Of Science (MSc) in Computer Science

Programme content

THE DESIGNER PAR EXCELLENCE

The university-trained computer scientist is first and foremost a designer. Their training enables them to find the optimal solution to IT problems encountered across many different domains.

Often, the result of their mental efforts will be the deployment of complex equipment which combines information processing hardware and programmes. The system designed will thus provide a group of users with the means to optimally accomplish their professional activities in a variety of economic sectors including finance, e-commerce, medicine, transport, telecommunications and bioinformatics.

To contribute to design activities in such varied fields, university-trained computer scientists must have acquired rigorous reasoning abilities (in order to design these complex systems accurately), the capacity to understand the problems associated with a specific activity and the ability to explain the proposed solutions clearly and unambiguously.

The Master's in Computer Sciences were designed to allow you to acquire this training.

A TRAINING IN ENGLISH

All Master's classes are taught in English, given the importance of English in the IT domain. This immersion provides students with an opportunity for intensive practice and consequently gives them optimal preparation for these international careers.

The Master's thesis must be written in English. However, students are free to communicate in French during classes and major tests and exams.

120 CREDITS

The Master's in Computer Science is structured around:

• a common core (data structures and algorithms, programming languages, theoretical concepts of computer science, software development, IT systems and networks),
• an integrated project to be completed as part of a team,
• classes specific to the option chosen,
• elective classes or an internship,
• a Master's thesis.

The Master's degree in Computer Science ( 120 credits) offers the possibility to specialize via 3 professional focuses :

The specialization in computer systems security allows students to develop specialized skills in the field of networks, cryptographic mechanisms, trusted computing or software vulnerability analysis. This training allows students to face the challenges of digital information processing in relation to the objectives of confidentiality, integrity and authentication of data.

Training in intelligent systems concerns the tools and computer procedures that allow the analysis of digital data and the organization of decision-making processes using, among others, artificial intelligence methods. This specialization is therefore oriented towards expert systems and virtual assistants which are becoming more and more common in our daily private and professional lives.

The specialization in management is part of the preparation for the master in digital business.

DIGITAL BUSINESS (COLLABORATON WITH HEC LIEGE - THE SCHOOL OF MANAGEMENT OF THE UNIVERSITY OF LIEGE)

Two Master's degrees in 3 years: a collaboration between HEC-Liège & the School of Engineering and Computer Science

Digital technologies have long been an essential support in business management. Today, they play a central role in the various sectors of activity that have to manage important flows between customers and companies, between companies and their suppliers. The same applies to the various stages of the management process: production planning, inventory, distribution.

Digital business goes even further by becoming the engine of a new economy with new managerial challenges and new opportunities: new products to design and develop, new services to offer, new ethical issues to study, new business models...

New fast-growing businesses are purely digital: social networks, research equipment, data storage and processing, e-commerce.

To operate in such an environment, our graduates must have strong managerial and computer skills. Management sciences and computer sciences are already among the top 5 most promising courses in Belgium.

The University of Liège is going one step further by offering a double master's degree designed to train experts with a perfect command of both fields, IT and management.

The "Digital Business" program allows students to obtain both degrees of the corresponding masters in only 3 years after obtaining their bachelor degree.

THIS TRANSDISCIPLINARY PROGRAM IS UNIQUE IN BELGIUM!

COMBINING THEORY AND PRACTICE

Through the demanding practical projects that most of the classes entail, The university-trained computer scientists strengthen their knowledge, use their expertise, solve numerous problems, work autonomously and apply their skills in written and oral communication, especially in English. They have the chance to identify the needs and constraints of the industrial world whether while working on their Master's thesis, during their internships or through the classes which enable them to make connections between the concepts taught and their industrial application. They are thus trained to adapt to various languages, methods and tools, that already exist or have yet to be developed!

Finally, it should be noted that the Master's degree in Computer Science is organized within the School of Engineering, which allows students to get acquainted with the more technical aspects of computer science, such as robotics, networks, image processing, microelectronics...

Learning outcomes

Profile

At the end of their Master's programme, computer scientists from ULiège will be able to leverage their sense of abstraction, their thorough reasoning abilities and their IT skills to design, develop and evaluate complex information systems.

They will be able to implement complex products or services which combine information processing hardware and programmes. The system designed will thus provide a group of users with the means to optimally accomplish their professional activities in a variety of sectors including finance, e-commerce, medicine, transport, energy, networks and telecommunications and bioinformatics.

Learning outcomes

The Master in Computer Science (120 credits) has acquired highly specialized and integrated knowledge, as well as broad skills in various fields of computer science, complementing those acquired during his bachelor of computer science, namely in algorithmic science, programming and computer systems (operating systems, data bases, networks).

He has strengthened his knowledge in discrete optimisation and in various theoretical bases of computer science (state machines, automata, grammars, theory of computation, logic, formal reasoning, compiling principles).

He has acquired a strong specialization in computer systems and networks (computer security, networks and multimedia, network management and security, network measurements and monitoring, embedded systems, programming on mobile devices, ...) or in intelligent systems (machine learning, computer vision, robotics, knowledge representation, constraint programming, ...). Depending on his other optional courses, he has also acquired specialized skills in bioinformatics, high-performance scientific computing, computer graphics, ...

He is able to apply and leverage his consolidated knowledge and skills to contribute, on his own or in a team, to plan, lead and carry out a large-scale software project while controlling its complexity and taking into account the objectives, allocated resources and specific constraints.

He has acquired the highest degree of technical qualification allowing him to organize and carry out a research, development or innovation work to understand a novel problem in his domain. His solid grounding allows him to join a research and development team or start doctoral studies.

He has often become aware of the needs and constraints of the industrial reality, either by means of his master thesis or a company internship, or thanks to courses that establish links between the concepts learned and their industrial applications.

He is able to communicate his conclusions, original propositions, and the underlying knowledge and principles, in a clear, structured and reasoned way, adapting to the audience, both orally and in writing, particularly in English.

He has developed and integrated a significant degree of autonomy, allowing him to acquire new knowledge, continue his training and develop new skills to be able to evolve in other contexts. He is well prepared to adapt to processes, techniques, languages, tools, ... that are yet to be invented.

He has the capability to think critically about the societal impact of his projects and of computer science in general.

He shows rigour, autonomy, creativity, and ethical sense.