At which campus can I study this program?
Program Description
This certificate is designed to give students studying computer science and software engineering an opportunity to specialize in designing, developing, and refining artificial intelligence systems. We define the field of artificial intelligence as the discipline of creating systems that can perform cognitive functions such as information processing and decision-making usually associated with human minds.
Certificate coursework gives students hands-on experience creating systems that incorporate the latest advancements in AI. Students will build models and AI systems with various data structures for text, image, and multimedia. They may refine and modify existing models or create new models based on their own curated datasets. Course topics may include neural networks, word embeddings in natural language processing used in large language models, one-shot vs. few-shot approaches to training models, identifying faulty datasets, and the importance of metadata in model preparation. Students and faculty might work together to prepare models for training and to explore the potential of carefully curated models.
Examples of building AI systems in coursework may include:
- Enhancing computer vision of patterns and movement in space with LIDAR sensors
- Training a computer to recognize words in books, printed documents, or handwritten documents.
- Training voice-to-text recognition software based on analysis of sound patterns
- Developing software that applies neural networks to train mechanical robots
- Building pathfinding systems to allow robots to navigate unknown terrain
- Fine-tuning a chatbot that comments on calendar input with a stylized voice or persona
- Creating non-player characters that behave intelligently in video games
Program Requirements
To earn an undergraduate certificate in Building Artificial Intelligence, a minimum of 12 credits is required.
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Required Courses | ||
| CMPSC 441 | Artificial Intelligence | 3 |
| CMPSC 445 | Applied Machine Learning in Data Science | 3 |
| DIGIT 430 | Simulations of Human Behavior | 3 |
| HUM 220N | Artificial Intelligence and the Human Experience  | 3 |
Academic Advising
The objectives of the university's academic advising program are to help advisees identify and achieve their academic goals, to promote their intellectual discovery, and to encourage students to take advantage of both in-and out-of class educational opportunities in order that they become self-directed learners and decision makers.
Both advisers and advisees share responsibility for making the advising relationship succeed. By encouraging their advisees to become engaged in their education, to meet their educational goals, and to develop the habit of learning, advisers assume a significant educational role. The advisee's unit of enrollment will provide each advisee with a primary academic adviser, the information needed to plan the chosen program of study, and referrals to other specialized resources.
READ SENATE POLICY 32-00: ADVISING POLICY
Erie
Melanie Ford
Advising Coordinator
Burke 211
Erie, PA 16563
814-898-6685
mrf11@psu.edu
Contact
Erie
SCHOOL OF ENGINEERING
242 Jack Burke Research and Economic Development Center
5101 Jordan Road
Erie, PA 16563
814-898-6685
mrf11@psu.edu