their role will be advisory to the inquiry committee.

The respondent shall have an opportunity to object to the inquiry official or a proposed member of the inquiry

committee based upon a personal, professional, or financial conflict of interest, by submitting written objections to the

Research Integrity Officer no more than 10 days following notification of the proposed inquiry official or committee

membership. The Research Integrity Officer makes the final determination as to whether a conflict exists.

E. Charge to the Inquiry Committee

The Research Integrity Officer will prepare a charge to the inquiry official or inquiry committee that: (1) sets forth the

time for completion of the Inquiry; (2) describes the allegations and any related issues identified during the allegation

assessment; (3) states that the purpose of the Inquiry is to conduct an initial review of the evidence to determine

whether an Investigation is warranted, not to determine whether research misconduct definitely occurred or who was

responsible; (4) states the criteria for determining that an Investigation is warranted; and (5) states that the inquiry

official or inquiry committee is responsible for preparing or directing the preparation of a written report of the Inquiry

that meets the requirements of Section V of this Policy.

The Research Integrity Officer may choose to meet with the inquiry official or inquiry committee to review the charge,

discuss the allegations, discuss the appropriate procedures for conducting the Inquiry, assist the inquiry official or

committee with organizing plans for the Inquiry, and answer any questions raised by the inquiry official or committee.

The Research Integrity Officer or his or her designee will be available throughout the Inquiry to advise the inquiry

official or inquiry committee as needed.

GRADUATE HANDBOOK – FALL 2022 | CSE

F. Inquiry Process

The purpose of the Inquiry is to conduct an initial review of the available evidence to determine whether to conduct

an Investigation. The purpose of the Inquiry is not to decide whether research misconduct definitely occurred,

determine who committed the research misconduct or conduct exhaustive interviews and analysis. If interviews are

conducted as part of the Inquiry, each interview shall be recorded or transcribed, and the recording or transcript shall

be provided to the interviewee for correction and shall be included, with any written corrections, in the record of the

Inquiry.

After evaluation of the evidence, the inquiry official or inquiry committee will consult with the

Research Integrity Officer and decide whether to recommend that an Investigation is warranted. An Investigation is

warranted if: (1) there is a reasonable basis for concluding that the allegation falls within the definition of research

misconduct in this Policy and (2) preliminary information-gathering and preliminary fact-finding from the Inquiry

indicate that the allegation may have substance.

If the respondent admits research misconduct, a determination of misconduct may be made at or before the Inquiry

stage if all relevant issues are resolved. In that case, the Research Integrity Officer, in consultation with the Vice

President for Research and other appropriate University officials, shall promptly consult with any appropriate federal

agencies to determine the next steps that should be taken.

G. Time for Completion

The Inquiry, including preparation of the final inquiry report and the decision of the Vice President for Research on

whether an Investigation is warranted, must be completed within 60 days of its initiation unless the Research Integrity

Officer determines that circumstances warrant a longer period. If the Inquiry takes longer than 60 days, and the

Research Integrity Officer approves an extension, the Inquiry record shall include documentation of the reasons for

exceeding the 60-day period.

II.The Inquiry Report

A. Elements of the Inquiry Report

A written inquiry report shall be prepared that includes the following information: (1) the name and position of the

respondent; (2) a description of the allegations of research misconduct; (3) pertinent federal agency support,

including, for example, grant numbers, grant applications, contracts, and publications listing such support; (4) the

basis for recommending or not recommending that the allegations warrant an Investigation; and (5) any written

comments on the draft report by the respondent or the complainant.

The inquiry report should also include: the names and titles of the inquiry official or committee members and experts

who conducted the Inquiry; a summary of the inquiry process used; a list of the research records reviewed; and

whether any other actions should be taken if an Investigation is not recommended. The inquiry report shall either be

signed by the inquiry official or by each member of the inquiry committee or shall include other written evidence of

each person’s concurrence or non-concurrence with the findings and conclusions of the Inquiry.

B. Opportunity to Comment on the Inquiry Report

The Research Integrity Officer shall provide the respondent with a copy of the draft inquiry report and, concurrently,

with a copy of any applicable federal research misconduct policy. The respondent shall be provided with an

opportunity to review and comment on the inquiry report. Any comments from the respondent must be in writing and

received within 10 days of his/her receipt of the inquiry report and will be attached to the report. Based on the

GRADUATE HANDBOOK – FALL 2022 | CSE

comments, the inquiry committee may revise the draft report as appropriate and prepare it in final form. The

Research Integrity Officer will deliver the final report to the Vice President for Research.

The Research Integrity Officer may provide the complainant with relevant portions of the inquiry report for comment.

Any comments from the complainant must be in writing and received within 10 days of his/her receipt of the inquiry

report.

