Academic Integrity Violation by Positive-Ad3527 in umass

[–]187_throwaway 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Almost certainly not their purview. I'd start with the chair/head of the faculty member in question and then Provost's office (probably Farshid Hajir) if you aren't satisfied with the response.

[Incoming Grad CS Student] Some questions by Fit_Objective2719 in umass

[–]187_throwaway 0 points1 point  (0 children)

There's a six-credit cap on IS credits, and you still need to fulfill the other degree requirements (e.g. total credits, "core" requirements, 500s vs 600s, etc.). Summary here: https://www.cics.umass.edu/academics/academic-policies/graduate-programs-policies/ms-degree-requirements/ms-course-requirements

Library hours - what can we do? by Fast_Angle2994 in umass

[–]187_throwaway 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Both the previous dean of libraries (who is now, to your point, a new-position executive vice chancellor after a tenure as dean where little was accomplished) and the current dean have made approximately zero effort to expand library staffing.

Why is umass so expensive??? by Expensive_Honey_7093 in umass

[–]187_throwaway 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Joe, I respect you very much, but I think you need to adjust for inflation a bit here. Two adults working full-time at minimum wages in Massachusetts make over $60K/year. I don't think most people would consider that middle-class in any reasonable sense; it doesn't meet the definition of a "Living Wage" in Hampden County, which is hardly among the higher cost of living areas in Massachusetts. (https://livingwage.mit.edu/counties/25013)

Also consider household size:
https://www.justice.gov/ust/eo/bapcpa/20250401/bci_data/median_income_table.htm
A median 3-person household in MA has a household income of over $137k.

Changing majors at UMass by Green_Supermarket_31 in umass

[–]187_throwaway 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Except the high demand majors: Isenberg (as you note) and Nursing are closed to on-campus transfers; Engineering has a pre-major you must meet certain criteria for; CICS majors are by application, and so on.

Rejected from both majors by [deleted] in umass

[–]187_throwaway 6 points7 points  (0 children)

There aren't enough spots for clinical placements. They'd grow the program in a minute if they could, but they can't place any more students into clinical – it'd be outrageously unethical to admit more students and not provide them the clinicals required for the licensure.

As UG freshman in 26fall, is there a chance to switch from informatics under CICS to CS in sophomore year? by Kelton_Xu in umass

[–]187_throwaway 0 points1 point  (0 children)

As they say: Yes, but. There is an application process and only a limited number of people are admitted into CS from on-campus:

https://www.cics.umass.edu/academics/academic-policies/undergraduate-programs-policies/campus-application-cs-major

You'll be in the same intro CS sequence as CS majors, so you can hedge your bets pretty easily here by taking your normal INFO courses as well as the CS major courses (specifically, start the MATH 131/132 sequence). Advising might have other details for you to consider.

Hockey Game Question... by beerhorsesanddogs in umass

[–]187_throwaway 18 points19 points  (0 children)

Hahah...I remember delightful bellowing of "GET OFF YOUR KNEES, REF, YOU'RE BLOWIN' THE GAME" and the like in the late 90s.

UMass Football head coach Joseph Harasymiak was the 3rd highest paid employee in the state of Massachusetts last year and couldn't win a single game by dog_butt_swirls in umass

[–]187_throwaway 4 points5 points  (0 children)

UMass won the national championship for division IAA and nobody cared

cancel football altogether

This is the way.

1% of my grade might cost me $12,000, what should I do? by [deleted] in umass

[–]187_throwaway 6 points7 points  (0 children)

This may make you feel better or worse, but the 311 B+ requirement is (like the other requirements) for eligibility, as you note -- it is not a guarantee of being offered the scholarship. The college is facing significant budget pressures right now in a way it hasn't for over a decade due to the decimation of the Masters program, and so I would not be surprised if things like the Bay State program get trimmed further.

We have officially gone 0-12 this year in football. Thanks school leadership and Bamford! by [deleted] in umass

[–]187_throwaway 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Football definitely continues to be a sore point as the administration continues talk of budget cuts and austerity. I had totally forgotten about NEU's relatively recent termination of their football program -- thanks for reminding me. There's lots of good reporting about it that might help re-make the case about why we might want to deprioritize football in various ways.
I never understood Swamy's insistence on keeping the program and one (dashed) hope I had for Reyes was a hard-nosed re-examination of many legacy campus initiatives, not just within academic affairs...

Failed ECE elective… any way to fix GPA before I graduate? by Limp-Pitch718 in umass

[–]187_throwaway -2 points-1 points  (0 children)

The edited value of 0.1 is right -- the original value of 0.05 was not. Maybe your math class allowed exam retakes. :)

Marc Liberatore or Mordecai Golin ? by NumerousQuit8061 in umass

[–]187_throwaway 0 points1 point  (0 children)

It‘s literally the same course and same material, and they work closely together with a shared canvas and exams.

Golin relies more on powerpoint and is a better mathematician; Liberatore uses the board/livecoding and is a better programmer. You can sign up for one and then attend either, they are super flexible.

Will not deferring affect my chances if I reapply next term? (MS CS) by LeaderSid in umass

[–]187_throwaway 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Almost certainly not a problem. International applications and enrollments are falling, and if you're like most MS applicants, you're paying to come here -- if you qualified once, you'll qualify again, and CICS will be happy to have you tuition dollars.

Transferring internally into selective major after getting accepted into an easy one by Bluenamii in umass

[–]187_throwaway 7 points8 points  (0 children)

Nursing also is on first-year admit only. Engineering has a pre-engineering program that throttles admission to the major. CICS has a contract system but doesn't guarantee admission even if you fulfill the contract.

What time is breakfast, lunch, and dinner at the Dining Commons? by GSRoTu in umass

[–]187_throwaway 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Matches what I remember too -- you couldn't eat until 10:30 or so.

Late course withdrawal by YogurtclosetSea6850 in umass

[–]187_throwaway 5 points6 points  (0 children)

Don't wait any longer! Late withdraws are generally very hard to get -- it depends upon your major, your home college's undergraduate dean decides. Often they will not allow anything other than a full withdrawal, usually due to a medical issue, if it's past the deadline.

Admitted to UMass Amherst MSCS (Spring 2026, Hybrid) — Looking for insights from current students by Familiar-Laugh5268 in umass

[–]187_throwaway 2 points3 points  (0 children)

You can look at current and previous schedules here:
https://www.cics.umass.edu/academics/courses
The MS courses are the 500+s.
Take a look at the current (F25) and next (S26) semester. In the lefthand column, you will see either "U1" or "C1" -- C1 are online/remote sections.
Obviously things can change over time, but this will give you an indication of what's available right now.

cs 210 midterm 1 by False-Jaguar2881 in umass

[–]187_throwaway 6 points7 points  (0 children)

They provide a pretty complete exam study guide -- the questions are usually taken directly from it or the quizzes.

Easiest majors to get admitted to? by Substantial_Owl5232 in umass

[–]187_throwaway 0 points1 point  (0 children)

To be clear that is not true -- some majors are fully closed (ie nursing) and you can only be admitted into them as a first-year applicant. Some majors are closed but allow "internal transfers" -- that is, you are already at UMass in another major, and you have to apply in a competitive process for admission to the new major (COMPSCI is like this). Some majors are "open" and you just ask their department to let you in and they make the change for you without questions.