The Georgia Tech Online Master of Science in Computer Science (OMS CS) will be accepting applications for the Spring 2014 Semester from October 7 to October 27, 2013. The spring semester starts on Jan 15th with five courses, likely limiting enrollment at 100 students per course.

The program information states that if the classes are full, qualified applicants will be offered deferred enrollment in later semesters.  Qualified applicants are defined as those who have completed a Bachelor’s degree in CS or a related technical field at an accredited institution, with a GPA of 3.0 or higher.  Georgia Tech will also consider applicants without this background on a case-by-case basis, if they have significant work experience.

Application

It is important to note that, unlike registering for most MOOCs, this is a full application process that is similar to applying to a typical university in the U.S. You will need to prepare an application packet, which includes the following:

1. Personal information
2. University/college transcript – an official report from the school listing the classes and grades of the student. Georgia Tech accepts both official (on the institution’s letterhead) and unoffical (plain printout) transcripts (see an example transcript)
3. Background essay – additional information on your background
4. Essay question:  What has prepared you for the program?  (Up to 2000 character response)
5. A Statement of Purpose – a short sentence on your purpose for enrolling in the program (see, tips on the statement of purpose)
6. Essay question:  Academic and Career plans (Up to 4,000 character response)
7. For international students, your TOEFL (Test of English as a Foreign Language) Score. The cost of TOEFL exam varies by country, but usually costs upwards of 160$.
8. Recommendations – contacts who can recommend your work or skills, usually former professors or supervisors, possibly co-workers (see tips on choosing recommenders)

Cost of the Program

$50 – One-time application fee
$301 –  Per academic term of enrollment ($194 institutional fee + $107 technology fee)
$402 – Tuition Fee (for one 3 credit course). Tuition is $134 per credit hour and an average course is 3 credit hours.

$753 – Total to apply to the OMS CS program and take the first course

$703 – Per semester (doing one course at a time)

More details about the OMS CS program can be found here:

http://www.omscs.gatech.edu/program/