C. Decision and Notification

1. Decision by the Vice President for Research

The Research Integrity Officer will transmit the final inquiry report and any written comments to the Vice

President for Research, who will determine in writing whether an Investigation is warranted. The Inquiry is

complete when the Vice President for Research makes this determination.

2. Notice to Respondent and Complainant

The Research Integrity Officer shall notify the respondent whether the Inquiry found that an Investigation is

warranted. The notice shall include a copy of the inquiry report and include a copy of or refer to this Policy

and any applicable federal research misconduct policy.

3. Notice to Applicable Sponsor or Federal Agency

The Research Integrity Officer shall provide to applicable sponsors or federal agencies any required reports

regarding the Inquiry and decision to initiate an Investigation. For cases involving ORI jurisdiction, within 30

days of the Vice President for Research’s decision that an Investigation is warranted, but not later than the

date the Investigation begins, the Research Integrity Officer shall provide ORI with the Vice President for

Research’s written decision and a copy of the inquiry report. The Research Integrity Officer will also notify

University officials who need to know of the Vice President for Research’s decision.

4. Documentation of Decision Not to Investigate

If the Vice President for Research decides that an Investigation is not warranted, the Research Integrity

Officer shall secure and maintain, for seven years after the termination of the Inquiry, sufficiently detailed

documentation of the Inquiry to permit a later assessment by supporting federal agencies of the reasons

why an Investigation was not conducted. These documents shall be provided to authorized federal

personnel upon request.

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III.Conducting the Investigation

A. Initiation and Purpose

The Investigation shall begin within 30 days after the Vice President for Research’s determination

that an Investigation is warranted. The purpose of the Investigation is to develop a factual record

by exploring the allegations in detail and examining the evidence in depth, leading to findings on

whether research misconduct has been committed, by whom, and to what extent. The Investigation

will also determine whether there are additional instances of possible research misconduct that

would justify broadening the scope beyond the initial allegations. The findings of the Investigation

shall be set forth in an investigation report.

B. Notice to Respondent

Within a reasonable time after determining that an Investigation is warranted, but before the

Investigation begins, the Research Integrity Officer shall notify the respondent in writing of the

allegations to be investigated. If allegations not addressed during the Inquiry or in the initial notice

of the Investigation are pursued, the Research Integrity Officer shall give the respondent written

notice of any such new allegations.

C. Sequestration of the Research Records

Before or at the time the University notifies the respondent of the Investigation, the Research

Integrity Officer shall take all reasonable and practical steps to obtain custody of and sequester in a

secure manner all research records and evidence needed to conduct the research misconduct

proceeding that were not previously sequestered during the Inquiry. Where the research records or

evidence encompass scientific instruments shared by a number of users, custody may be limited to

copies of the data or evidence on such instruments, so long as those copies are substantially

equivalent, in evidentiary value, to the instruments. If additional items become known or relevant

during the Investigation, the Research Integrity Officer shall take reasonable and practical steps to

obtain custody of those records.

D. Appointment of the Investigation Committee

As soon as practicable after the Vice President for Research determines that an investigation is

warranted, the Research Integrity Officer, in consultation with other University officials, as

appropriate, will appoint an investigation committee and committee chair, which will conduct the

Investigation.

The investigation committee shall consist of individuals who did not serve on the inquiry committee

and who do not have unresolved personal, professional, or financial conflicts of interest in relation

to the Investigation. Investigation committee members should have appropriate scientific expertise

to evaluate the evidence and issues related to the allegation, interview the respondent and

complainant, and conduct the Investigation. When necessary to secure expertise or to avoid

conflicts of interest, the Research Integrity Officer may select committee members from outside the

University. The Research Integrity Officer may not serve as a member of the investigation

committee.

The respondent shall have an opportunity to object to proposed members of the investigation

committee based upon personal, professional or financial conflict of interest, by submitting written

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objections to the Research Integrity Officer no more than 10 days following notification regarding

the committee membership. The Research Integrity Officer makes the final determination as to

whether a conflict exists.

E. Charge to the Investigation Committee

The Research Integrity Officer will define the subject matter of the Investigation in a written charge

to the investigation committee that: (1) describes the allegations and related issues identified

during the Inquiry; (2) identifies the respondent; (3) informs the investigation committee that it must

conduct the Investigation as prescribed in this Policy; (4) defines research misconduct; (5) informs

the investigation committee that it must evaluate the evidence and testimony to determine whether,

based on a preponderance of the evidence, research misconduct occurred and, if so, the type and

extent and who was responsible; and (6) informs the investigation committee that it must prepare

or direct the preparation of a written investigation report that meets the requirements of Section

VII.A.

