Accepted Students Celebration 2020

We welcome accepted students and their families to the Computer Science Department at Rensselaer!  Use this webpage to navigate our online events over the coming weeks, to familiarize yourself with our department, and to get your questions answered.

Schedule of Online Events -- RSVP now!

Below is a summary of events specific to computer science.  Use the URLs below to navigate to these events, some of which have sign-up RSVPs.

  • Computer Science Student Webinar [March 26 at 6:00PM EDT]  Meet a panel of current students, ask questions, and learn about their experiences at Rensselaer.
  • Accepted Students Day (ASD) Celebration [April 4 at 11:00AM EDT]  Professor and Department Head Chuck Stewart will introduce our department, our curriculum, and our students via a live online presentation that will also include a Q&A session.  Then at about 12:00PM EDT, we will have over 40 students online ready to meet one-on-one via a queuing app written by one of our current students, Frank Matranga.
  • Women in Computer Science Panel [April 6 at 6:00PM EDT]  Meet female student leaders and hear about the student-organized mentorship program, Rensselaer's women in computing chapter ACM-W, informal gatherings, and other resources for women in the department.
  • Meet a Professor [various dates]  Our computer science professors will be available to meet and discuss the department, their coursework and research, and answer your questions.  Please RSVP using the URLs below, which will then generate an email as to how to join in the meeting.
  • Meet a Student [April 4 and various dates]  One of the best ways to learn about what it's like to be a student at Rensselaer is to meet with a current student one-on-one.  Students will be available immediately following the April 4 ASD presentation (see URLs above).  We will use a queuing app written by one of our students!  You are also able to schedule one-on-one meetings during the month of April (please email info@cs.rpi.edu describing your general availability).

About the Department

The undergraduate program in computer science prepares students to solve real-world problems and carry out fundamental research.  Our undergraduates distinguish themselves by landing high-income jobs at such companies as Google, IBM, Microsoft, Bloomberg, Epic Systems, Facebook, Amazon, and numerous other companies both large and small.  Many of our students go on to prominent graduate schools.  Given our strengths and successes, in 2019, our incoming class of first-year students was again one of the largest ever in our 34-year history.  And recently, in the Fall 2018 semester, computer science became the largest major at Rensselaer.

Our undergraduate program is both rigorous and flexible.  Our rigor makes our students highly desirable for employment after graduation, with the average starting salary for computer science students graduating in 2019 just over $96,000.  Our program's flexibility enables our students to earn dual majors in computer science and another discipline, including various fields of engineering, e.g., computer and systems engineering (CSYS), as well as mathematics (MATH), information technology and web science (ITWS), business and management (BMGT), games and simulation arts and sciences (GSAS), electronic media arts and communication (EMAC), and many more.  Approximately 35% of our majors are dual majors, and many students also pursue minors in other fields.

Select the URLs below for more specific information (all URLs open in a new browser window):

CS Clubs and Organizations

Our students are very active in extracurricular activities.  Within our department, students participate in the RPI Computing Club, Upsilon Pi Epsilon (or UPE, the computer science honor society), RPISEC (the computer security club), ACM-W (women in computing), HackRPI, and Coding&&Community.  With well over 200 student organizations on campus, students find many opportunities to pursue their extracurricular interests.

Select the URLs below for flyers and/or links to websites for these organization (all URLs open in a new browser window):

CS News

A few recent news and articles involving our students and faculty are included below (all URLs open in a new browser window).  Also consider following our Twitter feed (click here)!