Apr 03, 2025

2025-2026 Undergraduate Catalog

Computer Engineering B.S.C.P.

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TOTAL DEGREE HOURS: 120
Plans of Study

The Computer Engineering program focuses on the design, development, and application of computer hardware and software systems. The program devotes significant time to topics in computing circuits, digital logic design, computer architecture, hardware design, and design automation, including extensive laboratory work. Additional course work in algorithms, discrete structures, object-oriented design and data structures, operating systems, and a wide range of advanced electives including quantum computing and artificial intelligence topics extend and supplement the core.

Mission Statement

The Bellini College of AI, Cybersecurity, and Computing at the University of South Florida is dedicated to transforming the role of computing technologies in society. We are committed to:

Delivering High-Demand Academic Programs: Deliver a comprehensive range of undergraduate, graduate, and professional majors, both disciplinary and interdisciplinary, in artificial intelligence (AI), cybersecurity, and computing. The majors are pedagogically effective and designed with high standards to be rigorous, relevant, and meet the current and future needs of industry, government, and society.

Advancing Research Excellence: Focus on innovative investigations and technological advances to elevate the state of AI, cybersecurity, and computing research. Push the boundaries of knowledge in our fields, facilitating collaboration and innovation across all academic disciplines and fostering an environment that encourages curiosity, creativity, and critical thinking.

Promoting Ethics and Trust: Instill a deep sense of responsibility in our students and faculty, emphasizing the importance of secure and trustworthy technology. Through research, curricula, industry partnerships, and community engagement, promote ethically driven policies and practices that protect privacy, ensure security, and foster the social good.

Program Educational Objectives and Student Outcomes

The College has established the following program educational objectives for Computer Engineering graduates.

Objective 1: Our graduates will apply their knowledge and skills to succeed in their careers and/or obtain advanced degrees.

Objective 2: Our graduates will behave ethically and responsibly, will remain informed through continuing education, and will be involved as full participants in their profession and society.

Objective 3: Our graduates will creatively solve problems, communicate effectively, and successfully function in multi-disciplinary teams.

Objective 4: Our graduates will apply principles and best practices of computing based on sound data grounded in mathematics and science to successfully complete hardware and/or software-related engineering projects to meet customer business objectives and/or productively engage in research

University Admissions - Bellini College of AI, Cybersecurity, and Computing

Admission to the University and College is based on the University’s Undergraduate Admission Requirements that may be found by clicking on the following URLs:

Freshman: https://www.usf.edu/admissions/freshmen/admission-information/requirements-deadlines.aspx
Transfer: https://www.usf.edu/admissions/transfer/admission-information/index.aspx
International: https://www.usf.edu/admissions/international/admission-information/index.aspx

For Admission information specific to the Bellini College of AI, Cybersecurity, and Computing, see the information at Bellini College of AI, Cybersecurity and Computing .

Progression Requirements in the Upper Division

Computer Engineering students who have fully met the requirements below and are in good academic standing, may progress into the upper level of the major. Prior to progression into the upper level, a student may take no more than two upper-level CAICC courses. The college may have continuation requirements, which specify minimum performance standards in core major courses which must be met before further registration is granted.

Ability to register for COP 4530 - Data Structures
A minimum overall GPA of 2.0
A minimum USF GPA of 2.0

College Policies

In addition to the already stated College graduation requirements, the College has the following policies:

Mandatory academic advising and/or mentoring of students.
Exit interview and/or survey as a graduation requirement.

Required Courses: (93 Credit Hours)

State Mandated Common Course Prerequisites - Computer Engineering B.S.C.P. (30 credit hours)*

Following Florida BOG Regulation 8.010, state mandated common course prerequisites are lower-division courses that are required for progression into the upper-division of a particular baccalaureate degree program.

Transfer students should complete the following prerequisite courses at the lower-level prior to entering the university. If these courses are not taken at a Florida College System institution, they must be completed before the degree is granted. Successful completion of common prerequisites alone does not guarantee a student admission into the degree program.

