Content of the Different Master Tracks

Software Engineering

Software systems, small and large, lie at the heart of many processes throughout society. The main task of software engineering is to make sure these systems work right. The software engineering Master's teaches the techniques that distinguish the true software engineering professional; the resulting skills and knowledge are in high demand in today's job market and will remain a particularly attractive qualification as software systems become increasingly pervasive and ever more challenging.

Topics that fall within the software engineering curriculum include:

• Techniques for building large software systems
• Programming languages
• Object technology
• Concurrent and distributed systems
• Techniques for building software with verifiable properties

Information Systems

Information systems are one of the core areas of computer science. Information systems are important in almost all application areas; in particular, for business applications (e.g., banks, consulting, tourism), private information (e.g., pictures, letters), Science (e.g., geographic information systems, protein databases), and e-Government.

The overall goal is to allow everybody at any time from any time access to all information. Access is only constrained by security and access rights. The goal of this specialization track is to study data models, implementation techniques, and management techniques for modern information systems. In particular, the following topics are covered:

• Data Models: modern design techniques, object-oriented data models, semi-structured data models and XML, Web services and service-orientierted architectures, Semantic  Web

• Implementation and Optimization Techniques: transaction management, query processing, distributed and parallel information systems, adaptive and provably efficient algorithms (worst and average case)

• Management:modern database applications, Web-based information systems, client/server and peer-to-peer architectures
  

Theoretical Computer Science

Theoretical Computer Science deals with the development of fundamental methods and concepts to understand the nature of computation and, consequently, to provide the basis of the development of efficient algorithms for solving computational problems. It covers a wide range of areas, examples are algorithms, data structures, computational complexity theory, randomization, automata theory, program verification, information theory, cryptography, quantum computing.

Many of the questions considered are motivated by applications. It is part of our field to carry theoretical insights back to applications via experimental and implementation work.

The program at ETH focuses on:

• Algorithms, data structures, and their applications
• Theory of combinatorial and geometric algorithm
• Randomized algorithms and probabilistic methods
• Security and cryptography
• Mathematical foundations of these topics

Distributed Systems

The track on distributed systems provides an in depth perspective on advanced topics that range from pervasive and mobile computing (wireless networks, sensor networks, mobile computing) to large scale distributed information systems (grid, enterprise application integration) and includes modern operating systems as well as system design in multi-core computers. The track places special emphasis on systems design and systems development at all levels.

The track covers the following areas: Distributed systems and distributed computing, Wireless communication, Advanced, Networking, Advanced Operating Systems, Pervasive and ubiquitous computing, Web services, and Service oriented architectures.

Students in the track are given access to several well equipped laboratories for extensive experimental work during the laboratory course, seminars, course projects, and the Master's thesis.

Information Security

Information security is one of the cornerstones for the continued expansion and acceptance of the information society and at the same time a fundamental research discipline within computer science. The electronic representation and exchange of information differs radically from traditional approaches; e.g., electronic data can be copied without cost, erased without leaving traces, and communicated without effort over large distances. However, protecting information, which is crucial for our information society, has become increasingly difficult.

Efforts in information security therefore strive for solutions to pressing security problems in computer systems, networks and their applications, and for laying the foundations for developing a secure information infrastructure for the future. This Master’s specialization track is offered in collaboration with the Department of Information Technology and Electrical Engineering (ITET)

Visual Computing

The digital processing of visual information has become a core topic in modern Computer Science and Information Technology. Visual Computing builds upon foundations from Computer Science and applied Mathematics and has a wide range of applications.

Methodologically, Visual Computing is routed in computer graphics, algorithmic geometry, image processing and computer vision as well as machine learning. Strong conceptual and algorithmic links to Computational Science provide Visual Computing with the modeling breath and the computational expertise to solve large scale visualization and inference problems.

Computational Science

Advances in Computer Science provide us today with an unprecedented potential for innovation across all disciplines.

Computational Science integrates software and hardware advances with computational mathematics and discipline specific models, leading to validated, verifiable and efficient simulations of challenging scientific and engineering problems.

Computational Scientists form a new generation of innovative, computationally oriented thinkers and problem solvers that can navigate the rapidly changing frontiers among disciplines and job descriptions.

General Computer Science

The Master’s track in General Computer Science allows for a broad education with the most freedom of choice as it allows a combination of courses from the different Master’s tracks with focus.