Univ of Southern California
University of Southern California
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Multimedia and Creative Technologies

Minor in Interactive Multimedia

A minor in interactive multimedia is open to undergraduate students in all majors. This minor provides students with the skills and knowledge necessary to apply and develop interactive multimedia tools within a variety of industries. Although this program is geared towards the non-technical student, computer literacy is a key component to being successful in this program.

Students must apply to the program through the Viterbi School of Engineering, and approval of the student’s advisor will be required on the application form. Students are required to complete a minimum of 19 units of course work consisting of both core requirements and elective courses.

Successful completion of the interactive multimedia minor requires a minimum of a 2.0 GPA in the following courses.

Core CoursesUnits
CTIN 309Introduction to Interactive Media4
EE 320xDigital Media Basics for Multimedia3
ITP 101xIntroduction to Information Technology, or4
ITP 105x*Introduction to Computer Technologies and Applications2
ITP 210xMultimedia Applications for Windows (corequisite to EE 320)2
JOUR 413Introduction to Online Journalism4
Total core units:13-15

Elective Courses:6-8 units
Students will choose two elective courses from the following list:

Cinematic Arts
CTIN 483Introduction to Game Development4
CTIN 488Game Design Workshop4

Engineering
EE 450Introduction to Computer Networks3
ITP 301LxInteractive Web Development, or4
CSCI 351*Programming and Multimedia on the World Wide Web3

*Prerequisites waived if students are competent in programming.

Journalism
JOUR 417Online Journalism Management2

Fine Arts (Multimedia Design)
FADN 302Design II4
FAIN 310Digital Photo Studio4
FAIN 315Internet Studio: Online Experimentation and Expression4
FAIN 410Advanced Digital Photo Studio4
FASC 436Art and Technology4

Total units required for completion of minor: 19‑23 units

Total units including all prerequisite courses: 26-36

Master of Science in Computer Science (Multimedia and Creative Technologies)

Students may earn a specialization in multimedia and creative technologies by completing the general requirements for the Master of Science in computer science and the following additional courses:

Every student must complete CSCI 576 Multimedia Systems Design (3). Students must also complete at least two courses selected from one of the two specialization tracks: Graphics and Vision or Networks and Databases.

Graphics and Vision TrackUnits
CSCI 480Computer Graphics3
CSCI 520Computer Animation and Simulation3
CSCI 574Computer Vision3
CSCI 5803-D Graphics and Rendering3
CSCI 582Geometric Modeling3
CSCI 674Advanced Topics in Computer Vision3
EE 569Introduction to Digital Image Processing3

Networks and Databases TrackUnits
CSCI 551Computer Communications3
CSCI 558LInternetworking and Distributed Systems Laboratory3
CSCI 585*Database Systems3
CSCI 586Database Systems Interoperability3
CSCI 694abTopics in Computer Networks and Distributed Systems3-3
EE 450Introduction to Computer Networks3

Suggested Core and Elective Courses
Since this specialization is systems oriented, it is recommended (but not required) that students select CSCI 555 Advanced Operating Systems and EE 557 Computer Systems Architecture as two of their three core courses. Additional electives may be taken from the two tracks or from the partial list of suggestions below.

CSCI 561*Foundations of Artificial Intelligence3
CSCI 573Advanced Artificial Intelligence3
CSCI 577ab*Software Engineering4-4
CSCI 583Computational Geometry3
CSCI 588Specification and Design of User Interface Software3
CSCI 590Directed Research1-12
EE 554Real Time Computer Systems3
ISE 571Human Factor Issues in Integrated Media Systems3
ISE 575Topics in Engineering Approaches to Music Cognition3, max 6
ITP 411xInteractive Multimedia Production3

*Also satisfies a core course requirement in the general requirements for the M.S. degree in Computer Science.

Master of Science in Electrical Engineering (Multimedia and Creative Technologies)

Students may earn a specialization in multimedia and creative technologies by completing the general requirements for the Master of Science in Electrical Engineering and the following additional requirements:

(1) At most four units of electives can be taken outside of the Viterbi School of Engineering with advisor approval. Some examples are CTAN 452 Introduction to 3-D Computer Animation (2 units) and CTIN 483 Introduction to Game Development (4 units).

(2) Computer science courses that are cross-listed with EE can (but do not have to) count toward the 18 EE units. Up to nine units of other CSCI courses that either are or are not cross-listed can also be used. Multimedia and creative technologies draws heavily on concepts and techniques from computer science.

(3) Students must include the following three courses in their program

EE 483Introduction to Digital Signal Processing3
EE 519Speech Recognition and Processing for Multimedia3
EE 569Introduction to Digital Image Processing3

A course can be waived if a student can demonstrate equivalent knowledge of the material and if the course instructor will certify it.

(4) Students must include six courses from the following list of courses in their programs for a total of 18 units.

Approved Courses for the Multimedia Specialization
Courses in Electrical Engineeringunits
EE 450Introduction to Computer Networks3
EE 522Immersive Audio Signal Processing3
EE 555Broadband Network Architectures3
EE 577aVLSI System Design3
EE 586LAdvanced DSP Design Laboratory4
EE 596Wavelets3
EE 619Advanced Topics in Automatic Speech Recognition3
EE 669Multimedia Data Compression3

Courses in Computer ScienceUnits
CSCI 455xIntroduction to Programming Systems Design4
CSCI 480Computer Graphics3
CSCI 485File and Database Management3
CSCI 551Computer Communications3
CSCI 571Web Technologies3
CSCI 574Computer Vision3
CSCI 576Multimedia Systems Design3
CSCI 5803-D Graphics and Rendering3
CSCI 582Geometric Modeling3
CSCI 585Database Systems3

Courses from the School of Cinematic ArtsUnits
CTAN 452Introduction to 3-D Computer Animation2, max 4
CTIN 483Introduction to Game Development4

Course in Information TechnologyUnits
ITP 411xInteractive Multimedia Production3

(5) Students may replace courses in the above list with a combined maximum of multimedia-related EE 599 or CSCI 599 Special Topics courses in their programs. Every course requires prior approval from the faculty advisor, recorded each semester on the plan of study form.

(6) Students may include a maximum of 6 units of EE 590 Directed Research in their programs. Before registering for these units, the faculty advisor must approve a written description of the intended multimedia research project signed by the faculty member who will supervise the student.

(7) Students entering this program are expected to have already completed, either at USC or at another institution, formal course work equivalent to USC course EE 364 Introduction to Probability and Statistics for Electrical Engineering. If an approved course has either EE 441 or EE 464 as a prerequisite, then the student must first take and pass the placement examination that is given each semester for either EE 441 or EE 464 before taking the approved course. Information about placement exams can be found at ee.usc.edu.

(8) Although not required, students should be proficient in C or C++ programming, at the level taught in CSCI 455x.

(9) Although not required, ITP 411x Integrated Multimedia Production (3 units) will provide the student with hands-on experience in using multimedia application tools. This will help the student prepare a portfolio, which is expected by the industry from students who major in a multimedia program.