COSC 1300 | Introduction to Computers 3 Credit Hours
This is a required general education course for all students at Huston-Tillotson University. This course presents a general introduction to computers, computing, the Internet, and World Wide Web. Topics include computer literacy, hardware components, systems software, and applications software. The focus is on experiences using major software packages that include word processing, spreadsheet, database management, graphics, and Internet/Web applications. Materials covered in lectures and laboratory exercises emphasize applications in business, government, and education. Students may earn three credit hours by completing the course successfully, by passing a comprehensive departmental placement test, or by documenting appropriate experiences in a portfolio which computer science faculty evaluate. Credit hours gained in this course do not count toward required credits for a major or minor in COSC. Laboratory required.
Prerequisite: None Offered: Fall/Spring Yearly
COSC 1312 | Programming Foundations 1 3 Credit Hours
This course is the first core course for computer science majors and minors and for students intending to continue on to higher level courses in computer and information systems. It is taught in a contemporary language and emphasizes basic computer science and program construction concepts, such as problem solving, programs and programming environment, high-level languages and machine code, programming methodology, algorithm analysis, object orientation, variables and expression, control structures and repetition.
Corequisite: MATH 2412 or higher
Prerequisite: MATH 1314 or higher Offered: Fall/Yearly
COSC 1323 | Programming Foundations II 3 Credit Hours
This is a continuation of COSC 1312. The course covers arrays, streams and files; data structure and data abstraction; exception handling; and graphics and user interface. It introduces object-oriented programming (OOP), illustrates how classes and objects are created and used, and covers the concepts and uses of polymorphism and inheritance.
Prerequisite: COSC 1312 Offered: Spring/Yearly
COSC 1327 | Advanced Applications 3 Credit Hours
This course focuses on design, setup, text, images, file preparation, printing, sharing/dissemination of documents, and integrating other office applications. Students in this course will use desktop publishing technology that is widely used in education and business to create electronic and print-based documents such as newsletters, forms, brochures, newspapers, and web components. Creative thinking, problem solving, communications, and decision-making are employed throughout this projects based course. This course has a substantial writing component and fulfills the requirements for Desktop Publishing.
Prerequisite: Placement exam or COSC 1300 and instructor approval Offered: Spring/Yearly
COSC 1366 | Introduction to Emerging Technologies 3 Credit Hours
This course is a general elective for all students at Huston-Tillotson University. This course is designed to give students an understanding of emerging technologies and how they can impact lives. Some of the emerging technologies include RFID, nanotechnology including nanoelectronics, wireless technologies, computer viruses, airborne networks, enviromatics, grid computing, mechatronics, software assurance, machine learning, and many more. Students will have an opportunity to research new emerging technologies that interest them. A requirement for this course is an innate curiosity in new discoveries and technologies.
Prerequisites: None Offered: As Needed
COSC 2311 | Java I 3 Credit Hours
This course continues building on the concepts learned in COSC 1312 and COSC 1323. Topics include: programming methodology, algorithm analysis, object orientation, variables and expressions control structures and repetition, arrays, streams and files. Applets are also introduced.
Prerequisite: MATH 1314 or higher and COSC 1323 Offered Fall/Yearly
COSC 2313 | Data Structures and Programming 3 Credit Hours
This is a required course for computer science majors. It provides a strong foundation for advanced programming. The course covers various data structures and related issues including string and searching techniques. It also treats implementation and analysis of algorithms based on these and other structures, facilitating structured program design and development.
Prerequisite: COSC 1323 Offered: Fall/Yearly
COSC 2322 Java II 3 Credit Hours
This course is a continuation of COSC 2311. It covers data structure, data abstraction, exception handling, graphics, and user interface. It includes object-oriented programming (OOP) and graphical user interface (GUI) methods. It illustrates how classes and objects are created and used and covers the concepts and uses of polymorphism and inheritance.
Prerequisite: COSC 2311 Offered: Spring/Yearly
COSC 2326 | Introduction to Enterprise Computing 3 Credit Hours
This course provides students of information systems technology with the background, knowledge, and skills necessary to begin using the basic facilities of a mainframe computer. Topics covered include: the mainframe in business today, mainframe job roles; mainframe interfaces; Job Control Language; mainframe hardware and architecture; middleware for the mainframe; application programming on the mainframe; networking; and security topics. Students will have the opportunity of logging on to the mainframe using an of IBM hubs.
Prerequisite: None Offered: As Needed
COSC 2367 | Introduction to SQL 3 Credit hours
This course covers the concepts of relational databases and the powerful SQL programming language. Students are taught to create and maintain database objects and to store, retrieve, and manipulate data. Students learn to retrieve data by using advanced techniques such as ROLLUP, CUBE, set operators, and hierarchical retrieval. They also learn to write SQL and SQL*Plus script files using the iSQL*Plus tool to generate report-like output. Demonstrations and hands-on practice reinforce the fundamental concepts. Oracle 9i is software used for the course.
Prerequisite: COSC 1323 Offered: Spring/As Required
COSC 3312 | Database and Information Retrieval 3 Credit Hours
This course gives an overview of database systems. It covers conceptual modeling with emphasis on the relational model. ACCESS and ORACLE will serve as the principal relational DBMS programs. Selected micro DBMS software programs are evaluated using magazine reviews (InfoWorld, PC Magazine, Byte, Software Digest). An important segment of the course is a DBMS team project.
