21st century engineers, mathematicians, and scientists will spend much of their career writing software.

  • Modeling physical processes
  • Programs to solve complex numerical problems
  • Visualization of complex phenomena
  • Solving mathematical systems

The minor in software engineering is designed to teach students how to engineer large, high quality software programs that are: Reliable, scalable, efficient, secure, safe, usable, maintainable, and available. This minor is open to all majors, and especially appropriate for students in:

  • Biology
  • Chemistry
  • Civil Engineering
  • Computational Science and Informatics
  • Computer Engineering
  • Computer Science
  • Earth Science
  • Economics
  • Electrical Engineering
  • Finance
  • Information Technology
  • Mathematics
  • Physics
  • Systems Engineering

Download the Minor in Software Engineering Brochure (PDF)

Minor Requirements

Candidates for the minor in software engineering must complete 19 credits (6 courses) in software engineering with a minimum GPA of 2.00. The minor is comprised of:

Three mandatory CS courses:

  • CS 112     Introduction to Computer Programming (CS 108+109 alternative is ok)
  • CS 211     Object-oriented Programming
  • CS 310     Data Structures

Three from the following list of courses:

  • SWE 205           Software Usability Analysis and Design
  • CS / SWE 321   Software Requirements and Design Modeling
  • SWE 419           Object-Oriented Software Design and Implementation
  • SWE 432           Design and Implementation of Software for the Web
  • SWE 437           Software Testing and Maintenance
  • SWE 443           Software Architectures

The general university requirements for a minor can be found in the Academic Policies section of the GMU catalog.

GMU regulations require that "at least 8 credits must be applied only to that minor, and may not be used to fulfill requirements of the student's major."

Declaring the Minor

To declare for the minor in Software Engineering, you will need to submit a Undergraduate Minor declaration form. The form (in PDF) can be downloaded from the registrar's website. Send the form to the CS department office email account, csug@gmu.edu.