Frequently Asked Questions

Current Penn Engineering students may begin the Graduate Certificate application process in the final term of their degree program.

No, MCIT Online students are not required to write a thesis.

It’s possible to go on to a PhD program, but you would likely need to supplement your studies with research to be prepared for a PhD program.

The MCIT Online curriculum includes Python, Java (including data structures), C and C++.

You will also learn fundamental concepts that allow you to quickly learn many other languages – including Rust, Go, JavaScript, etc. – even though they are not explicitly taught in our curriculum.

Specific course options may vary, but MCIT Online electives are comparable to the on-campus version. Course topics reflect the most popular areas of interest. 

No, they are different credentials but graduates have very similar outcomes.

The Master of Information and Computer Technology (MCIT) curriculum begins with a strong CS foundation and goes on to graduate-level electives that are exactly the same as those taken by students in a traditional MS in CS degree program.

MCIT graduates’ career outcomes are extremely comparable to those of Penn’s MS in CS degree in terms of the type of companies, starting salary, and other compensation. See Penn’s most recent Career Services reports for details.

Graduates of MCIT go on to rewarding careers in aerospace, consulting, education, finance, healthcare, and technology, to name a few. For details, see our Outcomes page. 

No, the program is specifically designed for students with minimal or no prior computer science experience.