The Research Integrity Officer may choose to meet with the investigation committee to review the

charge, the inquiry report, and prescribed procedures and standards for the conduct of the

Investigation, including the necessity for confidentiality and for developing a specific Investigation

plan.

The investigation committee shall be provided with a copy of this Policy and any applicable federal

research misconduct policy. The Research Integrity Officer or designee will ordinarily be available

throughout the Investigation to advise the investigation committee as needed.

F. Investigation Process

The investigation committee and the Research Integrity Officer shall:

1. Use diligent efforts to ensure that the Investigation is thorough and sufficiently

documented and includes examination of all research records and evidence relevant to

reaching a decision on the merits of each allegation;

2. Take reasonable steps to ensure an impartial and unbiased Investigation to the maximum

extent practical, including participation of persons with appropriate scientific expertise who

do not have unresolved personal, professional, or financial conflicts of interest with those

involved with the Inquiry or Investigation;

3. Interview each respondent, complainant, and any other available person who has been

reasonably identified as having information regarding any relevant aspects of the

Investigation, including witnesses identified by the respondent, and record and transcribe

each interview, provide the recording or transcript to the interviewee for correction, and

include the recording or transcript, and any written corrections, in the record of the

Investigation; and

4. Pursue diligently all significant issues and leads discovered that are determined relevant

to the Investigation, including any evidence of additional instances of possible research

misconduct, and continue the Investigation to completion.

G. Standard for Making a Finding of Research Misconduct

In order to make a finding of research misconduct, the investigation committee must find by a

preponderance of the evidence that: (1) research misconduct occurred, as defined in this Policy or

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applicable federal agency policy; (2) the research misconduct is a significant departure from

accepted practices of the relevant research community; and (3) the respondent committed the

research misconduct intentionally, knowingly, or recklessly.

The Research Integrity Officer will advise the investigation committee of any additional applicable

regulatory standards for making a finding of research misconduct. (See, for example, 42 CFR

93.106.)

H. Time for Completion

The Investigation shall ordinarily be completed within 120 days of its initiation, including conducting

the Investigation, preparing the report of findings, providing the draft report for comment, and

sending the final report to any applicable federal agency. However, if the Research Integrity Officer

determines that the Investigation will not be completed within the 120-day period, or as requested

by the applicable agency, he/she shall submit to the applicable agency, or if no agency is involved,

to the Vice President for Research, a written request for an extension setting forth the reasons for

the delay.

IV.The Investigation Report

A. Elements of the Investigation Report

The investigation committee and the Research Integrity Officer are responsible for preparing a written investigation

report which shall: (1) describe the nature of the allegation of research misconduct; (2) describe and document any

federal or private funding, including, for example, any grant numbers, grant applications, contracts, and publications

listing any such support; (3) describe the specific allegations of research misconduct considered in the Investigation;

(4) include a copy of this Policy; and (5) identify and summarize the research records and evidence reviewed and

identify any evidence taken into custody but not reviewed.

The report shall also include a statement of findings for each separate allegation of research misconduct identified

during the Investigation. Each statement of findings shall provide a decision as to whether misconduct did or did not

occur, and if so --

(1) Identify whether the research misconduct was:

a. falsification, fabrication, or plagiarism,

b. a significant departure from accepted practices of the relevant research

community, and

c. committed intentionally, knowingly, or recklessly;

(2) Summarize the facts and the analysis that support the conclusion and consider the merits of any reasonable

explanation by the respondent;

(3) Identify specifically any pertinent federal support or proposals (reports to ORI shall include current support from,

and known applications or proposals for support to, PHS as well as other federal agencies);

(4) Identify whether publications need correction or retraction; and

(5) Identify the person(s) responsible for the misconduct.

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The investigation report shall either be signed by each member of the investigation committee or shall include other

written evidence of each member’s concurrence or non-concurrence with the findings and conclusions of the

Investigation.

B. Comments on the Draft Investigation Report and Access to Evidence

1. Respondent

The Research Integrity Officer shall provide the respondent with a copy of the draft investigation report

for comment, and shall provide the respondent, concurrently, with a copy of, or supervised access to,

the evidence on which the report is based. The respondent shall be allowed 30 days to review the draft

report and submit written comments to the Research Integrity Officer. The respondent's comments shall

be taken into consideration when preparing the final investigation report and shall be attached to the

final report.

2. Complainant

The Research Integrity Officer may provide the complainant with a copy of the draft investigation report,

or relevant portions of it, for comment. If provided with a copy of the report, the complainant’s

comments must be in writing and submitted within 30 days of the date on which he/she received the

draft report. Comments received from the complainant shall be taken into consideration in preparing the

final investigation report and shall be attached to the final report.

