Computer Security
The Computer Security track is intended for students who wish to develop state-of-the-art knowledge of computer and network security technologies. Security considerations pervade personal, corporate, military, governmental, and national infrastructure systems and networks. This track will help you develop leading-edge knowledge in security.
SUMMARY OF REQUIREMENTS
- Complete a total of 30 points (Courses must be at the 4000 level or above)
- Maintain at least a 2.7 overall GPA. (No more than 1 D is permitted).
- Complete the Columbia Engineering Professional Development & Leadership (PDL) requirement
- Satisfy breadth requirements
- Take at least 6 points of technical courses at the 6000 level
- At most, up to 3 points of your degree can be Non-CS/Non-track If they are deemed relevant to your track and sufficiently technical in nature. Please submit the course syllabus to your CS Faculty Advisor for review, and then forward the approval confirmation email to ms-advising@cs.columbia.edu
1. Breadth Courses
Visit the breadth requirement page for more information.
2. Required Track Courses
Students are required to complete the following 5 courses: COMS W4118 (OS), COMS W4156 (Adv. Software Engineering), COMS W4181 (Computer Security I), COMS W4182 (Computer Security II), and either COMS W4261 (Introduction to Cryptography) or COMS E6185 (Intrusion Detection). Students who have taken equivalent courses in the past and received grades of at least a B may apply for waivers and take other CS courses instead.
For students starting the program in Fall 2018 and later:
| Course ID | Title |
| COMS W4118 | Operating Systems |
| COMS W4156 | Adv. Software Engineering |
| COMS W4181 | Computer Security I |
| COMS W4182 | Computer Security II |
| Either COMS W4261 or COMS E6185 | Introduction to Cryptography or Intrusion Detection |
For students who started the program prior to Fall 2018:
| Course ID | Title |
| COMS W4118 | Operating Systems |
| COMS W4156 | Adv. Software Engineering |
| COMS W4180 | Network Security |
| COMS W4187 | Security Architecture and Engineering |
| Either COMS W4261 or COMS E6185 | Introduction to Cryptography or Intrusion Detection |
3. Track Electives
Students are required to complete 2 courses out of the following list; at least one course must be 6000-level. Please note that courses with * are offered in alternate years.
| Course ID | Title |
| COMS W4115 | Programming Languages and Translators |
| COMS/CSEE W4119 | Computer Networks |
| COMS W4186 | Malware Analysis & Reverse Engineering |
| COMS W4261 | Introduction to Cryptography |
| COMS W4995 | Visit the topics courses page to see which COMS 4995 courses apply to this track. |
| COMS E6118 | Operating Systems, II |
| COMS E6181 | Advanced Internet Services |
| COMS E6183 | Security |
| COMS E6184* | Privacy & Anonymity |
| COMS E6185 | Intrusion and Anomaly Detection Systems |
| COMS E6261* | Advanced Cryptography |
| COMS E6424 | Hardware Security |
| CSEE E6863 | Formal Verification of Hardware and Software Systems |
| COMS E6901 | Projects in Computer Science (Advisor approval required) |
| COMS E6998 | Visit the topics courses page to see which COMS 6998 courses apply to this track. |
| CSEE W4824 | Computer Architecture |
| ELEN E4703 | Wireless Communications |
| ELEN E6761 | Computer Communication Networks |
| ELEN E6886 | Topics in Multimedia Security |
| ELEN E6950 | Wireless & Mobile Nets, I |
| ELEN E6951 | Wireless & Mobile Nets, II |
4. General Electives
Students must complete the remaining credits with General Elective Courses at the 4000 level or above. Three credits must be from a graduate CS course and can be chosen from either the Track Electives listed above or from the CS department at the 4000 level or higher. Students may also request to use at most 3 points of Non-CS/Non-Track coursework if approved by the process listed below.
- At most, up to 3 points of your degree can be Non-CS/Non-track If they are deemed relevant to your track and sufficiently technical in nature. Please submit the course syllabus to your CS Faculty Advisor for review, and then forward the approval confirmation email to ms-advising@cs.columbia.edu
**Due to a significant overlap in course material, MS students not in the Machine Learning track can only take 1 of the following courses – COMS 4771, COMS 4721, ELEN 4903, IEOR 4525, STAT 4240, STAT 4400/4241/5241 – as part of their degree requirements.
Please note:
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For the Security track, you must have six points at the 6000 level; at least three of these 6000-level points must be selected from the list of Elective Track Courses.
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Students who waive track requirements by using previous courses must still complete 30 graduate credits. This can be done by expanding their elective selection to include courses listed as required track courses and elective track courses; or by taking other graduate courses
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The Degree Progress Checklist should be used to keep track of your requirements. If you have questions for your Track Advisor or CS Advising, you should have an updated Checklist prepared
TRACK PLANNING
Please visit the Directory of Classes to get the updated course listings. Please also note that not all courses are offered every semester or even every year. A few courses are offered only once every two or three years or even less frequently.
Please note that some Data Science Institute courses, such as COMS/CSEE W4121 (Computer Systems for Data Science), do not count towards the CS MS degree. If you have any questions, please contact your advisor or CS Advising.
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