Computer Science and Engineering

The Computer Science and Engineering (CSE) department spans multiple areas of research including theory, systems, AI/ML, architectures, and software.

CSE’s areas of research are computer hardware, including architecture, VLSI (chip design), FPGAs, and design automation; computer security and privacy; cyber-physical systems; distributed systems; database systems; machine learning and artificial intelligence; natural language processing; networks; pervasive computing and human-computer interaction; programming languages; robotics; social computing; storage systems; and visual computing, including computer vision, visualization, and graphics.

In cooperation with other departments on campus, CSE also offers a strong research group in bioinformatics, computational biology, biomolecular engineering, and human genome mapping. The CSE department enjoys a close relationship with the Electrical and Computer Engineering, Applied Mathematics, and Statistics departments. Faculty members carry out joint research projects, supervise students, and teach courses for these departments. The M.S. degree requires either a master’s thesis or an approved project and is usually completed in two years, although it is possible to complete the program in one year. The Ph.D. degree is usually completed in five years.

Research

Learn about the research being conducted within our department.

People

Meet people in Computer Science and Engineering.

Degrees

Learn about the Graduate and Undergraduate programs in Computer Science and Engineering.

20%

of the UCSC fall 2022 class are computer science majors

#5

of the top 50 Institutions by Total Bachelors Degrees awarded in Computer Science in Engineering (ASEE, 2020)

3

2022 National Science Foundation CAREER awards won by faculty

#32

for top computer science institutions around the world
(Computer Science Rankings, 2023)

6th

Distinguished Professor David Haussler ranked sixth among top scientists in computer science (Top Scientists Ranking for Computer Science and Electronics, 2021)

Discovering a cybersecurity flaw

Two Baskin Engineering students uncovered a security bug in internet-connected laundry machines, that could have allowed millions to do their laundry for free — then collaborated with the company to fix the bug.

Read more

CSE Research News

• Getoor wins major data mining award
• UCSC students discover, help patch cybersecurity flaw for free laundry
• First-gen student Renata Lopez reflects on community, career, and graduation
• Ukraine blackouts caused by malware attacks warn against evolving cybersecurity threats to the physical world
• Center for Research in Open Source Software welcomes James Davis as new faculty director

View more…

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We’re Hiring!

Open positions include: lecturer, teaching professor, research professor. Find out more.

Upcoming Events

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Explore potential Computer Science and Engineering career paths

• Software Engineer/Developer
• Hardware Engineer/Developer
• Network Engineer
• Web Developer
• Mobile App Developer
• AI/ML Engineer
• UX Designer
• Systems Architect
• Cybersecurity Engineer

Computer engineering faculty and students are researching and developing secure, efficient, and effective networking applications that support the internets of the future.

The Natural Language Processing (NLP) master's degree program provides students the in-depth NLP skills and experience needed for successful careers in this fast-growing field.