The M.S. and Ph.D. programs are a professional research degree designed to prepare students for advanced professional careers, including college teaching and research, as well as research and development in industrial, government, and nonprofit organizations. Specialized training is available through close interaction with faculty mentors in their active research fields. For highly motivated undergraduate students a fast-track five year program of study leading to the BS plus MS degrees in Computer Science is available. Teaching assistantships with the EECS Department and research assistantships with faculty are available to fund graduate study especially at the PhD level.