Mathematics and Computing Science have a longstanding joint relationship through a shared Honors program and a series of MACM courses. This document proposes an expansion of this relationship through the introduction of a MACM Major to complement the Honors program. In addition, a revision of the Honors program is proposed to appropriately position it with respect to the major and to simplify the structure of the requirements; several course revisions are also proposed.
These changes are generally proposed for incorporation in the 2005/6 SFU calendar. Revisions to the Honors program and MACM courses are to be effective as of September 1, 2005. However, the MACM Major is proposed to become effective as of September 1, 2004 to enable existing students with an interest in the program the earliest opportunity to proceed.
The School of Computing Science will take responsibility for future offerings of MACM 300-3 Introduction to Formal Languages and Automata with Applications. The calendar description should be revised as follows.
| Current | Proposed |
|---|---|
|
Languages, grammars, automata and their applications. Turing machines. Computability and undecidability. Complexity theory. |
Languages, grammars, automata and
their applications to natural and formal language processing.
|
This updates the MACM 300 course to focus more on language-oriented applications of automata theory and to reduce the overlap with MACM 301.
Assigning responsibility for this course to Computing Science will help balance out the upper division offerings of MACM courses as well as take advantage of the interest of CMPT faculty members in teaching the course. In addition, it will allow Computing Science to discharge its responsibility for ensuring that the course is available for joint programming with Linguistics and Cognitive Science.
The following course renumberings are proposed for the courses CMPT 308-3 Computability and Complexity and MATH 308-3 Linear Optimization.
| Current | Proposed | Responsible Unit |
|---|---|---|
|
CMPT 308-3
|
MACM 301-3
|
Computing Science |
|
MATH 308-3
|
MACM 302-3
|
Mathematics |
These two courses are considering to be core courses, strongly related to both computing science and mathematics. Identifying them as MACM courses brings greater strength to the joint program area.
We propose the introduction of a course number for MACM special topics offerings. Offerings of this course must be approved by the MACM program committee.
| Course Number: | MACM 498-3 | Course Vector: | 3-0-0 | Course Title: | Special Topics in Mathematics and Computing Science |
Course Description: | The topics included in these courses will vary from semester to semester depending on faculty availability and student interest. |
Prerequisites: | Prerequisites: will be specified according to the particular topic or topics offered under this course number. |
|---|
Although MACM special topics offerings could equally well be offered under the existing MATH or CMPT special topics labels depending on the faculty member teaching the course, the MACM label will be useful in drawing attention to offerings that may be of particular interest to MACM students.
The calendar text introducing the program and its lower division requirements should be revised as follows.
| Current | Proposed |
|---|---|
Mathematics and Computing Science Honors ProgramThis honors program is offered jointly by the Department of Mathematics and the School of Computing Science. Entry requires permission of both the department and the school. Graduates may proceed to graduate work in either mathematics or computing science. (Depending on the student's particular area of interest, a small amount of additional undergraduate work in either mathematics or computing science may be required.) Normally, students apply for acceptance upon completion of the lower division requirements. Early acceptance is available for SFU students and transfer students with high CGPAs and program related GPAs. Direct acceptance is also possible for secondary school students with strong admission GPAs. Students must complete 132 credit hours, as specified below. |
Mathematics and Computing Science Joint Major and Honors ProgramsJoint major and honors programs are offered cooperatively by the Department of Mathematics and the School of Computing Science. In general, students are expected to meet the requirements of both the department and the school with respect to admission, continuation and graduation requirements. |
Lower Division RequirementsCMPT 126-3 Introduction to Computer Science and Programming (or
CMPT 120 and 125) *a 100 division English course or PHIL 120 may be substituted Note 1: A student who, in satisfaction of upper division requirements (see below), wishes to use group e) as one of the two upper division required groups taken from the list a), b), c), d), e) must also obtain credit for the lower division course MATH 252. Note 2: A student wishing to use courses from group a) to satisfy requirements is advised that STAT 280 is a prerequisite for STAT 380. |
Lower Division Requirements - Joint MajorCMPT 126-3 Introduction to Computer Science and Programming (or
CMPT 120 and 125) Plus one of In addition, students must complete writing and breadth requirements in accord with the regulations of both the department and the school. Lower Division Requirements - Joint HonorsStudents pursuing the joint honors program must complete both of
the following courses as well as the remaining requirements of the
joint major. |
The lower division requirements of the joint major are based on the core requirements of the existing joint honors program. The specific reference to PHIL 100 or an alternative is deleted in favor of a more generic statement with respect to writing and breadth requirements that are consistent with the requirements of the units. As of 2006/7, this text should also be appropriate to the proposed WQB requirements of the university curriculum. To make room for WQB requirements without overloading the lower division, CMPT 250 is deleted from the requirements.
