As the University looks to possibly double the number of graduate students in the next few years, the Department of Computer Science has announced a number of changes to the fifth-year master’s program in an effort to increase enrollment.
Students told The Herald that these fifth-year programs have provided continuity with their undergraduate studies while preparing them for post-graduate careers.
Now, students applying for the fifth-year master’s program will be eligible for “a 25% tuition scholarship, subject to University approval,” according to a recent email from the CS department. Students in the program can also apply to undergraduate teaching positions in the fall — as long as they apply to at least three courses, they may be hired for a position.
Nikos Triandopoulos MSc’02 PhD’07, computer science co-director of graduate studies and visiting associate professor, said he hopes the new initiatives “encourage more Brown students to get into the program.”
Partial scholarships will also be offered for the master’s in cybersecurity, Triandopoulos wrote in an email to The Herald.
He added that the new UTA initiative aims to create “a framework to facilitate this process and provide sufficient new TA positions for our fifth-year students.”
Students can earn a master’s degree on an accelerated track. A master’s degree typically requires eight courses, but students who matriculate from the University can count up to two graduate courses taken during their undergraduate years toward their degree.
In addition, rather than submitting an application to a general office of admissions, students are accepted directly by the department in which their program resides, according to the fifth-year masters website.
Minchae Kim ’25 GS, a student admitted to the next year’s cohort for the fifth-year master of public health program, says the program will provide her with an opportunity to “save both time and money.” By doing a fifth-year master’s, she said she would not have to “spend time adjusting to Brown’s curriculum or faculty” while simultaneously preparing for her future career.
A master’s degree typically requires eight courses, but students who matriculate from the University can count up to two graduate courses taken during their undergraduate years towards their degree.
“For practical reasons, I knew that I would have a lot more options postgrad if I had an MPH as opposed to just a bachelor’s in public health,” she wrote in an email to The Herald.
Irene Kim ’27, who plans on applying to the fifth-year master of public health program, said she feels compelled to apply to a fifth-year program since it “seems efficient.”
“I’m also closely involved with professors and research at Brown’s School of Public Health, so it made sense to me to continue pursuing those connections,” she added.
Zoey Katzive ’24 GS and Lexi Henrion ’24 GS, both current fifth-year master’s students, found the transition to their programs relatively smooth, saying they already had connections to both Brown and Providence.
“I think there’s something very nice about being able to do grad school and getting a master’s without moving your whole life for two years and having to integrate into a whole new community,” Henrion said.
She added the delayed acceptance timeline for the program makes it harder to find housing. Graduate students are currently facing a shortage in affordable housing near campus, The Herald previously reported.
Both Henrion and Katzive found their way to the programs after a shortened freshman year due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“I think a lot of us didn’t quite feel ready to leave,” Katzive said. “I feel like it’s been a really great transition where I’ve discovered what I want to go into.”
Ian Ritter is a senior staff writer covering graduate schools and students. He is a sophomore from New Jersey studying Chemistry and International and Public Affairs. When he’s not at the Herald, you can find him playing clarinet or explaining the rules of kickball to confused listeners.