3. Confidentiality

In distributing the draft report, or portions thereof, to the respondent or complainant, the Research

Integrity Officer will inform the recipient of the confidentiality under which the draft report is made

available and may establish reasonable conditions to ensure such confidentiality. For example, the

Research Integrity Officer may require that the recipient sign a confidentiality agreement.

C. Decision by the Vice President for Research

The Research Integrity Officer will assist the investigation committee in finalizing the draft investigation report,

including ensuring that the respondent’s and, in appropriate cases, the complainant’s written comments are included

and considered. The Research Integrity Officer will transmit the final investigation report to the Vice President for

Research, who will determine in writing: (1) whether the University accepts the Investigation’s findings; and (2) the

appropriate internal actions to be taken or recommended in response to the accepted findings of research

misconduct. If the Vice President for Research’s determination varies from the findings of the investigation

committee, the Vice President for Research will, as part of his/her written determination, explain in detail the basis for

rendering a decision different from the findings of the investigation committee. Alternatively, the Vice President for

Research may return the report to the investigation committee with a request for further fact-finding or analysis.

When a final decision on the case has been reached, the Research Integrity Officer will normally notify both the

respondent and the complainant in writing. The Research Integrity Officer is also responsible for ensuring compliance

with all notification requirements of funding or sponsoring agencies. The Vice President for Research in consultation

as appropriate with the Research Integrity Officer and other University officials will determine whether law

enforcement agencies, professional societies, professional licensing boards, editors of journals in which falsified

reports may have been published, collaborators of the respondent in the work, or other relevant parties should be

notified of the outcome of the case.

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D. Notice to Applicable Federal Agencies of University Findings and Actions

Unless an extension has been granted, within 120 days of beginning the Investigation, the Research Integrity Officer

shall submit to any applicable federal agency a copy of the final investigation report with attachments; a statement of

whether the University accepts the findings of the investigation report; a statement of whether the University found

research misconduct and, if so, who committed the misconduct; and, if required by the agency, a description of any

pending or completed administrative actions against the respondent.

E. Maintaining Records for Review by Federal Agencies

The Research Integrity Officer shall maintain, and upon request, provide to authorized federal officials, records of the

research misconduct proceedings, including: (1) records secured by the University for the Inquiry and Investigation;

(2) documentation of the determination of irrelevant or duplicate records; (3) the inquiry report and final documents

produced in the course of preparing that report, including the documentation of any decision not to investigate; and

(4) the investigation report and the records in support of that report, including the recording or transcript of each

interview conducted pursuant to this Policy.

Unless custody has been transferred to the applicable federal agency or the agency has advised the University, in

writing, that the records no longer need to be retained, these records shall be maintained in a secure manner for

seven years after the later of completion of the proceeding or the completion of any federal agency proceeding

involving the research misconduct allegation.

The Research Integrity Officer is also responsible for providing any information, documentation, research records,

evidence, or clarification requested by authorized federal officials to carry out their review of an allegation of research

misconduct or of the University’s handling of such an allegation.

V.Completion of Cases and Reporting Premature Closures to Applicable Federal Agencies

Generally, all Inquiries and Investigations will be carried through to completion and all significant issues will be pursued

diligently. The Research Integrity Officer shall, if required by such agency, notify any applicable federal agency in advance if

there are plans to close a case at the Inquiry or Investigation stage on the basis that the respondent has admitted guilt, a

settlement with the respondent has been reached, or for any other reason except that: (1) no notification to federal agencies

need be provided when a case is closed after an Inquiry that finds pursuant to Section IV.F that an Investigation is not

warranted; and (2) if an Investigation is completed, the University’s findings must be reported as specified under Section VII.D

of this Policy.

VI.Internal Administrative Actions

If the Vice President for Research determines that a finding of research misconduct is substantiated, the University, through

the Vice President for Research, the Budget Executive, the Budget Administrator or other appropriate official, may adopt

sanctions, which may include, for example:

a. Re-training;

b. Unannounced or announced audits;

c. A letter of reprimand or admonishment to be included in respondent’s file;

d. Supervision or monitoring of future work, including a requirement for certification by senior personnel that

a person’s work met specified conditions;

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e. Removal from the research project in question;

f. Formal notification of sponsoring agencies, funding sources, co-authors, co-investigators, collaborators or

journal editors;

g. Withdrawal or correction of pending abstracts and papers emanating from the research where research misconduct was

found;

h. Formal withdrawal of pending applications for research support;

i. Public announcements; and/or

j. Restitution of funds.

If the Vice President for Research determines that a finding of research misconduct is substantiated, the Vice President for Research

may also recommend to the Budget Executive or other appropriate University official, disciplinary sanctions, which may include, for

example:

a. Probation or suspension;

b. Initiation of steps leading to possible impact on salary; and/or

c. Initiation of steps leading to possible termination of employment.