Unless stated otherwise, a grade of C is the minimum acceptable grade in prerequisite courses.

MAC X311 OR MAC X281 - 4 credit hours
MAC X312 OR MAC X282 - 4 credit hours
MAC X313 OR MAC X283 - 4 credit hours
MAP X302 Differential Equations - 3 credit hours
(CHM X045 AND CHM X045L) OR CHM X045C OR CHM X440C - 4 credit hours
(PHY X048 AND PHYX048L) OR PHY X048C - 5 credit hours
(PHY X049 AND PHY X049L) OR PHY X049C - 5 credit hours
COP XXXX Intro Programming in C, C++, JAVA OR equivalent language**

* All state common prerequisite courses count towards major requirements and are not additional credit hours.

** Introductory Programming in C, C++, Java, OR equivalent language. Choose programming language required by the university to which the student wishes to transfer.

State Mathematics Pathway - Computer Engineering B.S.C.P (7 Credit Hours)*

The Computer Engineering B.S.C.P. uses the Algebra through Calculus Mathematics Pathway with the following requirements:

MAC 1105 - College Algebra Credit(s): 3 **
MAC 2311 - Calculus I Credit(s): 4
* Mathematics Pathway courses count towards the State Common Prerequisite math courses and are not additional credits.
** Students may place out of MAC 1105 and begin at a higher-level math class.

Major Core Courses: 32 courses; 81 credit hours

Major Electives: 12 credit hours

Computer Engineering students must choose 6 hours of hardware electives and an additional non-overlapping 6 hours of CSE electives (“software”, “hardware”, “AI”, or ”theory”) in the College.

The undergraduate section of the CAICC website contains the most up to date list of approved artificial intelligence electives. Additional electives may be available with a special topics course number (typically, CIS 4930 ). The prerequisite for most, but not all, College upper-level technical electives is COP 4530 - Data Structures . The prerequisite for AI electives is CAI 4002 - Introduction to Artificial Intelligence . Consult with the undergraduate CAICC advising team to learn more about available electives. A maximum of six (6) hours of CIS 4900 and/or any other supervised individual study (including CIS 4915 and CIS 4940 ) are allowed as CSE electives.

Hardware Electives: 6 credit hours

CDA 4253 - Field Programmable Gate Array System Design and Analysis Credit(s): 3
CDA 4321 - Cryptographic Hardware and Embedded Systems Credit(s): 3
CDA 4322 - Principles of Secure Hardware Design Credit(s): 3
CDA 4323 - Practical Hardware Security Credit(s): 3

Technical Electives: 6 credit hours

CAI 4002 - Introduction to Artificial Intelligence Credit(s): 3
CAI 4841 - Computer Vision Credit(s): 3
CAI 4842 - Image Processing Fundamentals Credit(s): 3
CAP 4034 - Computer Animation Fundamentals Credit(s): 3
CAP 4103 - Mobile Biometrics Credit(s): 3
CAP 4111 - Introduction to Augmented and Virtual Reality Credit(s): 3
CAP 4160 - Brain-Computer Interfaces Credit(s): 3
CAP 4628 - Affective Computing Credit(s): 3
CAP 4641 - Natural Language Processing Credit(s): 3
CAP 4662 - Introduction to Robotics Credit(s): 3
CAP 4744 - Interactive Data Visualization Credit(s): 3
CAP 4773 - Social Media Mining Credit(s): 3
CDA 4253 - Field Programmable Gate Array System Design and Analysis Credit(s): 3
CDA 4321 - Cryptographic Hardware and Embedded Systems Credit(s): 3
CDA 4322 - Principles of Secure Hardware Design Credit(s): 3
CDA 4323 - Practical Hardware Security Credit(s): 3
CDA 4621 - Control of Mobile Robots Credit(s): 3
CEN 4072 - Software Testing Credit(s): 3
CIS 4212 - Privacy-Preserving and Trustworthy Cyber-Infrastructures Credit(s): 3
CIS 4345 - Big Data Storage and Analysis with Hadoop Credit(s): 3
CIS 4900 - Independent Study in Computer Science Credit(s): 1-5
CIS 4915 - Supervised Research in Computer Science Credit(s): 0-5
CIS 4930 - Special Topics in Computer Science I Credit(s): 1-3
(See department website for list of approved topics)
CIS 4940 - Industry Internship Credit(s): 0-6
CNT 4004 - Computer Networks I Credit(s): 3
CNT 4411 - Computing and Network Security Credit(s): 3
COP 4020 - Programming Languages Credit(s): 3
COP 4365 - Software System Development Credit(s): 3
COP 4520 - Computing in Massively Parallel Systems Credit(s): 3
COP 4620 - Compilers Credit(s): 3
COP 4710 - Database Design Credit(s): 3
COT 4210 - Automata Theory and Formal Languages Credit(s): 3
COT 4521 - Computational Geometry Credit(s): 3
COT 4601 - Quantum Computing and Quantum Algorithms Credit(s): 3

