Learning objectives
The mission of the computer science major program is to prepare students for a career in a computing technology related field, with emphasis on becoming a life-long learner with regard to both personal and professional aspirations.
Le Moyne College expects its computer science graduates to:
- Demonstrate critical thinking skills, apply problem solving techniques, and construct various software artifacts as prescribed by a software development process. Particular emphasis is placed on the design, validation and verification, and programming aspects of a software development process.
- Be prepared for continued growth as a computing professional; be able to apply what they have learned; and to communicate their knowledge to others in an ethically responsible manner.
- Be prepared to work individually or in a collaborative environment.
To support the objectives, the curriculum is designed with software design theory and practice as the foundation of the program. This subject area includes software architecture and design, program design, algorithm analysis, and software metrics. Software engineering principles will be applied on a range of project sizes, giving students an opportunity to experience software engineering from an individual and team perspective.
All undergraduate students at Le Moyne College must take the core required courses. These courses provide a solid foundation in humanities and the sciences, and help each student prepare for a meaningful and productive life. MORE...
Major requirements
A student must successfully complete the following courses to earn a bachelor of arts in computer science.
Major Course | Credit Hours | Course Offered | Prerequisite |
| CSC 171 Introduction to Algorithms and Program Development | 4 | Fall | None |
| CSC 172 Introduction to Algorithm Analysis and Data Structures | 4 | Spring | CSC 171 or CSC 252/MIS 385 or CSC 253/MIS 325 |
| CSC 271 Structured Software Design | 3 | Fall | CSC 172 |
| CSC 272 Object-oriented Software Design | 3 | Spring | CSC 172 |
| CSC 345 Hardware Computing Environments | 3 | Fall, biyearly | CSC 271 and 272 |
| CSC 346 Software Operating Environments | 3 | Spring, biyearly | CSC 345 |
| CSC 445 TBD | 3 | Fall, biyearly | TBD |
| CSC 446 TBD | 3 | Spring, biyearly | TBD |
| CSC 395/6 Start Research/Capstone Project | 3 | Spring | 3rd year CS major |
| CSC 495/6 Senior Research/Capstone Project | 3 | Fall | 4th year CS major |
| CSC 475 Technology Transitions | 3 | Spring | 4th year CS major |
The content of the 445 and 446 courses are to be determined. Computer science topics that are candidates for these two courses include graphics and visual computing, human-computer interaction, information management, intelligent systems, and net-centric computing.
The 475 course will be taken by every CS major in the spring term of their fourth year. This course will provide each student with an opportunity to learn and experience technologies not discussed as part of the major. The focus of this course will be technologies relevant to the students' immediate plans after graduation, whether this is employment or graduate school.
Major support requirements
A student must successfully complete the following courses to earn a bachelor of arts in computer science.
Support Course or Subject Area | Hours |
| MTH 145 Calculus I | 4 |
| MTH 131 Discrete Mathematics | 3 |
| Foreign Language (intermediate or advanced level recommended) | 6 |
| Minor in another program | 15-21 |
The reason for requiring a CS major to minor in another program is that studies have shown that computer science graduates are more competitive in the job market when they have a significant domain of knowledge outside of computer science. This will benefit CS majors whether they decide to work in industry or go to graduate school. For example, students going to graduate school for computer science will be advised to minor in mathematics.
Computer Science Minor
To graduate with a minor in computer science, a student must complete a program approved by the program director consisting of at least five computer science courses numbered 171 or higher. No course may be taken pass/fail.
Typical Program
The typical four year program for the computer science program is shown below.
| First Semester | Hours | Second Semester | Hours |
Freshman Year | | | |
| MTH 145 | 4 | MTH 131 | 4 |
| CSC 171 | 4 | CSC 172 | 4 |
| ENG 102 | 3 | PHL 101 | 3 |
| Foreign Language | 3 | Foreign Language | 3 |
| HST 101/103 | 3 | HST 102/104 | 3 |
| AVS 101 (only 1st year students) | 1 | | |
Sophomore Year | | | |
| CSC 271 | 3 | CSC 272 | 3 |
| Elective | 3 | Elective | 4 |
| ENG 200 | 3 | REL 200 | 3 |
| PHL 201 | 3 | Social Science | 3 |
| Elective | 3 | Elective | 3 |
Junior Year | | | |
| CSC 345/446 | 3 | CSC 346/446 | 3 |
| Elective | 3 | CSC 395/396 | 3 |
| Elective | 3 | Elective | 3 |
| Natural Science | 3 | REL 300-399 | 3 |
| ENG 300 | 3 | PHL 301-303 | 3 |
Senior Year | | | |
| CSC 345/445 | 3 | CSC 346/446 | 3 |
| CSC 495/496 | 3 | CSC 475 | 3 |
| ENG/HST Seminar | 3 | PHL/REL Seminar | 3 |
| Elective | 3 | Elective | 3 |
| Elective | 3 | Elective | 3 |
| | | | |
The CS curriculum has been designed based on the following principles:
- Use software design and quality assurance as the umbrella (core) subject areas.
In this curriculum, the software design subject area includes software architecture and design, program design, algorithm development and analysis, and software metrics. Software assurance includes validation and verification activities (e.g., inspection, review, unit test).
- Combine theory, practice, and computing literacy in every course.
Give broad-based scientific and theoretical training needed as a foundation for a rewarding and successful career. This includes covering fundamental conceptual material that transcends current technology and exposing students to the best of current practice.
- Structure assignments and use software tools based on the pedagogical needs associated with the progression of CS course topics.
Assignments in first year courses will be very small, typically taking a student 1-3 hours to complete. Repetition will be used to reinforce fundamentals. Software tools used during the first year will be narrow in scope and usefulness.
- Assignments in the second year will typically take a student 2-8 hours to complete and will build on first year fundamentals. Many of the assignments will be part of a semester long project that will result in a small to medium size software application built through a scaffolding approach. During the second year, a software design tool will be utilized (along with the tools used in the first year).
In the third and fourth years, assignments will consist of semester-long projects that require a few person-weeks to a few person-months to complete. Tools used in the last two years will include a modern software development environment and some server-based tools.
Bachelor’s plus Master’s Engineering Program
Le Moyne College (LMC) has a Bachelor’s plus Master’s program agreement with Syracuse University (SU) L.C. Smith College of Engineering (LCS). In this program, you earn a bachelor’s degree from LMC and then a master’s degree in an engineering discipline from SU. The Le Moyne major programs that lead to a master’s engineering program are:
LMC Bachelor’s Program | SU LCS Master’s Engineering Program |
| Biological Sciences | Bioengineering |
| Computer Science | Computer Science, or Computer Engineering |
| Natural Systems Science | Environmental Engineering |
| Physics | Aerospace, Civil, Electrical, Environmental, or Mechanical Engineering |
In order to continue in the program, LMC students need a 3.0 cumulative GPA, as well as a 3.0 GPA in their science, math, engineering, and computing courses. These students will be considered pre-admitted to any master's program in LCS, however, they will still need to complete the online application during their senior year. GRE examination and letters of reference requirements will be waived for these students.
While many liberal arts colleges have agreements with engineering schools, those agreements, typically called 3+2 programs, allows a student to earn two bachelors - one from the liberal arts college and one from the engineering school. Another advantage this program has over traditional 3+2 programs is that the student, while at LMC during their first four years, pays LMC tuition even though they may be taking undergraduate engineering courses at LCS.