MSU to offer new bachelor of arts degree in computer science
From MSU News Service
As computers increasingly become a part of society, a new academic program at Montana State University seeks to open the world of computing to a wider range of student interest and prepare graduates for diverse employment opportunities.
Starting this August, the Gianforte School of Computing in MSU’s Norm Asbjornson College of Engineering will offer a bachelor of arts in computer science, a degree that combines computer science courses with concentrated study in areas outside science, technology, engineering and math (or STEM) – such as sociology, music, business or community health.
“The motivation is to enable students with almost any interest to benefit – both personally and professionally – from computing in their lives,” said John Paxton, director of the Gianforte School of Computing.
The new, accredited degree eliminates roughly a year’s worth of credits in engineering, math and science that are required by the department’s bachelor of science degree. Instead, students select from dozens of approved plans that include earning a second major or minor in the arts, the humanities, business or other non-STEM areas.
“Many computing opportunities in today’s world don’t require a whole year of advanced math and science,” Paxton said.
Those opportunities include combining computing with education to make customized learning tools, with nursing to improve the software used by health care providers, and with political science to improve citizens’ access to their elected officials, according to Paxton.
“If we look at any of the significant challenges in the world today, computer scientists will play a role in solving them,” Paxton said.
About half of the degree options require students to complete at least one year of a second language, reflecting the increasingly international nature of computing work, said Paxton, who minored in German during college and has since been a visiting professor in Morocco, El Salvador and other countries.
Already, well over a dozen students currently pursuing the department’s bachelor of science degree have expressed interest in switching to the new degree. Paxton said he expects that, going forward, the new degree will also attract many students who wouldn’t otherwise have considered studying computer science and who have a wider range of backgrounds.
“Numerous studies show that a diverse set of practitioners solves problems better than a more homogeneous group,” Paxton said. “The computing industry is clamoring for a more diverse workforce.”
Paxton said the computer science faculty decided in 2015 to create the new degree in response to interest from students as well as from the department’s advisory board, which consists of representatives from Oracle, Micron, Workiva and other top computing companies.
Paxton said the degree is also aimed at giving students a well-rounded education that they can use to improve society using computing as a tool.
“It’s not enough to make technology for technology’s sake,” Paxton said. “We need to understand the world we live in, in order to be able to construct a future that’s better. This new degree opens up that opportunity for many students.” •
