PROPOSED PH.D. PROGRAM - SUMMARY DATA SHEET
Please complete this form with data about your proposed program. We are requesting information to better assess the cost/benefits of proposed
programs.
Title of Degree: Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)
Department: Computer Science
College: Science
Prepared by: Dr. Moonis Ali and the faculty Ph.D. Committee
(1) Program Objectives. Briefly state the program objectives:
The objective of the Ph.D. program in computer science with emphasis on applied research is to serve the participants (the regional, state, national,
and international communities) with a program which will provide both intellectual breadth and in-depth specialized training in applied aspects of
computer science for its participants. The program will provide graduates with the knowledge, methods and skills necessary to serve potential
employers in academia, industry, and government. Students will learn, integrate, and apply knowledge to solve real-life problems and will make
original contributions to applied research. Although residents of Texas will benefit most from the program, the computer science Ph.D. program with
applied research will draw students nationally and internationally. Our ability to attract international students has already been demonstrated by the
large growth in student enrollment from that group in our master's programs. We will leverage the success of our master's program to the Ph.D.
program by providing additional high-quality course work, independent study, and scholarly applied research leading to a dissertation. Areas of
study will include software engineering, distributed systems, intelligent systems, communication and networking, database systems, and Internet
infrastructure/e-commerce. However, only two or three areas will be emphasized initially.
(2) Quality of Existing Faculty: Publication and grant/contract information is given below. In addition, some faculty members serve as Editor-inchief of an international journal, chairman of an international conference, and president of an international society.
Description
Number
Amount
Current Full-time faculty in department
18
XXXX
Current faculty who will become Core Ph.D.
faculty
14
XXXX
Refereed journal articles and book chapters
published to date*
145
XXXX
Books published to date
12
XXXX
Federal grants/contracts FY 95 to date
9
$ 813,571
State grants/contracts FY 95 to date
15
$ 222,654
Private grants/contracts FY 95 to date
9
$ 1,137,755
Total grants/contracts FY 95 to date
33
$ 2,173,980
Current grants/contracts
3
$ 355,284
Endowment/gift funds FY 95 to date
0
0
*All refereed publications have been included as they are recognized in the field of computer science.
Comments
Other Measures of Quality1. (Please attach sheet listing other measures of quality.)
(3) Need.2 Nonduplication.
The Department of Computer Science has successfully established two high-quality master's degree programs in computer science and in software
engineering. Our graduates are in high demand and are being hired as highly skilled professionals at very lucrative salaries. We currently have the
largest graduate program in the College of Science (150 graduate and 53 post-graduate students) and one of the largest graduate programs at SWT.
Our enrollment has increased fifty percent in the last three years.
Although the success of our graduate program is based on the high quality of our graduates, our specific niche, i.e., our focus on the applied aspects
of computer science and applied research, has also contributed significantly. That factor has made us known internationally and has attracted
professionals who wish to pursue higher education in computer science and a large number of international students. By focusing on applied areas of
computer science, our proposed Ph.D. program will complement the Ph.D. program at UT Austin and meet the increasing demand for quality Ph.D.
professionals in Central Texas and the State of Texas. Furthermore, our proposed program will address the need for Ph.D. level programs for
students that continue to hold outside employment.
The need for computer science graduates is so great that several institutions in Texas have started Ph.D. programs in computer science or other
related areas. However, our emphasis on applied research differentiates us from these institutions. The niche we have used so successfully in the
master's program will contribute significantly to establishing a successful Ph.D. program and make it somewhat distinct from other Texas programs
while still sharing small, common elements.
The following items compare our proposed Ph.D. program in computer science with emphasis in applied research to those of other institutions in
Texas:
a.
The University of Texas at Austin: UT Austin focuses on basic research and our focus is on applied research.
b.
The University of Texas at San Antonio: UT San Antonio emphasizes high-performance computing, not an area of emphasis in our proposed
program.
c.