Prerequisite: COSC 1323 Offered: Fall/ Yearly
COSC 3315 | Operating Systems and Theoretical Foundations 3 Credit Hours
This is the first course in a two-course sequence dealing with computer operating systems. It introduces such basic concepts as performance, multiprogramming, synchronization, protection, time sharing, asynchronous processes, and real-time systems. It examines components of operating systems, especially file systems, scheduling (CPU, disk and drum), I/O Programming, memory management, virtual memory, device management, distributed systems, and file management. Throughout the course, comparisons and contrasts will be made between Unix and Windows in terms of how several of these concepts and features are implemented.
Prerequisite: COSC 1323 Offered: Fall/Yearly
COSC 3321 | Computer Organization 3 Credit Hours
This course covers Microcomputer applications using IBM and applied microcomputers. Topics include character codes (BCD, EBCDIC, ASCII), Boolean algebra, assembly programming, software development, implementation and debugging, computer hardware including architecture memory, control, ALU and I/O interfacing. Loaders, assemblers, and compiler design consideration are also covered.
Prerequisite: 6 Credit Hours of Programming Languages Offered: Spring/Yearly
COSC 3325 | Computer Forensics 3 Credit Hours
This course covers an overview of the investigators’ computer lab, computer forensic tools, processing crime and incident scenes, controlling digital evidence, data acquisition from a crime scene, e-mail investigations, and network forensics. This course involves hands-on projects.
Prerequisite: COSC 3315 Offered: As Needed
COSC 3326 | Operating Systems: Windows and UNIX Applications 3 Credit Hours
This is the second course in the two-course sequence dealing with OS. The focus will be on knowledge and skills needed to use Unix and Windows Operating Systems. It presents an overview of Windows and UNIX system architecture and important concepts involved in systems programming for Windows and UNIX. It also describes additional file systems of Windows and UNIX. Laboratory assignments will be based on C/C++ and UNIX scripts.
Prerequisite: COSC 3315 Offered: Spring/Yearly
COSC 3364 | Artificial Intelligence and Robotics 3 Credit Hours
This course covers the historical overview and applications of artificial intelligence, problems, state spaces and search strategies. Emphasis is placed on knowledge representation, pattern recognition, expert systems, symbolic computation, and machine learning. Programming projects are used to reinforced concepts
Prerequisites: COSC 2313 and COSC 3321 Offered: As Needed
COSC 3365 | Database Administration Fundamentals I 3 Credit Hours
This course is designed to give the database administrator (DBA) a firm foundation in basic administrative tasks. The primary goal of this course is to give the DBA the necessary knowledge and skills to set up, maintain, and troubleshoot a database. This course is the first step toward success as a DBA professional. Oracle is the software used for the course.
Prerequisite: COSC 2367 Offered: As Needed
COSC 3366 | Software Testing 3 Credit Hours
This course covers various types of testing and test management and gives the students an opportunity to practice each type of testing. Various topics include black box testing, white box testing, system testing, web testing, context driven testing, verification and validation, inspections, exploratory testing, performance testing, acceptance testing, automated testing, plus the latest advances in software testing. Hands-on projects are key part of this course.
Prerequisite: Upper division standing in COSC, COSC 3312; COSC 2313 Offered: As Needed
COSC 3427 | Computer Networks and Distributed Systems 4 Credit Hours
This course covers computer network concepts, network types, design, and protocols as well as the design, implementation, and management of distributed systems. Topics include layering in communication protocols, with particular reference to the OSI reference model, interprocess communication, remote invocation, distributed naming, cryptographic security, distributed file systems, data replication, distributed transaction mechanisms, and distributed timing and coordination mechanism. UNIX and MS Windows are used for students’ hands-on exercises and laboratory experience.
Prerequisite: COSC 1323 Offered: Fall/Yearly
COSC 4308 | Computer Science Internship 3 Credit Hours
This course helps to prepare students for the working environment. Students obtain assignments with local businesses where they may use their knowledge base and explore other learning experiences.
Prerequisite: 12 COSC Major credits and advisor approval Offered: Fall/Spring Yearly
COSC 4309 | Computer Science Research/Project 3 Credit Hours
This course is designed to focus on (1) academic thinking and problem solving; (2) research methods: (3) report preparation; and (4) presentation. The course enables students to work independently under the supervision of computer science or computer information systems faculty. Broad areas of recommended topics reflect the understanding that computer science is concerned with software technology and development. Selected topics include algorithms and their performance; comparison of languages; knowledge-based systems; genetic and neural algorithms; software engineering; interface technology; and communications protocols and performance. Each student enrolled in this course must prepare and submit three deliverables: (1) Project proposal including problem definition,
(2) Review of pertinent literature; and (3) Final project report.
Prerequisite: Instructor approval Offered: Fall/Spring Yearly
COSC 4311 | Software Engineering I 3 Credit Hours
This course covers issues, techniques, and concepts involved in planning, designing, and implementing software systems. Topics include problem solving concepts, software life-cycle models, the software process, software quality, developing teams, requirements gathering, utilizing CASE tools, risk management, black box and white box testing, creating objects, reusability and portability, planning and estimating software projects. Student laboratory exercises and projects will emphasize team work, coordination of multiple programmers, documentation, user friendly interface design, and software costing.
Prerequisite: COSC 3312 Offered: Fall/Yearly