CSE MS Program - New Student FAQs

Welcome, New CSE MS Students!

This page is designed to provide you with information, FAQs, and resources for the fall 2025 quarter.  As the MS Program receive updates, information will be posted here on this web page as well as email notifications to your @UCSD.edu account. 

MS Curriculum Guidance:

New MS Student - Curriculum Action Items

IMPORTANT: Ahead of the upcoming enrollment instructions and degree plan advising sessions, please make sure that you have carefully reviewed the following:

General Course Recommendations
  • The general recommendation during the first couple of quarters is to enroll in a combination of courses that you seek as priority academic interests, explore your depth area of interest, or key courses to build skills for industry goals, and for building research interests. As one example,  this may be a combination of a depth course, along with a breadth and elective. However, there are many various other combinations (such as two depths & one breadth, etc), depending on your customized  academic plan. 
  • Please note the course instructor’s stated “required knowledge” and background for all CSE graduate courses. All students, especially students that need background preparation in specific subject areas, will benefit from reviewing the faculty area recommendations for Graduate Course Preparation.  
  • The most critical component is that you have the proper background to succeed in your courses of interest. Students are responsible for reviewing course  Prerequisites and Preparation (NOTE: FAll 2024 is in progress and will be posted soon.) and CSE Graduate Course Descriptions which are updated on a quarterly basis.
Balancing TAship  
  • If a student is offered a TAship: The 12 unit course load should be balanced by enrolling in two graduate courses and TA units. Other variations are possible with guidance from advisors. 
Fall 2025 Enrollment Instructions

Fall 2025 Course Enrollment Timeline

The CSE Department graduate enrollment office/coordinator will be sending information about fall 2005 enrollment, course descriptions, & instructions on how to use the CSE SERF (SERF is the first stage of enrollment for all CSE Graduate Students). The notice will be sent by our Enrollment Coordinator, Tina Chung (cse-grad-enrollment@ucsd.edu). Please keep an eye out for the upcoming notice by mid June.

The SERF enrollment (internal enrollment system) timeline and periods will be notified in by early June. Please lookout for the emails from the enrollment coordinator. More information, including specific instructions on how to enroll will be included.

Enrollment Policies to Note Ahead

Quarterly Unit Limit

MS Students may enroll in 12 -14 units quarterly. Enrollment and Accounts holds are placed if a student is not within the permitted unit policy.

Required to enroll in CSE Curriculum Courses ONLY

Students must be enrolled in CSE graduate level breadth, depth, elective pre-approved coursework (Electives List), or CSE upper-division (100-199) courses on a quarterly basis

**CSE MS Students are NOT permitted to enroll in lower division courses (numbered 0-99) at UCSD.

Enrollment holds will be placed for accounts with enrollments not in compliance with their CS75 or CS76 major requirements. 

Enrollment Deadline

Students have until week 2, Friday, to finalize all course changes. Please make sure to check your academic history to make sure you are enrolled in the correct courses and units.

Students with TAs, GSR, or UCSD Employment

Graduate students with TA employment should balance their course load with the employment work. For example, if a student is offered a 50% TA position, they should be enrolled in two graduate courses (8 units) and the corresponding TA units.  

MANDATORY - CSE MS Orientation and Degree Plan Advising Session
  • The date and time for the MANDATORY CSE MS New Student Welcome Orientation will be announced soon.
  • The dates and times for the Degree Plan and Curriculum Sessions will be announced at a later date. Students will receive notice via email. The sessions are anticipated to be offered remotely.
Academic Advising, Admissions, and New Student Questions
  • Dates of orientation, webinar, and workshops to be posted soon.

UCSD Email - Required

UCSD Email Account

ALL CSE AND UCSD COMMUNICATION for upcoming announcements and moving forward will be directed to your @UCSD email account. All new students should have setup their @UCSD email accounts. For assistance with technical issues regarding your UCSD email account, please contact the ITS Service Desk. 

International Students and ISPO Updates:

Please check General ISPO Updates at Updates

 

International Students - Full Time Quarterly Units Requirement

International Students are required to be enrolled full time *12 units*on a quarterly basis (maximum of 14 units).

Domestic Students (U.S. Citizens and Permanent Residents):

Domestic Students - Quarterly Units

Domestic students with more than 25% UCSD campus employment, and/or reside in UCSD housing, financial aid contracts, or any other contract requiring full time status will need to be enrolled in 12 units. The maximum permitted units are 12-14 units.

Domestic Students: Half Time or Part Time Options

MS Domestic Students - Enrollment Options:

  • Domestic Students (U.S. Citizens & Permanent Residents) have the option to be enrolled full time (12 units), part time (less than 12 units), or half time status (6 or less units) depending on their academic standing, employment, and campus housing status. 
  • Half- Time Status Policies (6 units or less): Domestic students may officially file a petition for “half time status” (must be 6 units or less) for reduced tuition/fees. Students must be in good academic standing. NOTE: Students employed at UCSD more than 25% are not eligible to apply (this includes TA or GSR positions) since 12 units of enrollment will be required. In addition, students residing in UCSD housing may need to maintain 12 units of enrollment, financial aid contracts requiring 12 units, or any other contract requiring full time status.
  • NOTE:  If you are considering applying for half time status, we recommend consulting with our staff as soon as possible to plan out the timeline of submission and information about the onlineform to complete. Half time forms should be submitted before the quarter begins. Domestic MS students approved for half-time study must be enrolled in 6 or fewer units at the time of application. 

CSE and UCSD Employment, Scholarship, and GSR Opportunties:

CSE Teaching Assistantship (TA): Fall 2025 Applications

Fall 2025 Teaching Assistantship (TA) Application Timeline

A notice will be sent to new students from the TA Coordinator for the CSE TA application process. You are welcome to learn more about CSE TAships via this website. 

General Resources for Employment, Scholarships, and Campus Wide TA/GSR Opportunities
CSE Career Advising Services

The CSE MS Program Career Development Advisor will be notifying students (dates to be determined) of the upcoming fall 2024 orientation, workshops, and individual 1-1 advising sessions specific to our MS student population. 

 Graduate Student Resources:

Resource Mapping Guide 
Housing Resources
  1. UCSD Graduate Housing Information
  2. Off-Campus Housing Resources
  3. Another Option is VeryApt -  Housing guide for you based on the experiences of our current students and where they actually live. We hope this guide helps you to make an informed decision. You can find the housing guide here:  UC San Diego CSE Housing Guide
Graduate Division New Student Resources
UCSD Campus Virtual Tour
CSE Department News
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