The University of Texas at El Paso: The Department of Computer Science at UT El Paso does not have a Ph.D. program. It participates with
the Electrical and Computer Engineering Department in the Ph.D. program in computer engineering. Our focus is not on computer
engineering.
d.
The University of Texas at Dallas: UT Dallas has an open Ph.D. program in the sense that their Ph.D. program does not specify any specific
areas. The student must arrange a course program and dissertation with the guidance and approval of a faculty member chosen as his/her
graduate advisor. Therefore, their focus really depends on the interest of current faculty at any specific time.
e.
The University of Texas at Arlington: UT Arlington currently supports Ph.D. studies in computer architecture, database systems, intelligent
systems, and software engineering. Our proposed program will be sharing some of these areas.
f.
Texas A&M University: The Texas A&M Ph.D. program, as stated on their web pages, does not emphasize any specific areas or niches.
Since Texas A&M offers a broad program, our proposed program will share some elements.
1
2
THECB is especially looking for recognition at the national level.
THECB looks at need in two ways: nonduplication of programs and program need/demand for graduates nationally, regionally, and statewide.
g.
h.
i.
j.
k.
Texas Tech University: The Texas Tech Ph.D. program, as stated on their web pages, does not emphasize any specific areas or niches. Since
Texas Tech offers a broad program, our proposed program will share some elements.
The University of North Texas: UNT focuses on basic as well as applied research and, hence, we will have some common elements with
their program.
The University of Houston: Although based on current faculty research interests, there would be some common program elements, UH's
focus on being a metropolitan research and teaching institution serving the Houston area/Gulf Coast region indicates orthogonal program
objectives.
Rice University: RU's Ph.D. program focuses on the areas of compilers, programming languages, and parallel and distributed programming.
Southern Methodist University: The SMU Computer Science and Engineering Department emphasizes engineering and applied science and
focuses on basic research, engineering research, and creative design, but not applied research.
Need/Demand.
The demand for computer science graduates was already very high in the job market. Since the introduction of the Internet and its heavy use by
industry, the growth has been exponential. Our B.S. and M.S. graduates are being offered very high salaries even prior to their graduation.
According to the Greater Austin Chamber of Commerce, several thousand computer-related positions are unfilled in the Austin metropolitan area
alone. Furthermore, the computing systems currently being developed are very complex and require in-depth knowledge of software for file servers,
parallel and distributed processes, intelligent system technology, software development methodologies and other applications. Highly placed
professionals who design, develop, and perform research on these complex systems need such an in-depth knowledge. This knowledge can be
acquired either through many years of experience or through a Ph.D. program with emphasis on applied research. Since there is an acute shortage of
such experienced professionals, and universities are not producing enough Ph.D.'s in these applied areas, there is a great demand.
Looking at the academic side, the 1998-1999 Taulbee Survey of Ph.D.-granting schools in the U.S. and Canada showed an annual 1% growth in
Ph.D. production and a projected two-year growth in faculty size of 7%. For the last two years, our department itself has not been able to fill three
vacant tenure-track faculty positions in spite of an aggressive recruiting effort. This year, we were able to hire only one tenure-track faculty member.
The computer information systems department chair at SWT, Dr. Mehta, has advertised for a faculty position and received only three applications.
He could not hire any of the three. The computer science department chairs at several Texas universities could not hire new faculty to teach. There
are similar stories from computer science departments all over the country. The shortage of Ph.D. graduates is not limited to the US. In fact, the
situation is worse outside the US, particularly in developing countries.
(4) Benefits.
Benefits to SWT and the State of Texas: The proposed Ph.D. program in computer science with emphasis on applied research meets the following
strategic goals of the Department of Computer Science, College of Science, and SWT.
Goal #1, Enhance our Quality and Prestige.
Goal #4, Increase Leadership and Presence in the Surrounding Area.
