The Division of Computer and Information Sciences in New Brunswick was established at Rutgers in 1969 as the Computer Science Department. The undergraduate colleges at Rutgers offer programs leading to a Bachelor's degree in Computer Science. The division's faculty are members of the School of Arts and Sciences. The Graduate Program in Computer Science, which is a program in the Graduate School, offers courses of study leading to an M.Sc. or a Ph.D. in computer science. (The Master of Philosophy degree is available to doctoral candidates who have fulfilled certain requirements except for completing a dissertation.)
In 2001, the university decided to upgrade the status of Computer Science to the Division of Computer and Information Sciences within SAS. This follows the model of the Division of Life Sciences, which was created earlier. The Division includes the Department of Computer Science and several research centers. DCIS will eventually be led by the Area Dean, just like the other 5 divisions within the SAS. The formation of the Division reflects high priority which computer sciences enjoys within the SAS. The Division intends to grow to 60 faculty and several strong, externally funded research centers in new, exciting areas.
There are about 135 full-time MSCS students and 168 PH.D candidates in the division.
There are 87 full-time faculty members in the Computer Science Department. Faculty research interests include algorithms, artificial intelligence (with applications to design, genetics, law, and medicine), cognitive science, combinatorics, compilers, complexity theory, computational geometry, computational linguistics, computational molecular biology, data structures, distributed systems, graphics, knowledge representation, machine learning, mathematical programming, mobile computing, networks, numerical analysis, optimization, parallel computing/systems, software engineering, and vision.
The Laboratory for Computer Science Research (LCSR) is associated with the division. Its primary function is to provide a center for computer science research in the University and, in particular, to provide the computer and clerical support for that work. Computer science grant-supported research projects are administered through the LCSR.
Rutgers University is located in New Brunswick, New Jersey. The University has an excellent library, an art museum, active theater groups, and an outstanding music program with internationally known resident and visiting performers. The excellent sports facilities include a new gym with several swimming pools and places to work out; the new gym is half a block from the Division of Computer and Information Sciences. New Brunswick is on the main railway line running from Boston (and Montreal) to Florida via New Haven, New York City, Princeton, Philadephia, Washington, D.C., etc. It is also on the bus route between Princeton and New York City. Buses and trains run every half hour during the weekdays, less often on other days. It is about an hour's drive to New York City, an hour and a half to Philadelphia, a half an hour's drive to Princeton (southeast), as well as AT&T Research, Lucent/Bell Labs and Bellcore (northwest).
