The Graduate Minor in Scientific Computing

Training in Scientific Computing covers a broad spectrum of learning. Students in engineering and science today must become familiar with a diverse set of numerical algorithms and software, and work on specific problems in their area requiring application of sophisticated computer software. The inclusion of the Graduate Minor in Scientific Computing in a student's Ph.D. program provides necessary background in algorithms and software for the student's graduate work and future employment.

A Minor in Scientific Computing consists of at least 12 graduate credit hours chosen from a menu of "core" and "optional" courses. At least 2 of the courses shall be from the core curriculum, which focuses on fundamentals such as computational linear algebra and numerical analysis. The optional courses stress applications of Scientific Computing to specific disciplines.

The core courses are:

Math 518 Mathematical and Scientific Visualization
Cpt S 553/Math 553 Graph Theory
Cpt S 530/Math 548 Numerical Analysis
Cpt S 531/Math 544 Advanced Matrix Computations
Cpt S 532/Math 545 Numerical Analysis of Evolution Equations
Cpt S 533/Math 546 Numerical Analysis of Elliptic PDEs

In addition, there are more than 25 optional courses in Biochemistry/Biophysics, Chemistry, Civil Engineering, Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, Mathematics, Mechanical Engineering and Physics.

Optional Courses for the Graduate Minor in Scientific Computing

In addition to the core courses, the following list of courses have been approved for inclusion in the minor in Scientific Computing:

Chem 535 Computational Quantum Chemistry
CE 532 Finite Elements, 556 Numerical Modeling in Fluid Mechanics
Cpt S 442 Computer Graphics 445 Digital Image Processing, 450 Design and Analysis of Algorithms, 460 Operating Systems and Computer Architecture, 542 Computer Graphics, 560 Operating Systems, 561 Computer Architecture
EE 517 Numerical Solution to EM Problems, 445 Digital Image Processing, 464 Digital Signal Processing, 524 Advanced Computer Architecture, 534 High Performance Computing
Math 443 Applied Probability, 464 Operations Research and Game Theory, 515 Statistical Packages, 516 Introduction to Simulation, 536 Statistical Computing, 564 Topics in Optimization, 566 Optimization in Networks
ME 473 Computer-aided Design, 532 Finite Elements, 556 Numerical Modeling in Fluid Mechanics, 575 Geometric Modeling
MBios 578 Bioinformatics
Phys 591 Seminar in Computational Physics
Stat 443 Applied Probability, 515 Statistical Packages, 536 Statistical Computing

Guidelines for Graduate Minors

Approved graduate minors are available to Washington State University doctoral students. Only approved graduate minors will be identified on official WSU transcripts.

Requirements for Approved Graduate Minors:

Must include a minimum of 12 hours of graded graduate credit earned at Washington State University.
Must be included on the program of study, signed by the chair of the minor degree-granting unit, and filed through and administered by the Graduate School.
Must have at least one graduate faculty member from the minor area on the student's committee.
Must be included as part of the preliminary examination. (If the minor degree-granting unit does not wish to examine the candidate, it must be so indicated on the Preliminary Examination Scheduling Form.)

Although graduate minors are not required by the Graduate School, minors may be required by degree-granting units. Doctoral students seeking graduate minors are expected to meet all requirements for the doctoral degree and graduate minor.

For further information, contact the Program Coordinator: Alan Genz, Department of Mathematics, 232 Neill Hall, Washington State University, Pullman, WA 99164-3113; telephone (509) 335-2131 or email alangenzATwsuDOTedu.