The B.S. in computer science is accredited by the Computing Sciences Accreditation Board, a nationally recognized accreditation agency. The wellrespected master's degree programs in computer science and software engineering are offered at SWT as well as in North Austin. These programs
have been fulfilling the goals for several years. It is time that we extend our success in these programs and take a leadership role in providing a Ph.D.
level education. Furthermore, a Ph.D. program in computer science will attract faculty to join the department. These new faculty should assist the
program in tapping the uniquely available resources of a dynamic region such as the Austin/San Antonio Growth Corridor, including contributions,
funded applications research, and graduate student summer internships.
The benefits to the State of Texas will be demonstrably high. Texas cities like Dallas, and particularly, Austin, have recently become the Meccas of
the computer industry. Many other companies would like to move here if they could be convinced about the availability of highly-skilled computer
professionals. Whenever a company expresses an interest in moving to Austin, the Greater Austin Chamber of Commerce brings the company's
representatives to visit our department because of the high quality of our program and its accessibility to working professionals. Our Ph.D. graduates
will make Texas one of the most attractive places to which companies can move. A leading driver of current Texas economic growth is the
Austin/San Antonio Growth Corridor (often referred to as the Silicon Hills). Similar to the North Carolina Research Triangle, this area can be
particularly well served by multiple national research institutions, each playing a unique role. SWT is uniquely situated by both its current
capabilities and its physical presence to play such a role.
(5) Costs/Income. Please complete the following 4 tables.
TABLE 1
NEW FULL-TIME EQUIVALENTS PER YEAR
FIVE YEARS
_________________________________________________________________________________________________
CATEGORY
FTEs
_________________________________________________________________________________________________
Year 1
____ Year 2 ___
Year 3
___ Year 4
___ Year 5 ___ TOTAL_
Full-time Faculty
2
2
4
Lecturer & Part-time Faculty
1
1
2
Technical Staff
1
1
Secretarial Support
1
1
Graduate Assistants (@ 50%)3
6
15
25
35
42
123
_________________________________________________________________________________________________
TOTAL FTEs
8
10.5
12.5
17.5
21
69.5
_________________________________________________________________________________________________
3
Use .5 FTE per graduate student.
TABLE 2
PROJECTED FIVE-YEAR ENROLLMENT
_________________________________________________________________________________________________
NUMBER OF STUDENTS
YEARS
_________________________________________________________________________________________________
Year 1
___ Year 2
___
Year 3
___
Year 4
___ Year 5
Entering Students
6
10
12
15
16
Enrolled Students
6
15
25
35
42
3
6
10
2
2
3
Graduating Students
Attrition
1
_________________________________________________________________________________________________
TABLE 3
PH.D. FIVE-YEAR COSTS
(In $1,000s)
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________
CATEGORY
YEARS
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Year 1
___ Year 2
___
Year 3
___
Year 4
___
Year 5
____
TOTAL_
Program Administration
0
0
0
0
0
0
Faculty/Staff
230
415
420
425
435
1925
Graduate Assistants
60
150
250
250
250
960
Clerical/Support
20
20
20
20
20
100
Equipment/Maint.
0
50
50
0
0
100
Operations
20
20
20
20
20
100
Library/Multimedia
25
25
25
25
25
125
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________
TOTAL
355
680
785
740
750
3310
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Space
(new square feet each year)
0
0
5,000
10,000
0
15,000
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________
TABLE 4
PH.D. FIVE-YEAR INCOME
(In $1,000s)
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________
CATEGORY
YEARS
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Year 1
___ Year 2
Formula Funding
Tuition
Course Fee
Designated Tuition
___
Year 3
___
Year 4
___
Year 5
630.088
882.105
1,058.526
___ TOTAL
2,570.719
5.76
3.60
5.472
14.400
9.00
13.68
24.00
15.00
22.8
33.6
21.00
31.92
40.32
25.20
38.30
118.08
73.8
112.172
Grants/Contracts
-
150
200
300
400
1050
Endowment/Gifts
-
-
-
-
200
200
Legislative Line Item
Other Funding
(explain below)
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________
TOTAL
14.832
187.08
891.888
1,268.625
1,762.346
4,124.771
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Other Funding: