Admission to the major

If you are not currently a student at Ohio State, but are considering pursuing a degree in this department, please contact the Ohio State University Admissions Office for information on how to apply for admission to the university. This also applies if you are currently a student at some other university and are considering transferring to Ohio State. The department is not directly involved with admitting students to Ohio State.

Students new to OSU are not directly admitted to major status. Instead, they become pre-majors, either pre-CSE or pre-CIS. There are no specific requirements for becoming a pre-major other than having an interest in the major program and being a current OSU student in good standing in the appropriate college (Engineering for pre-CSE and Arts and Sciences for pre-CIS). Pre-majors have to complete a number of prerequisite courses before applying to become majors.

Pre-majors with little or no programming background should start by taking CSE 201 or 202. Pre-majors with suitable programming background may be able to place directly into CSE 221 by taking the placement exam.

Pre-majors who have met the prerequisite requirements (for BSCSE, or BSCIS, or BACIS) or will meet them this quarter, should submit their applications for admission to the major by seeing an undergraduate academic advisor in the Advising Office.
Important: In order to become a major, the student must complete the prerequisites and apply to the major; simply completing the prerequisite courses does not automatically confer major status.

Major status gives students access to faculty advisors, a permanent computer account, and priority scheduling for CSE courses. These are important benefits. Hence, if you plan to major in any of the programs in the department, and have completed the prerequisites, you should apply for admission to the major as soon as possible.