Computer Science, PhD

The Department of Computer Science offers a four-year graduate program leading to a PhD in Computer Science. This program provides a high quality, leading-edge education on Computer Science that produces highly capable and sought after researchers and professional leaders. PhD students have the opportunity to conduct cutting-edge research in computer science with some of the best researchers in the world.

Admission Requirements

Additional Requirements

Entry into the PhD Program for Applicants with non-CS Undergraduate Degrees

For students who do not hold a four-year Honour's degree in Computer Science, to be eligible to apply for admission into the PhD program they must have the equivalent of the following:

• Four-year Honours degree (or equivalent) with very high standing from a recognized university or college.
• Computer Science 3305 (Operating Systems), Computer Science 3331 (Foundations of Computer Science I), Computer Science 3340 (Analysis of Algorithms I), and either Computer Science 3307 (Object Oriented Design and Analysis) or Computer Science 3342 (Organization of Programming Languages.
• One Computer Science course at the third-year or fourth-year level, different from those listed above.
• Two additional Computer Science courses at the fourth-year level.

English Language Proficiency

Applicants whose first language is not English must furnish evidence of their proficiency in the use of the English language:

• The Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL). Minimum acceptable score is 92 for the internet version with no individual score below 20. [Western's TOEFL ID is 0984].
• The International English Language Testing Service (IELTS Academic). Minimum acceptable score is 6.5 out of 9.
• The Canadian Academic English Language Assessment (CAEL Assessment). Minimum acceptable score is 60.