In many ways, the PhD program is the cornerstone of Computer Science at Boston University.  Our PhD students serve some of the most central roles of our department, from pursuing sponsored research together with supervising faculty members as Research Assistants, to serving as Teaching Fellows in support of our undergraduate and graduate curriculum.

Pursuing the PhD degree enables you to become an expert in a technical subfield of Computer Science and advance the state of the art by contributing original research in that discipline. Most PhD students also gain practical experience in the classroom, as well as, becoming a visible member of the research community by publishing research and delivering oral presentations at conferences and research seminars.

Upon completing your PhD degree, you will be able to set your own research direction, teach and advise students, and work at the forefront of cutting-edge research in academia or at an industrial laboratory.

Learning Outcomes

  1. Produce and defend original research in the field of Computer Science.
  2. Master broad knowledge of Computer Science across algorithms, software, systems, theory of computation, and in one of the areas of artificial intelligence, computer graphics, cryptography & security, and data science.
  3. Demonstrate in-depth knowledge of a particular subject area within Computer Science.
  4. Actively participate in the Computer Science research community, for example by attending academic conferences and submitting research results for publication in professional conferences and journals.
  5. Be able to effectively communicate the results of research.

We invite you to learn more about our program through the links below.

PhD Program Information

Fellowships & Awards

More Information

Apply Today

To apply to the Ph.D. program, please fill out an online application.

Deadline: December 15 for Fall admission.

With questions about admissions, please contact us at cs@bu.edu.