The notes are no longer relevant to the revised upper division structure as described subsequently.
Two options for the structure of the upper division requirements of the joint major are presented.
| Option A | Option B |
|---|---|
Upper Division Requirements - Joint MajorStudents must complete the following core requirements. In addition, students must complete further coursework to reach a total of 21 upper division MATH credits and 24 upper division CMPT credits including the core requirements. MACM courses are counted in an alternating fashion towards the MATH and CMPT credit requirements, starting with MACM 316 counted as MATH credit. A total of 12 credits must be taken at the 400-level or higher, including at least 3 credits each of CMPT and MATH credit. |
Upper Division Requirements - Joint MajorStudents must complete the following core requirements. All of Plus one of Plus one of In addition, students must complete further coursework to reach a total of 21 upper division MATH credits and 24 upper division CMPT credits including the core requirements. MACM courses are counted in an alternating fashion towards the MATH and CMPT credit requirements, starting with MACM 316 counted as MATH credit. A total of 12 credits must be taken at the 400-level or higher, including at least 3 credits each of CMPT and MATH credit. |
The MACM major is introduced with upper division credit hour requirements based on approximately two-thirds each of the corresponding upper division requirements of the CMPT and MATH major programs. Two alternative structures are proposed based on core or required courses plus additional course work to reach a total of 45 upper division credits. Option A is based on a minimal core, while Option B enforces somewhat more breadth.
The following calendar text describes the proposed restructuring of the MACM Joint Honors program, building upon the proposed Joint Major.
| Current | Proposed |
|---|---|
Upper Division RequirementsStudents must complete all of
[Course tables (a) through (k) omitted for brevity] |
Upper Division Requirements - Joint HonorsStudents must complete the following core requirements. All of Plus one of Plus one of Plus one of Plus one of Plus one of In addition, students must complete further coursework to reach a total of 27 upper division MATH credits and 30 upper division CMPT credits including the core requirements. MACM courses are counted in an alternating fashion towards the MATH and CMPT credit requirements, starting with MACM 316 counted as MATH credit. A total of 18 credits must be taken at the 400-level or higher, including at least 6 credits each of CMPT and MATH credit. |
This restructuring greatly simplifies the nature of the joint honors program, deleting the 11 tables of specializations and the overly structured distribution requirements across these tables. The total upper division credit included within the joint honors is increased from 50 to 57 credits, appropriately positioning the program in comparison to the joint major at 45 credits. Although this represents an increased upper division credit it still falls within the 60 upper division credits required for an honors degree.
| Current | Proposed |
|---|---|
General RequirementsThe program is subject to Faculty of Science and University general regulations. Admission to courses and prerequisites are subject to departmental requirements. Admission to and continuation in the program requires an overall GPA of at least 3.00. |
General RequirementsThe program is subject to Faculty of Science and University general regulations. Admission to courses and prerequisites are subject to departmental requirements. Graduation from the joint major is contingent upon achieving 2.00 or better on all relevant grade point averages (CGPA, UDGPA, CMPT GPA, CMPT UDGPA, MACM GPA, MACM UDGPA, MATH GPA, MATH UDGPA). Admission, continuation and graduation in the joint honors program is contingent upon 3.00 or better on all relevant grade point averages. FAS Residency Requirements apply to the CMPT course credits used towards the program. |
Consistent with overall SFU regulations, students must meet more detailed program GPA requirements for graduation as well as overall GPA requirements. At least one half of the overall CMPT credits and two thirds of the upper division CMPT credits must be completed at SFU in accord with FAS residency requirements.