None of these sanctions limits the authority of the funding sponsor to impose its own sanctions.

VII.Other Considerations

A. Protecting the Respondent

Respondents may consult with legal counsel or a non-lawyer personal advisor (who is not a principal or witness in

the case) to seek advice. During research misconduct proceedings, the respondent may be accompanied by counsel

or a personal advisor at interviews and meetings, but the lawyer or personal advisor’s role will be limited to

counseling the respondent, and the respondent will be responsible for answering all questions.

As requested and appropriate, the Research Integrity Officer and other University officials shall make all reasonable

and practical efforts to protect or restore the reputation of persons alleged to have engaged in research misconduct

but against whom no finding of research misconduct is made. Depending on the particular circumstances and the

views of the respondent, the Research Integrity Officer should consider whether to notify those individuals aware of

or involved in the research misconduct proceeding of the final outcome, publicize the final outcome in any forum in

which the allegation of research misconduct was previously publicized, and/or expunge references to the research

misconduct allegation from the respondent’s personnel file.

B. Protecting the Complainant, Witnesses and Committee Members

University faculty, staff, and students may not retaliate in any way against complainants, witnesses, or committee

members. Faculty, staff, and students should immediately report any alleged or apparent retaliation against

complainants, witnesses, or committee members to the Research Integrity Officer.

During the research misconduct proceeding and upon its completion, regardless of whether or not the University or a

federal agency determines that research misconduct occurred, the Research Integrity Officer shall undertake all

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reasonable and practical efforts to protect the position and reputation of, or to counter potential or actual retaliation

against, any complainant who made allegations of research misconduct in good faith and of any witnesses and

committee members who cooperate in good faith with the research misconduct proceeding.

C. Allegations Not Made in Good Faith

If relevant, the Vice President for Research will determine whether the complainant’s allegations of research

misconduct were made in good faith, or whether a witness or committee member acted in good faith. If the Vice

President for Research determines that the complainant knowingly made a false allegation of research misconduct,

the Vice President for Research shall determine whether any administrative action will be taken against the

complainant or whether any disciplinary action against the complainant will be recommended to the Budget Executive

or other appropriate University official.

CROSS-REFERENCES—Other Policies in this Manual should also be referenced, especially the following:

IP01 Ownership and Management of Intellectual Property

IP06 Technology Transfer and Entrepreneurial Activity (Faculty Research)

RP03 The Use of Human Subjects in Research

CO-AUTHORSHIP OF SCHOLARLY REPORTS, PAPERS AND PUBLICATIONS (Formerly Policy RA13)

PURPOSE:

It is the policy of The Pennsylvania State University that proper credit be given to those individuals who make material contributions to

activities which lead to scholarly reports, papers and publications.

GUIDELINES:

Rigid prescriptive requirements in this area are considered unwise, because the situation with respect to co-authorship varies from one

discipline to another and from one publication to another. Nevertheless, it is recommended that the authors of scholarly reports, papers

and publications abide by the following principles regarding co-authorship.

(1)

Co-authorship should be offered to anyone who has clearly made a material contribution to the work.

Moreover, each coauthor should be furnished with a copy of the manuscript before it is submitted, and allowed an

opportunity to review it prior to submission. An author submitting a paper, report or publication should never include the

name of a coauthor without the person’s consent. Exceptional circumstances, such as death or inability to locate a coauthor,

should be handled on a case by case basis. In cases where the contribution may have been marginal, an acknowledgment

of the contribution in the public action might be more appropriate than co-authorship.

(2) In cases of theses for advanced degrees, if any publication derived from the thesis is not published with

the degree recipient as sole author, then that person should be listed as coauthor. In no instance should publications derived

from a thesis be published under the sole authorship of the thesis advisor.

(2) Anyone accepting co-authorship of a paper must realize that this action implies a responsibility as well as a privilege.

As a general rule, each coauthor should understand the content of the publication well enough to be able to take

responsibility for all of it; otherwise, the publication should clearly indicate the parts of which each coauthor has

responsibility. If a potential coauthor has doubts concerning the correctness of the content or conclusions of a

publication, and if these doubts cannot be dispelled by consultation with the other coauthors, the individual should

decline co-authorship.

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GRADUATE ASSISTANTS

PURPOSE:

To state the Graduate Assistant Policy of the University.

TYPES AND SALARY RANGES:

Graduate assistantships are of three types: quarter-time, half-time, and three-quarter-time. The expected duration of assigned tasks is

the same for all graduate assistants within the same type. Thus, for all quarter-time graduate assistants, irrespective of stipend, 10 hours

of regular work per week are expected; for all half-time assistants, 20 hours; and for all three-quarter-time assistants, 30 hours. A semester

normally consists of 18 full weeks, and extended summer session 14 weeks. Appointments are to be made at one of several grades in

consideration of experience and qualifications of the individual. Refer to the Table of Stipends for Graduate Assistants and the Penn

State Graduate Degree Programs Bulletin for further information.

Within any department or other administrative unit of the University, there shall be the same pay for the same work for graduate assistants

regardless of the field of study in which the student is enrolled. This policy shall not preclude a scale of stipends based on merit, seniority

or degree candidacy.

ELIGIBILITY:

Graduate assistants must be enrolled at Penn State as graduate students. More specifically, since assistantships are provided as aids

to completion of advanced degrees, assistants are expected to enroll for credit loads each semester that fall within the limits indicated in

the table below. Maximum limits on permissible credit loads are indicated in order to assure that the student can give appropriate attention

both to academic progress and assistantship responsibilities. These considerations give rise to the table of permissible credit loads below.

OFFER OF APPOINTMENT:

Every Graduate Assistant shall be offered his or her appointment each year in writing, using a standard form, the Terms of Offer of a

Graduate Assistantship, together with an individual letter of transmittal. The letter will indicate any extensive duties other than professional

and preprofessional they will be called upon to perform.

RESPONSIBILITIES:

A graduate assistant may assist in classroom or laboratory instruction, in research or in other work. The tasks assigned to a graduate

assistant often are identical in nature to those required for the advanced degree sought. If the duties are identical in nature to those

required for the advanced degree sought, it must be noted in the Terms of Offer of a Graduate Assistantship, the individual letter of

transmittal and on the appropriate IBIS appointment, reappointment or change form. Additional compensation is paid to a graduate

assistant by the University for additional hours of work only with special, advance approval of the administrative head of the academic

unit in which the assistantship is held, and of the chair of the student's graduate academic program, and provided that such compensation

is not for additional hours of work on the assigned assistantship duties.

LENGTH OF APPOINTMENTS:

The appointment may be for the summer session or one or two semesters and must terminate on or before the end of the spring

semester in any fiscal year. When an appointment will terminate before the end of the spring semester, the appointee should be

informed of this when offered the assistantship.

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HEALTH INSURANCE BENEFIT:

International Graduate Assistants are required to have health insurance coverage for themselves and their dependents in the United

States. For domestic Graduate Assistants, health insurance is optional. The University provides a health insurance benefit as part of the

assistantship contract. The University will pay a percentage of the annual premium for the Penn State Student Health Insurance Plan.

The remaining percentage will be automatically deducted from the student's assistantship stipend. The University will not supplement,

nor will a payroll deduction be made, for insurance policies other than the Penn State Student Insurance Plan.

International Graduate Assistants who have adequate alternate medical coverage and who do not wish to be enrolled in the Penn State

Student Health Insurance Plan must submit a waiver application. In order to be granted a waiver, alternate plans must meet certain

standards as established by the University Student Insurance Committee. This Committee will approve or disapprove the waiver

application.

International Graduate Assistants who do not apply for a waiver will be automatically enrolled in the Penn State Student Insurance Plan.

(NOTE: Applications for a waiver demonstrating adequate alternate insurance must be submitted on a yearly basis each fall.)

Domestic Graduate Assistants will automatically enrolled in the Penn State Student Insurance Plan. Domestic Graduate Assistants who

do not wish to be enrolled in the Penn State Student Insurance Plan must decline the insurance. Dependent health insurance coverage

for domestic Graduate Assistants must be submitted on a yearly basis each fall.

For further information, contact the Student Insurance Office, 814-865-7467, or see “Graduate Assistant and Graduate Fellow Health

Insurance Plan” on the University Health Services website.

FORMS TO BE COMPLETED BY AND FOR GRADUATE ASSISTANTS:

A graduate assistant is appointed by completing an “NAPP/GFSA” in IBIS. Each appointment is approved, based upon the budget

administrator’s recommendation and certification of eligibility by the Dean of the Graduate School.

According to Policy HR30, the budget executive is responsible for providing proof that there are no subversive persons employed in

his/her area of responsibility.

In accepting an appointment as a graduate assistant, the recipient is required to complete the following forms:

1. Employee’s Withholding Allowance Certificate - Form W-4. Also, see Policy PR13

2. Employment Eligibility Verification (INS Form I-9).

3. University Intellectual Property Agreements.

4. Salary Deposit Request.

SUBMISSION OF FORMS FOR THE APPOINTMENT OF GRADUATE ASSISTANTS:

The Employee’s Withholding Allowance Certificate (W-4) and Salary Deposit Requests are attached and submitted together to the

Financial Officer. The forms are required in the Payroll Office one month before the first pay date each semester/session. The “GFSA”

is approved and processed electronically.

Appointments are to be submitted in accordance with stipends authorized in the Table of Stipends for Graduate Assistants.

SUBMISSION OF FORMS FOR THE REAPPOINTMENT OF GRADUATE ASSISTANTS:

The “GRAD” is submitted with the block “Reappointment” marked. It is not required that a new Employee’s Withholding Allowance

Certificate (W-4) be completed if the graduate assistant’s status (i.e., number of withholding exemptions, local earned income tax, address

and/or name) is unchanged, providing that the graduate assistant’s original appointment has not been terminated for more than a year.

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CREDITS THAT MAY BE SCHEDULED:

The privileges of graduate study are the same for all graduate assistants within the same type. The table that follows shows the

number of credits that normally may be scheduled for each semester or session.

Fall/Spring

Summer

Graduate Assistant - Quarter-Time

9-14

5-7

Graduate Assistant - Half-Time

9-12

4-6

Graduate Assistant - Three-Quarter-Time

6-8

3-4

The credits specified are the number which the appointee is ordinarily expected to carry. To provide some flexibility, moderate exceptions

to the specified limits may be made in particular cases. The credit limits specified above may only be increased or decreased in

exceptional cases for a specific semester or summer session by permission of the assistantship supervisor, the student’s academic

advisor, and the dean of the Graduate School (requests should be submitted for the dean’s approval via the Office of Graduate Enrollment

Services). It is expected that:

• The credit load and the service load are properly balanced in each semester and the total credit load over a period of time

conforms with the specified limits.

• The total number of credits scheduled during the interval of appointment is consistent with the type of appointment.

• The student is assigned no more than the normal work load during the first semester/session as a graduate student at the

University, thus permitting him or her to be primarily a student during this period.

EVALUATION AND PERFORMANCE:

Each graduate assistant shall be supervised and assisted in assigned tasks until they gain experience and skill enabling them to take

responsibility. Each graduate assistant shall have his or her work evaluated at least once each year, and the supervisor shall discuss

with the individual how well he/she performed during the appointment period.

PAYMENT OF STIPENDS:

All graduate assistant appointees are paid monthly. Direct salary deposits shall be mandatory and a condition of hire.

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RATES CHARGED TO FUNDING SOURCES:

Graduate Assistant tuition will be charged to sponsored agreements at an average in-state rate.

Flat rate dissertation fees will be charged to a sponsored agreements for assistantships.

Tuition coverage through the Tuition Assistance Program is not available during any period for which the student is appointed on an

assistantship.

CHANGES:

All changes to the appointment are accomplished by submitting an IBIS “GRAD.”

TERMINATION:

All graduate assistant appointments are terminated automatically upon expiration without submitting termination forms; however, early

terminations must be made by submitting an IBIS “TRMN/GFST.”

The amount of final pay for an early termination is to be determined by subtracting the amount of stipend paid to the graduate assistant

from the number of weeks of service rendered to the date of termination. If additional days are involved, the daily rate of 1/7th of the

weekly rate applies.

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APPENDIX II

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MASTER OF SCIENCE IN COMPUTER SCIENCE & ENGINEERING

DEGREE CHECKSHEET

(Thesis Option)

Student’s Name: _______________________________________________

PSU ID: ____________________

9 credits of breadth courses

CMPSC 465 OR CSE 565 ______

CMPSC 473 OR CSE 511 ______

CMPEN 431 OR CSE 530 ______

15 credits – 400 level and above (No more than 9 credits of 400 level courses total)

400 level breadth courses count toward 9 credits of 400 level courses.

Courses:

______________

CSE 590 ______ semester __________

CSE 600 ______ cr. (6 credits required)

A grade of C or higher must be earned for each course. Student must maintain cumulative GPA of 3.00 or higher

for graduation.

SARI Requirements

______ SARI seminars (5 hours)

______ CITI online course

______ Student has completed ALL requirements for graduation.

______ Student will meet all of the requirements for graduation upon successful

completion of the following:

Additional Comments:

Date: _________

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MASTER OF SCIENCE IN COMPUTER SCIENCE & ENGINEERING

DEGREE CHECKSHEET

(Non-Thesis Option)

Student’s Name: _______________________________________________

PSU ID: ____________________

9 credits of breadth courses

CMPSC 465 OR CSE 565 ______

CMPSC 473 OR CSE 511 ______

CMPEN 431 OR CSE 530 ______

18 credits – 400 level and above (No more than 9 credits of 400 level courses total)

400 level breadth courses count toward 9 credits of 400 level courses.

Courses:

______________ ______________

CSE 590 ______ semester __________

CSE 594 ______ (to be taken in the last semester)

A grade of C or higher must be earned for each course. Student must maintain cumulative GPA of 3.00 or higher

for graduation.

SARI Requirements

______ SARI seminars (5 hours)

______ CITI online course

______ Student has completed ALL requirements for graduation.

______ Student will meet all of the requirements for graduation upon successful

completion of the following:

Additional Comments:

Date: _________

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MASTER OF ENGINEERING IN COMPUTER SCIENCE & ENGINEERING DEGREE

CHECKSHEET (1 YR M ENG)

Student’s Name:

PSU ID:

12 credits – Fall Semester

_____ CmpSc 465 (3) Options 1 and 2

_____ CSE 5xx elective (3)

_____ CmpSc 443 (3) or CSE 543 (3) AND _____ CmpSc 431 (3) Option 1

_____ CmpEn 431 (3) AND _____ CmpEn 472 (3) Option 2

12 credits – Spring Semester (Options 1 and 2)

_____ CSE 5xx elective (3)

6 credits – Summer Semester

_____ CSE 820 (3)

_____ CSE 594 (3)

A grade of C or higher must be earned for each course. Student must maintain cumulative GPA of 3.00 or higher

for graduation.

SARI Requirement (5 hours of seminar attendance and on-line CITI training)

Student has completed ALL requirements for graduation.

Student will meet all of the requirements for graduation upon successful

completion of the following:

Date:

GRADUATE HANDBOOK – FALL 2022 | CSE

DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY IN COMPUTER SCIENCE & ENGINEERING DEGREE CHECKSHEET

(old requirements – Prior to Fall 2017)

Student’s Name:

PSU ID:

48 credits of non-thesis credit:

27 credits – 500-589 or CSE 598 prior to FA2013 or CSE 597 beginning FA2013

21 credits – 400 level and above Breadth Requirement Met

Req. 1

Req. 2

Req. 3

Req. 4

590 (Colloquium) – 3 credits

CSE 591 – CSE Research Experience Qualifying Exam Areas Passed

Dept. Engl Proficiency Exam

______

AEOCPT (International Students only)

____________

Comprehensive Exam

Dissertation Exam

SARI Requirement

Additional Comments:

Notes:

• A maximum of 3 credits of X96 may also be counted.

• At most, 3 credits of background course work can be used to satisfy the degree requirement.

Graduate Officer’s

Signature: Date:

GRADUATE HANDBOOK – FALL 2022 | CSE

DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY IN COMPUTER SCIENCE & ENGINEERING DEGREE CHECKSHEET (new requirements effective

Fall 2017)

Student’s Name:

PSU ID:

Students who do not have an MS in Computer Science or Computer Engineering must take a minimum of 33 credits

6 credits

CSE 565 CSE 511 CSE 530

15 credits – CSE courses (excluding 598, 596)

597 courses can be counted towards the 15 credits)

Breadth Requirement Met

Req. 1

Req. 2

Req. 3

Req. 4

9 credits – 400/500/800 level courses in CSE/EE/Math/

STAT or 500/800 level courses in IST (a maximum of 3 credits

of CSE 596 can be counted towards the 9 credits)

590 (Colloquium) – 2 credits

CSE 591 – CSE Research Experience- 1 credit Qualifying Exam Areas Passed

Dept. Engl Proficiency Exam

______

AEOCPT (International Students only)

________

Comprehensive Exam

Dissertation Exam

SARI Requirement

Additional Comments:

Graduate Officer’s

Signature: Date:

GRADUATE HANDBOOK – FALL 2022 | CSE

DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY IN COMPUTER SCIENCE & ENGINEERING DEGREE CHECKSHEET (new requirements effective

Fall 2017)

Student’s Name:

PSU ID:

Students who have an MS in Computer Science or Computer Engineering must take a minimum of 21 credits

6 credits

CSE 565 CSE 511 CSE 530

9 credits – CSE courses (excluding 598, 596)

597 courses can be counted towards the 9 credits)

Breadth Requirement Met

Req. 1

Req. 2

Req. 3

Req. 4

3 credits – 400/500/800 level courses in CSE/EE/Math/

STAT or 500/800 level courses in IST (a maximum of 3 credits

of CSE 596 can be counted towards the 9 credits)

590 (Colloquium) – 2 credits

CSE 591 – CSE Research Experience - 1 credit Qualiying Exam Areas Passed

Dept. Engl Proficiency Exam

______

AEOCPT (International Students only)

________

Comprehensive Exam

Dissertation Exam

SARI Requirement

Additional Comments:

Graduate Officer’s

Signature: Date: