Doctoral Programs
The Computer Science Department offers two Ph.D. programs: the Ph.D. in Computer Science, offered at our Pittsburgh campus; and a dual Ph.D. program with the Information and Communication Technologies Institute in Portugal.
Ph.D. in Computer Science
Our program is frequently named one of the best in the country and among our alumni are numerous pioneers in the field.
Carnegie Mellon's Ph.D. in Computer Science is, above all, a research degree. When the faculty award a degree, they certify that the student has a broad foundation and awareness of core concepts in computer science, has advanced the field by performing significant original research and has reported that work in a scholarly fashion.
Ph.D. in Computer Science/Dual Degree Portugal
CMU's Computer Science Department and the Portuguese institutions are equal partners, working together to educate doctoral students. All students are held to the highest scientific standards and must satisfy all requirements of both the CSD/CMU and the Portuguese institution they apply to. The expected duration of the program is around five years of full time work.
Interdisciplinary Ph.D. Programs
In addition to our Ph.D. in Computer Science and the dual degree with Portugal, we also offer three interdisciplinary programs:
Ph.D. in Computer Science/Neural Basis of Cognition — with the Center for the Neural Basis of Cognition (CNBC). The Center for the Neural Basis of Cognition Training Program is an interdisciplinary graduate training program operated jointly by Carnegie Mellon University and the University of Pittsburgh.
Ph.D. in Algorithms, Combinatorics and Optimization (ACO) — administered jointly by the Computer Science Department (Algorithms and Complexity group), the Tepper School of Business (Operations Research group), and the Department of Mathematical Sciences (Discrete Mathematics group).
Ph.D. in Pure and Applied Logic (PAL) — administered by the Computer Science Department, the Department of Mathematical Sciences, and the Department of Philosophy.