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Computational Media Design CMD

Contact Information

Location: Information and Communications Technology Building, Room 602
Faculty number: 403.220.6015
Fax: 403.284.4707
Email address: gradapps@cmd.ucalgary.ca
Web page URL:

1. Degrees and Specializations Offered

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)
Master of Science (MSc)

These degrees are offered jointly through the Department of Computer Science, Faculty of Science; Faculty of Environmental Design; and Departments of Art and Music, Faculty of Arts.

Students may register in the MSc and PhD programs as part-time students only with permission from the CMD Operations Committee.

2. Admission Requirements

In addition to Faculty of Graduate Studies admission requirements, the CMD program requires two reference letters dated within twelve months of the date of application and:

Master of Science

An undergraduate background that includes a four-year Bachelor's degree or equivalent with a GPA of 3.00 or over.

a) While applicants from any discipline will be considered, undergraduate degrees in Computer Science, Arts, Music, or Design are favoured. Starting CMD with a background in one area is possible, but background in two areas is preferred.

b) For applicants required to provide proof of proficiency in English, a TOEFL score of 600 (written test), 250 (computer-based test) or 100 (internet-based test), or an IELTS score of 7.5 or a minimum MELAB score of 84 above is required.

c)Â For students applying with degrees from outside Canada, GRE scores are required. GRE General score of at least 600 verbal and 750 quantitative and either 720 analytical (old test format) or 5.5 (new test format).

d) A single page statement of interest. This is not a proposal but a declaration of interest in interdisciplinary research in art, design or music and computer science.

e) Portfolios can be provided but are not required. A portfolio of up to 10 recent works presented in CD/DVD format, or made accessible on-line, is optional but strongly recommended. This is particularly true for students applying with an art, design or music background.

f) A demonstrated interest in interdisciplinary research in art, design or music and computer science.

Doctor of Philosophy

a) All the admission requirements for a Master of Science (above).

b) A Masterâ€™s degree from a recognized institution. For exceptional students applying directly to the PhD program with a Bachelor degree, all the requirements for a Master of Science (above) apply, plus demonstrated exceptional research and/or creative ability. These direct entry students will be considered on a case-by-case basis.

c) A curriculum vitae.

3. Application Deadline

Deadlines for the submission of complete applications:

1 February for September admission
1 May for January admission

4. Advanced Credit

The applicant must make advanced credit requests as part of the admission process. Credit will not be given for course work taken as part of another completed degree/diploma or for courses taken to bring the grade point average to a required level for admission.

5. Program/Course Requirements

Graduate courses must be chosen in consultation with the supervisor(s) and approved by the CMD Director.

Students are required to achieve a grade of at least B in all courses taken to fulfil CMD course requirements.

Seminar Requirement: Students are required to give a CMD seminar presentation on a topic related to their graduate research/creative practice.

Master of Science

a) Course Requirement: Computational Media Design Research Methodology (half-course equivalent).

b) One Computer Science graduate level half-course equivalent.

c) One graduate level half-course equivalent from Art, Environmental Design or Music, and

d) Two additional graduate level half-course equivalents, for a total of five half-course equivalents.

e) Additional courses can be required on a case-by-case basis.

f) Supervision as specified in section 9.

g) Master's Thesis.

h) Master's Thesis Oral Examination as specified in section 11.

Doctor of Philosophy

a) Course Requirements: At least three graduate level half-course equivalents must be taken while the student is enrolled as a PhD student in Computational Media Design at the ²ÝÝ®ÎÛÊÓÆµµ¼º½.

b) Breadth Requirements:

Course Requirement: Computational Media Design Research Methodology (half-course equivalent)
Two Computer Science graduate level half-course equivalents
Two graduate level half-course equivalents from Art, Environmental Design and/or Music, and
Three additional graduate level half-course equivalents, for a total of eight half-course equivalents.

c) An alternative breadth program that satisfies the student, the supervisor(s), the supervisory committee, and the CMD Directors may be proposed in special cases.

d) Supervision as specified in Section 9.

e) PhD Thesis.

f) PhD Candidacy examination as specified in Section 10.

g) PhD Thesis oral examination as specified in Section 10.

Exit requirements: MSc students

a) CMD MSc course requirements (see above).

b) Appropriately scoped for an interdisciplinary MSc, original research and/or creative practice body of work.

c) A seminar on the research and/or creative practice body of work conducted during the CMD MSc.

d) CMD MSc thesis and thesis defence (see sections 10 and 11 below).

Exit requirements: PhD students

a) CMD PhD course requirements (see above).

b) CMD PhD candidacy exam (see section 10 below).

c) Appropriately scoped for an interdisciplinary PhD, original research and/or creative practice body of work.

d) A seminar on the research and/ or creative practice body of work conducted during the CMD PhD.

e) CMD PhD thesis and thesis defence (see sections 10 and 11 below).

6. Additional Requirements

None.

7. Credit for Undergraduate Courses

Undergraduate courses will not be considered for advanced standing in the CMD program. Permission that at most one half-course at the 500 level be included as part of the course work requirement must be sought. This must be recommended by the supervisor(s) and approved by the CMD Director on the appropriate form.

8. Time Limit

MSc. maximum time: 4 years; expected completion time 2 years.

