Bx/MS FAQ - Admitted Students

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I register for more than three courses per quarter?

  • BX/MS students are only permitted to register for more than three classes in situations where it is required for them to graduate with their BX and MS degrees. Specializations, honors, or other designations are not considered necessary for this purpose.
  • This situation occurs most commonly when a student needs to take three courses to complete their BX degree requirements in their fourth year.

Can I participate in the MPCS Practicum?

BX/MS students are not permitted to participate in the MPCS Practicum course. You may want to consider the MPCS Application Development Capstone as an alternative.

When will I register for courses?

  • For undergraduate courses, you should plan on going through the College’s registration process – including pre-registration and add/drop.
  • For graduate courses, registration occurs in two phases.
      • Phase 1: Pre-registration Survey [Only for MPCS courses]
        • This process is similar to bidding.
        • The Pre-Registration Survey for the Autumn quarter will be sent in early September. 
        • For Winter and Spring registration, the Pre-registration Survey will be sent in Week 5 of the preceding quarter. 
      • Phase 2: Registration by Request
        • A registration form will be sent the week that the graduate schedule is published. 
      • Please see the table below for important dates related to registration.

    Table of important dates for Bx/MS registration.

  • The last day to make changes to your schedule is the Friday of third week.
  • Please see the Registrar’s page for the most up-to-date registration dates

Does my GPA include the graduate courses I take for my MS?

Yes, anything taken while a student is still pursuing their BX counts as part of their GPA, even if it is a Graduate level course.

Can I request separate transcripts for each degree?

No, it’s not possible to separate the transcripts. Because your BX is still in progress while you are working towards the MS, it all appears as part of a single transcript.

How many courses can I double-count between my BX and MS degrees?

You are allowed to double-count no more than two courses.

How many 2xx-level courses can I count towards my MS degree?

You are allowed to count no more than two 2xx-level courses towards your MS requirements.

An MPCS course has Core Programming as a prerequisite. Do I satisfy this requirement?

Students who have completed an intro sequence in CS (one of CMSC 1×1 and one of CMSC 1×2) are considered to have satisfied the Core Programming prerequisite.

What courses am I allowed to take?

  • Option 1
    • Students in this option are allowed to take courses from the CMSC 3xx-level and TTIC* offerings.
  • Option 2 and 3
    • Students in this option are allowed to take courses from the MPCS, CMSC 2xx-level, CMSC 3xx-level, and TTIC* offerings
    • * Students must request consent to enroll in TTIC courses.
  • The blanket exception to this guidance is that students cannot take a course if they have already taken a course that has significant overlap (e.g, CMSC 23500 Introduction to Database Systems and MPCS 53001 Databases).
  • See the “Allowed Courses” section of the Joint Bx/MS Catalog page for more information.

I was admitted to the program with a Winter start. How will this impact my status?

You will retain a joint undergraduate/graduate status for the Winter and Spring quarters. However, your undergraduate status will end after Spring and you will become a graduate student for the remainder of the joint program. This status change can have implications for financial aid, housing, etc.

If you have questions, you should reach out to Financial Aid to discuss the implications of being a graduate student for your final quarter.