Artificial Intelligence (2 years, 120 ЕCTS)

Type of the Studies

The Artificial Intelligence study program is a graduate (master’s level) academic study program in the field of Computer Science – Artificial Intelligence at the University of Novi Sad Faculty of Sciences.

Professional Title, Academic, or Scientific Degree

Upon completing the program, successful candidates obtain the degree Master of Computer Science (within Diploma Supplement: Master of Computer Science – Artificial Intelligence).

Enrolment Criteria

Enrollment of candidates is carried out based on a call issued by the University of Novi Sad and implemented by the Faculty of Sciences. For a candidate to enroll in the first year of the program, the candidate needs to have an undergraduate degree in mathematics, computer science, or relevant fields of engineering, with at least 180 ECTS credits in total. If the candidate has an undergraduate degree from other disciplines, she/he must pass an entrance examination module (no later than in the first year of study) that consists of fundamental mathematical and computer science courses. Ranking of candidates is based upon their average grade and duration of undergraduate studies, as well as on the number of entrance module exams passed before the ranking.

The Structure of the Study Programme

The study program consists of one module with mandatory courses and set of elective courses over three semesters, professional internship (praxis), and the master’s thesis. There are 8 mandatory courses, 46 ECTS in total. Professional internship (praxis) and the master’s thesis are also mandatory, taking additional 30 ECTS. There are 17 elective courses within the study program which complement the 76 mandatory ECTS to reach at least 120 ECTS points.

Lectures are predominantly auditory, accompanied with contemporary visual teaching aids. We keep up the good contemporary trends of academic computer science education, with emphasis on exercises, practical work for students in computer classrooms, as well as student projects and seminar papers.

Duration of Studies

Duration of studies is 2 years, 120 ECTS in total.

Credits

Credits for every course are given in the tables below, as well as course description tables (available through links).

Master Thesis

Within the study program, students are required to write and defend the master thesis. The thesis should include a description of goals and problems, an overview of the current state of the art in the subject area and description of obtained results.

The purpose of the master’s study program Artificial Intelligence is education of experts in the fields of artificial intelligence and machine learning that can solve practical problems from relevant domains. The study program has a single module. Graduates will hold the title Master of Computer Science (within Diploma Supplement: Master of Computer Science – Artificial Intelligence) and will be qualified to work in a wide range of domains, including finance, agriculture, health/medicine, and industry. Students will gain fundamental knowledge in relevant mathematics and computer-science topics, but also skills to adapt and work at a wide number of domains where big data analysis and machine learning applications are of use. Their expertise will include hidden knowledge extraction from data, application of optimization and deep learning methods, as well as software engineering application skills. The elective courses offered within the study program also open possibilities for specialization in natural language or image processing, or applications of artificial intelligence (AI) in medicine and biology.

The objectives of the master’s study program Artificial Intelligence are:

• Acquiring theoretical foundations in mathematics and computer science topics relevant to AI including software engineering, optimization, deep and machine learning (ML),
• Acquiring the ability to apply the obtained theoretical knowledge to real-world problems coming from the AI and ML fields,
• Acquiring up-to-date knowledge and skills in the fields of AI and ML,
• Specializing for a certain class of problems from AI field such as image processing, natural language processing, spatial databases, and AI in medicine and biology,
• Acquiring practical knowledge and skills for dealing with AI-related problems from industry,
• Acquiring the ability to efficiently communicate with industry experts,
• Acquiring the ability to select and construct feasible and efficient algorithms for solving optimization problems in the AI field,
• Acquiring the ability to create efficient software solutions for big-data problems,
• Acquiring the ability to implement algorithms and to work with large databases.

General and Course-specific Competencies of Students

By completing this study program, students acquire the following general skills:

• Ability for analytical thinking, modeling, and formulating a real-world problem in a formal, mathematical way,
• Ability to apply the learned computer-science, mathematical and discipline-specific skills to solve real-world problems,
• Effectively communicate with engineers and other professionals in relevant domains.

By completing this study program, students acquire the following subject-specific abilities:

• Ability to combine knowledge from different scientific fields such as mathematics, computer science, engineering, biology, etc.,
• Ability to adapt to new tools, problems and frameworks coming from continuous development of artificial intelligence,
• Ability to follow the development of theoretical and practical concepts in artificial intelligence,
• Ability to effectively use up-to-date software tools relevant to artificial intelligence,
• Ability for creative acquisition of new concepts, of developing new models and of applying everything within novel technological frameworks,
• Ability for creative thinking, combining the taught concepts and skills to create innovative real-world solutions.

Study Outcomes

Upon successful completion of this program of study, students will have:

• Highly specialized academic and vocational knowledge with respect to theory, principles, and processes, including evaluation, critical understanding, and application in the field of AI as a foundation for scientific and applied research,
• Skills to solve complicated problems by applying innovative approach which contributes the development of the AI field,
• Skills to perform complex communication, interaction, and collaboration with different social groups, especially with experts from the industry,
• Skills to apply advanced methods, algorithms, and software solutions relevant to the AI field as a basis for scientific and applied research,
• Abilities to act as an entrepreneur and to take responsibilities as a leader,
• Abilities to become an independent and responsible leader of most complex projects,
• Abilities to plan and perform scientific and applied research,
• Abilities to supervise and evaluate the performance of other people and improve existing practices.