Students studying computer science at Carthage have many opportunities to enrich their education. 

Ongoing Research Projects

Computer science professors are active in research focused on how professional software developers teach and learn from each other. Faculty regularly involve students in their research projects, and send students to present their work at major conferences. Many of these students go on to study computer science in graduate school. Current faculty-led research projects include:

  • Storyteller version control software
  • Computer simulation of materials
  • Parallel and distributed computing technologies
  • Aspect oriented software development
  • Game theory and computer graphics

Students playing video games in the esports gaming studio. COMPETITIVE ESPORTS PROGRAM

Carthage has adopted esports as the first coed varsity sport on campus. A space in the Todd Wehr Center was converted into a gaming studio for the Firebirds’ practices and competitions.

Learn more about esports at Carthage

Internships

Students have the opportunity to get placed into internships that expose them to real-world experiences that they can’t get in the classroom. In the last few years, Carthage students have worked at Sears, West Bend Mutual, FIS, Jockey, Thrivent Financial, Cars.com, Milliman, Performance Trust, the FBI, and The Aerospace Corporation.

GPU Education Center

Visual computing firm NVIDIA has designated Carthage a Graphics Processing Unit (GPU) Education Center, giving students access to hardware, software, experts, and educational resources in the emerging field of parallel programming. Our computer graphics course, game development course, and scientific computing course take advantage of this relationship.

J-Term

J-Term is a month-long period of study in January when students focus on a single class. Computer science courses offered during J-Term delve into up-and-coming topics and technologies. Recent courses include mobile app development, web development, and agile software development. “I like the amount of face time I get with my students in J-Term,” says Mark Mahoney, Carthage computer science professor. “Long blocks of time to concentrate on programming and interaction with others is the best way to learn computer science.”

Learn more about J-Term

Students working on a computer science project. Summer Undergraduate Research Experience (SURE)

SURE offers Carthage students the opportunity to pursue an in-depth study of an area of interest with a computer science faculty member. Students receive a stipend, room and board on campus, and a small research budget. The program has been a part of the Carthage science curriculum since the mid-1990s.

Learn more about SURE

Scholarships for computer science students

Carthage awards two full-tuition Math/Science Scholarships each year to incoming students. These scholarships are awarded to students who demonstrate ability in computer science, mathematics, and other natural sciences, and are renewable for four years. 

Learn more about the Math/Science Scholarship Competition