There are three categories of core courses: Programming, Systems, and Theory. As part of satisfying coursework requirements, Master of Science in CS (MSCS) and Master of CS (MCS) students both must take at least one course in Programming and at least one in Systems. MCS students must take at least one course in Theory; MSCS students must take at least two courses in Theory.
A number of courses can be used simultaneously as core courses and specialization courses by MCS students who choose a specialization. Below, these specializations are marked CI (Computational Intelligence), CPS (Cyber-Physical Systems), DB (Database Systems), DCC (Distributed and Cloud Computing), ISA (Information Security and Assurance), NC (Networking and Communications), and SE (Software Engineering).
Note: Only courses taken from the IIT CS department can be used as core courses; CS courses transferred from other universities can be used only as electives.