Aaron Jones (BS/Physics, ‘20) intended to enroll in graduate school in physics once he graduated from the University of Tennessee. However, a few barriers in his life required him to postpone his plans. Jones became a Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) systems engineer, and his career trajectory started to emphasize controls, automation, and distributed systems.

Jones, 30, began to research options for a graduate degree in computer science that provided flexibility to fit into his work schedule. He discovered the Min H. Kao Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science’s online master’s degree in computer science (MSCS) and jumped at the opportunity.

“The MSCS program online as an option enabled me to balance my need for advancement, my established career, desire for innovation, and personal hurdles,” Jones said. “The program is extremely valuable to me. I don’t think my path would have enabled me to do a graduate program any time soon—if ever—without the online accessibility the MSCS program offers.”

Launched in 2022, the online MSCS program has witnessed exponential growth. The program started with an initial class of 20 students and has added nearly 50 new students every fall, including the 2025 semester. In the 2024-25 cycle, which ran from fall 2024 through summer 2025, the program had 101 enrollees, a six percent increase from the previous cycle.

The MSCS is the largest online master’s program in the Tickle College of Engineering with 187 students and is fifth overall at the university. UT originally partnered with the edtech company Noodle to run the MSCS program, but it is now moving in-house to UT’s Digital Learning.

The MSCS program requires 30 credit hours with fall, spring, and summer admission terms. UT has been able to differentiate itself from other university online degree programs by offering specialized concentrations instead of a general computer science degree. Students can specialize in cybersecurity, data mining and intelligent systems, and software engineering. All three are in-demand areas of computer science, with data mining and intelligent systems having the most interest because of the rise of artificial intelligence and machine learning.

“I think a lot of our success has come from our department and university leadership,” said Online MSCS Director Stephen Marz said. “We were all new to the online environment, and many were skeptical of the academic rigor of an online degree. However, with the investments from our department, college, and from Chancellor Donde Plowman, we have had nothing but support from the levels of administration.”

Reaching a Wider Population

The MSCS program helps fulfill UT’s land-grant mission of increasing access to the state’s flagship land-grant and research university. Nearly all the students in the program are working professionals or members of the military. They have obligations that may not allow them to attend classes on campus yet are driven to enhance their educational backgrounds.

“A lot of our online students have full-time jobs and family and do the classes night. It helps them climb the ladder,” said EECS Department Head Garrett Rose. “Part of why this is successful is they’re driven and they’re mature, so they’re going to put the time into it and do it right.”

Although the MSCS program is asynchronous—meaning students and professors don’t need to be online at the same time—there is a synchronous component. Students have weekly Zoom meetings with instructors to help with engagement.

“It’s an opportunity for the students to interact with each other, where they hear each other’s voices and see video of one another,” Rose said. “This is real-time interaction that I think has been very important as far as keeping people involved. It’s not just a robot that may or may not really be contributing to anything meaningful in my life. But there are real people here.”

Future Program Enhancements

Jones, who is concentrating in data mining and intelligent systems, has appreciated the practical skills he’s gained and the ability to interact with like-minded professionals in the MCSC program.

“We do a lot of hands-on projects, which has helped my confidence a lot in applying experience,” he said. “One final project I did with a group was applying models to predict power usage. I deal with power monitoring every day at work for data centers, so it has directly translated for me. I’ve also gotten to meet others already established in industry and their careers through class discussion.”

UT’s recent partnership with Arizona State University to expand access to higher education has provided a new avenue for growth of the MSCS program.

“We need to give those who are changing career paths a chance with our program. We currently only accept students with some sort of background in computer science,” Marz said. “With the new ASU/UT partnership, our program is already making strides to leverage it so that students in a completely different major, like theater or psychology, have the ability to ‘spin up’ and become eligible for our program with a sequence of four courses.”

Jones is happy he found a rigorous master’s degree program that allows him to continue working full-time. Although it’s not always easy for older students to juggle life, work, and school, he believes UT provides the resources necessary to make it possible.

“UT has grown substantially in support, and the professors in the program go above and beyond to help,” Jones said. “You can tell they’ve put in substantial effort to make it meaningful. I feel that really is what makes it worthwhile.”

Contact

Rhiannon Potkey (rpotkey@utk.edu)