Software Engineering is defined in IEEE Standard 610.12 as “the application of a systematic, disciplined, quantifiable approach to the development, operation, and maintenance of software; that is, the application of engineering to software.” Students that wish to study this area to a limited degree can do so by majoring in a related area and taking a concentration of software engineering classes that constitutes the minor offering (i.e., 21 hours of course work). These 21 hours are chosen to give the student a basic understanding of the tenets of software engineering and will allow students to practice in the field should they desire to so do.
A minor in software engineering consists of CSE 1284, CSE 1384, CSE 2383, CSE 4214, and nine hours of approved upper-division software engineering courses. The list of approved courses includes the following but may consist of other special topics courses as approved by the Department of Computer Science & Engineering: CSE 3213 Senior Design 1, CSE 3223 Senior Design 2, CSE 4233 Software Architecture and Design, CSE 4283 Software Testing and Quality Assurance, CSE 4223 Software Project Management, CSE 4253 Secure Software Engineering.