Purpose

This policy governs content and advisors of MS theses that fulfill degree requirements in the CS Department.

Content and Scope

A Masters Thesis in a curriculum administered by the CS Department must deal with a computer science problem relevant to the Department of Defense or a particular student's sponsoring organization or government. The thesis must be an original and validated contribution to theory or practice.

1. Topic Selection:
   1. Students are typically allowed to choose any suitable thesis topic that interests them. There are, however, two important potential exceptions.
      1. The supervisor of students who are research assistants or research associates may specify allowable topics consistent with the objectives of the grant for which the student is working.
      2. An external agency sponsoring a student may specify allowable topics or research areas for that student.
   2. Thesis topics will be described in thesis proposals. Proposals are mutually agreed upon by both the student and advisor(s), will be reviewed by the Program Officer and Academic Associate and approved by the Department Chairman. Proposals should be submitted no later than 4 quarters before the student's expected graduation date (3 quarters for students on one-year programs).
   3. All students are automatically enrolled in CS4900 in their second quarter. CS4900 introduces students to the research interests of the faculty. That knowledge will help select topics, advisors, and cross-area collaborators.
2. Interdisciplinary Work and Joint Theses:
   1. Given the broad applicability of CS expertise and the many interdisciplinary problems that CS experts work on, theses that cross into other academic disciplines are highly encouraged. Students with appropriate expertise and interest may seek out topics and co-advisors or second readers from other NPS departments provided all CS thesis requirements are met.
   2. Joint theses with two students are permitted. The introduction to a joint thesis must state clearly the contribution of each author to the research and to its documentation. Each person must make an identifiable contribution that would qualify as a MS thesis on its own, and the two of them must contribute to a result that one alone could not have made.
3. Thesis as a Product:
   1. Each thesis must deliver validated results of value in the computer science community. Valuable results can take various forms, including but not limited to one or more of the following:

   Development and validation of models
   Development and validation of computer programs as tools
   Mathematical derivations and proofs
   Statistical and experimental studies
   Simulation studies
   Solution of a real-world problem

   2. All students are automatically enrolled in CS4901 to support them in the execution of their thesis plan. CS4901 is a workshop that covers thesis structure, requirements on literature and prior work, proper grounding of claims, gathering and organizing complex information, and writing clear, concise, and precise prose.

Advisors

1. Students will select thesis advisors with suitable expertise and interest in their thesis topic area prior to submitting a formal thesis proposal. Students will work with their advisors to develop the thesis proposal to include background research, problem statement, timeline, travel requirements, and expected results.
2. All CS-department theses will be advised by a committee configured as follows:
   1. Advisor and co-advisor,
   2. Advisor and second reader, or
   3. Two co-advisors.

Additional committee members are permitted and will be designated second readers.

3. Acceptable MS thesis committee members will meet the following requirements:

Advisor: A thesis advisor must be a PhD holding faculty member assigned to the CS Department or MOVES Institute.

Co-Advisor: A thesis co-advisor can be any member of the NPS faculty, including visiting scholars, post-doctoral scholars and adjunct faculty. When the committee is two co-advisors, at least one must meet advisor eligibility requirements.

Second Reader: A thesis reader can be any member of the NPS faculty. In addition, a representative of a student's research or other sponsoring agency, or the supervisor of a DL student, may serve in this role.

4. Students are encouraged to consult with many faculty members when considering topics and advisors and may select any eligible faculty as advisors, co-advisors, and second readers. In two circumstances, the choices of faculty may be further constrained:
   1. Supervisors of students who are employed as NPS research assistants or research associates may constrain thesis advisor selection for those students consistent with the grant for which the students are working.
   2. External agencies sponsoring NPS students may direct the selection of specific thesis advisors.
5. Interdisciplinary theses must have committee representation from all relevant departments. Students conducting interdisciplinary research will select faculty from other departments as appropriate to act as co-advisors and second readers. Faculty from other departments may not be the primary advisor on a CS thesis.

Exceptions

The CS Department Chair may make exceptions to this policy on a case-by-case basis. Requests for exceptions should be justified in the thesis proposal. Approval of the proposal approves the exception.