The department of computer science recently introduced a new concentration in software engineering and design, available to students pursuing either a Bachelor of Arts or Bachelor of Science in computer science. This marks the first concentration offered to students pursuing the BA.
Prior to the addition, students pursuing the BS had three concentrations to choose from — AI and machine learning, software systems and data science.
The new concentration offers computer science majors — the most popular major at Duke — the opportunity to explore the development and engineering of complex software systems while emphasizing student choice over what types of software they want to design.
Notably, the concentration requires students to take at least one elective course in “software engineering/design” and “web, app/mobile, human-centered engineering/design.” Students pursuing a BS are also required to take an elective course in “software systems.”
The concentration shares the same prerequisites as the concentrations in AI and machine learning and software systems.
According to Owen Astrachan, associate director of undergraduate studies in the department of computer science, the concentration in software engineering and design prioritizes “the process” of designing and engineering solutions, which is distinguished from other concentrations that tend to focus more on studying an area before using programming to understand it “at a kind of applied level.”
Per Astrachan, the concentration also provides students more autonomy. Whereas typical assignments in the software systems concentration involve students completing assigned programming projects, “there's a lot more flexibility in the software design and engineering concentration in allowing student choice in creating those artifacts.”
While the concentration is open to both BS and BA students, its requirements vary slightly based on the degree path. Notably, BA students are not required to take a math course covering either multivariable calculus or linear algebra to complete the concentration, while BS students are.
“Some of our BA students want to emphasize the design and creativity of what a computer science software engineer would do, and this allows the BA students to do that without doing more mathematics, but still going deep,” Astrachan said.
Jian Pei, Arthur S. Pearse distinguished professor of computer science and chair of the department, explained that the new concentration aims to expand computer science to serve the broader academic community, pointing to this as a key goal of the department’s placement in the multidisciplinary Trinity College of Arts & Sciences.
“[The concentration] is not only about software itself or the science and technology itself, but also will have a quite fundamental impact into social science, arts [and] every area,” Pei said.
Computer science majors are not required to choose a concentration, but for students who do, software engineering and design is expected to be a popular path. Astrachan predicted that it will be the second-most-popular concentration after AI and machine learning.
“[The demand for] CS now becomes larger and larger … we would love to take this opportunity to enrich our program and to design different concentrations to provide students opportunities and also connect them with the future jobs [and] research areas,” Pei said. “We hope we can continue our success.”
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Dylan Halper is a Trinity first-year and university news editor for the news department.