PhD maximum time: 6 years: expected completion time 4 years.

9. Supervisory Assignments

For simplifying the explanations in this document and for the purposes of CMD requirements, Arts (Art and Music) and Environmental Design are considered as one unit and referred to as Arts and Design. Generally, students are admitted to a specific research area and supervisor. Sometimes students are admitted to a specific lab or research area only, and are assigned an interim advisor.

Appointment of the Supervisor(s): CMD students will have an interim supervisor and interim co-supervisor appointed on their acceptance letter. Between the supervisor and the co-supervisor the disciplines of Computer Science and Arts and Design will be covered. Students may seek a change in research area or supervisor after admission. The student must find permanent supervisors within six months of the start of the program. Such a change must be satisfactory to the student, and supported by the supervisors and must be approved by the CMD Director. The role of the supervisor is to take responsibility for overall guidance, instruction, and research/creative practice supervision. The role of the co-supervisor in this case is to provide supplementary guidance, instruction and research stimulation on a regular or extensive basis.

Doctoral Supervisory Committee: Composition of the Doctoral Supervisory Committee. The Doctoral Supervisory Committee should be constituted by the supervisor and co-supervisor in consultation with the student and must be approved by the CMD Director and sent to the Faculty of Graduate Studies for confirmation. It will consist of the supervisor and co-supervisor, and two additional members. The two additional committee members may be external to the student's program. At least one of the members of the Supervisory Committee should have had supervisory experience at the doctoral level. Exceptions to this will be considered on an individual basis.

10. Required Examinations

Final thesis oral examinations are open examinations.

Masterâ€™s Thesis Oral Examination

This exam will be conducted as specified by the Faculty of Graduate Studies. A thesis component that describes research conducted and/or body of creative work completed is required to complete the program. Graduating students will have to demonstrate skills and expertise in Computer Science and Arts and Design. CMD wants to encourage research and creative work that incorporates aspects of both Computer Science and Art and Design, thus there is recognition for and appreciation of a thesis that represents an interdisciplinary balance between the fields.

The CMD MSc student's Internal Examiner will be a member of the alternate discipline to the primary Supervisor. For example with a Computer Science primary supervisor, the Internal Examiner will be from Art and Design. The CMD MSc student's External Examiner will be from outside the CMD membership. Exceptions to this rule will be considered on an individual basis. At least one of the members of the Supervisory Committee should have had supervisory experience at the Master's level. Normal Faculty of Graduate Studies rules about conflicts apply.

PhD Thesis Oral Examination

This exam will be conducted as specified by the Faculty of Graduate Studies. A thesis that describes the research conducted and/or the body of creative work completed is required to complete the PhD in the CMD program. The thesis will set the research/work in its literary and new media context and present evidence that the work is worthy of either publication or external recognition. Graduating students will have to have demonstrated skills and expertise in Computer Science and Arts and Design. CMD wants to encourage research and creative work that incorporates aspects of both Computer Science and Art and Design, thus there is recognition for and appreciation of a thesis that represents an interdisciplinary balance between the fields.

The CMD PhD student's Internal Examiner will be a Faculty member from ²ÝÝ®ÎÛÊÓÆµµ¼º½ but outside the CMD membership. The CMD PhD student's External Examiner will be an international expert in the research/creative practice area of the student's research. Normal Faculty of Graduate Studies rules about conflicts apply.

PhD Candidacy Exam

The CMD PhD Candidacy Exam is composed of:

a) A Reading List: The scope of the candidacy exam is defined by a reading list. This reading list is prepared by the student and the student's supervisor(s) in consultation with the student's supervisory committee. This reading list must be approved at least two months before the written and oral candidacy examinations.

b) A Research Proposal (see section 11).

c) A Written Exam: The CMD written examinations are taken by the candidate after course work is completed, and after approval of the doctoral proposal, and before the oral candidacy examination. The CMD written exam must be approved by the CMD Director, and consists of a take-home examination (normally 6-10 days).

d) A Candidacy Oral Exam: The candidate's reading list, completed written exam, together with research proposal, must be submitted to the examination committee at least 10 working days in advance of the candidacy oral exam. These documents form the basis for the candidacy oral exam.

11. Research Proposal Requirements

Research proposal requirements are determined by the supervisor at the Masterâ€™s level.

At the Doctoral level, a research proposal, approved by the student's supervisory committee, must be submitted to the CMD Director at least one week before the departmental written exam begins. The research proposal will contain an abstract, a literature survey (including an analysis of the literature), an overview of the proposed research and creative work, a plan for completing the proposed research and creative work, and references.

12. Special Registration Information

None.

13. Financial Assistance

Financial assistance may be available to qualified students. For information on awards see the Awards and Financial Assistance section of the calendar. Successful applicants may be offered departmental teaching assistantships and/or research assistantships in their offer letter.

Students applying for scholarships must submit their applications as appropriate according to the requirements of the scholarships.

14. Other Information

None.

15. Faculty Members/Research Interests

Information on faculty research interests may be found at:

Registration in all graduate courses requires the approval of the Computational Media Design. CMD students are eligible to take any course in Computer Science, Arts, and Environmental Design, provided they have the necessary prerequisites.

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