Industry Internship

The college recommends that BSCP students complete an industry internship. Students may earn up to six credit hours, as elective, for CIS 4940 - Industry Internship . No more than three credit hours in any one given company. Internships for CIS 4940 for AI students must be in the area of AI.

Additional Information - Computer Engineering B.S.C.P.

GPA Requirements

Students must have and maintain a minimum 2.0 semester GPA, 2.0 Math and Science GPA, 2.0 Engineering GPA, 2.0 Specialization GPA, 2.0 USF GPA, and 2.0 overall GPA.

Grading Requirements

Unless otherwise stated in the course prerequisites on USF Course Inventory, the minimum acceptable grade in all BSCP required courses is a C or higher (C- is insufficient).

Residency Requirements

Transfer students must complete a minimum number of approved specialization courses in the major at USF. The minimum number of USF specialization credit hours required is established by the respective academic department or college. In no case will this be less than 18 hours. Basic engineering courses are not considered specialization courses. The University residency requirement must also be met.

A concurrent degree (dual degree) student must meet the requirements of each major and have a minimum of 18 approved specialization hours taken in the degree granting department or college beyond those specialization hours required for the first degree.

Internship Opportunities

The CAICC and the USF Center for Career and Professional Development Cooperative Education (Co-Op) program provides services for students interested in experiential educational experiences. A wide variety of industries and government agencies offer internships and cooperative education employment opportunities for students. Participants gain valuable expertise in practical applications and other aspects of operations and development in a professional environment. Students normally apply for participation in this program during their first year and pursue actual internships during their sophomore, junior and senior years. See the CAICC advising team for more information on earning academic credit for internships.

Accreditation Information

The Computer Engineering (B.S.) program is accredited by the Engineering Accreditation Commission of ABET, https://www.abet.org, under the General Criteria and Program Criteria for Electrical, Computer, Communications, Telecommunication(s) and Similarly Named Engineering Programs.

Research Opportunities - Bellini College of AI, Cybersecurity, and Computing

Undergraduate students in any degree program are able to participate in undergraduate research. Several options exist to show mentored undergraduate research activity on a student’s official transcript. Those who wish to enroll in an undergraduate research course should consult with their academic advisor to understand how the credit will apply towards the degree requirements. If no credit is needed, students may be eligible to enroll in the 0-credit IDS 4914 - Advanced Undergraduate Research Experience course. This course will not impact degree credits or GPA but will show on an official transcript and document the experience. The Office of High Impact Practices and Undergraduate Research (HIPUR) is able to assist with further inquiries.

Advising Information - Computer Engineering B.S.C.P.

Undergraduate Advisors: https://www.usf.edu/ai-cybersecurity-computing/people/advisors.aspx