Master of Science in Artificial Intelligence

  • Total # of Credit hours
    30

Program Overview

Overview

Master of Science in Artificial Intelligence program offered by Ajman University is the first of its kind in the country. We will be one of the leading Universities in the region to offer Master in Artificial Intelligence. Artificial Intelligence (AI) is the newest trend in computer science nowadays. Although (AI) is not new as science, it is recently attracting the attention of business leaders, industry, military, and governments from all over the world. The component of mimicking the human ability that AI has, such as; inference, deduction, knowledge aggregation, learning, recognition and even expressing emotions make AI based technology of great interest. It is extremely important nowadays for our community and organizations to be at the leading edge of technologies such as AI. This will empower all organizations of the nation, and make them at the top niche of advancement and development.

Program Mission

The mission of the Master of Science in Artificial Intelligence (MSAI) is to prepare graduates with well-rounded education in the different areas of Artificial intelligence (AI). The graduates will be able to develop AI technologies and fulfill the local and regional market’s needs. The program will motivate scientific research in this field in collaboration with internal and external entities.

The Education Objectives

The Education Objectives of the MSAI program are to graduate students who will be able to:

  1. Provide innovative solutions to complex problems.
  2. Become an effective team member.
  3. Acquire a position of leadership/responsibility in an organization.
  4. Demonstrate ethical and social behavior.
  5. Pursue further studies and become life-long learner”
Program Coordinator

Prof. Mohammed Al Betar (Profile)

Admission Requirements
  • The applicant should have a Bachelor degree (or equivalent qualification) in Computer Science or a directly related discipline from an accredited university recognized by the UAE Ministry of Education.
  • The department will consider applications from holders of a Bachelor degree with a minimum GPA of 3.0 on a 4.0 scale or equivalent score.
  • English Proficiency Tests – must be taken no more than two years prior to admission to Ajman University. A minimum English proficiency scores are set for the MSAI program as follows: A minimum TOEFL score of 550 on the Paper-Based, 213 on the Computer-Based, or 79-80 on the Internet-Based test, or its equivalent in a standardized English language test, such as 6.0 IELTS or another standardized, internationally recognized test approved by the CAA.
Exceptions
  • An applicant who is a native speaker of English and has completed his/her undergraduate education in an English medium institution in a country where English is the official language.
  • An applicant with an undergraduate qualification from an English-medium institution who can provide evidence of acquiring a minimum TOEFL score of 500 on the Paper-Based test, or its equivalent on another standardized test approved by the Commission, at the time of admission to his/her undergraduate program.

Meeting the above conditions does not guarantee automatic admission into the program. Authority for admitting an applicant for the MSAI program is vested in the Dean of the College of Engineering and Information Technology and the Dean of the Graduate Studies and Research. By written communication, both Deans will transmit the decision to the applicant, and the registrar.

Transfer Admission
  • Transferred students will be accepted under the following conditions:
  • Student transferring from a federal or licensed institution in the UAE, or a foreign institution of higher learning based outside the UAE and accredited in its home country, are eligible for transfer admission.
  • Student is required to meet the English language proficiency requirements for the MSAI program, prior to commencing their study.
  • Only students in good academic standing (a minimum cumulative grade point average of a 3.0 on a 4.0 scale, or equivalent) will be accepted to the MSAI program;
  • A maximum of 12 credit hours of a degree program may be gained through transfer, and thesis transfer is not allowed.
  • Degree requirements may be satisfied by transfer of graduate credit for courses of a grade of B or above from an accredited college or university and completed outside the master’s degree. Courses normally taken in an undergraduate program will not be counted as credit toward the MSc-AI degree. No credit hours can be used to satisfy more than one degree.
  • Generally, graduate transfer credit that is more than five years old may not be accepted to complete a degree.

The Program Coordinator recommends transfer of credits to the Dean who will forward it to the Registrar who makes appropriate changes to the student transcript. A student enrolled at Ajman University who wishes to take courses at another institution with the intention of transferring them to AU must have the prior written permission of the Program Coordinator and the Dean before registering for such courses. Details about the required documents for admission are available in Graduate Student Catalog.

Graduation Requirements

The completion requirements of the Master’s degree in Artificial Intelligence shall be:

  • An overall cumulative grade point average (CGPA) of 3.0 or above (out of 4.0) after the completion of the 30 credit hours as per the degree requirement and the study plan.
  • A minimum grade of C is required to pass any course except Master thesis and Master Project courses where a minimum passing grade of B is required.

 

Career Opportunities

Graduates of the MSc-AI program will have careers in various areas and fields local, regional, and international as follows:

  1. Pursuing Ph.D. degree in AI related areas.
  2. R&D at specialized firms developing AI algorithms and applications.
  3. Data analytics and scientists at firms and organizations; private and public.
  4. Robotics engineers and developers.
  5. Decision makers and all levels managers who need to use and develop AI based systems.
  6. Games developers and programmers.
  7. Security specialists and analyzers.
  8. Smart governments and smart e-commerce specialists.
  9. Medical imaging and pattern recognition engineers.
  10. Smart education and e-learning specialists.
  11. Speech recognition and natural language processing specialists.

 

Program Learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this program the graduate will be able to:

PLO#1: Demonstrate an in depth understanding of the theories and techniques of AI.

PLO#2: Review and contrast new research findings and developments in the AI field.

PLO#3: Integrate diverse AI technologies to formulate innovative solutions to complex problems.

PLO#4: Analyze and evaluate critically AI-based solutions to highly complex problems.

PLO#5: Manage and take responsibility for conducting AI-based research/project development.

PLO#6: Function independently and collectively as a member of a team and assume leadership roles.

PLO#7: Resolve highly complex ethical and societal issues arising from implementing AI-based solutions.

Courses Descriptions

Artificial Intelligence – MAI602

Credit hours: 3  Theory: 3  Lab: 0  Prerequisite: None

The aim of this course is to provide graduate students with in-depth knowledge of AI principles, algorithms and techniques. Topics covered include Knowledge Representation schemes and Automated Reasoning, uncertain knowledge and probabilistic reasoning, search strategies, intelligent agents, machine learning, planning, and ethical and societal issues relating to artificial intelligence.  Students also work on a course project individually or in pairs.

Biomedical informatics – MAI611

Credit hours: 3  Theory: 3  Lab: 0  Prerequisite: MAI601

This course covers wide relevant topics in bioinformatics.  The use of biomedical data, information, and knowledge from very basic levels to the individuals9 level is covered. Bioinformatics  used in scientific inquiry, problem solving, computing and decision-making are presented. Biomedical informatics resources in the form of information systems are presented.  Biological paradigms that are utilized in computing are introduced.  Artificial intelligence techniques used in bioinformatics are introduced. Ethical issues with regard to bioinformatics are covered. The course includes submitting a research review paper in one of the areas: ethical issues in bioinformatics, translational bioinformatics, DNAs and RNAs as computers, Bioinformatics information systems, Bioinformatics data mining and classification, or any topic proposed by students and approved by instructor.

Business Intelligence – MAI610

Credit Hours: 3  Theory: 3  Lab: 0  Prerequisite: MAI601

This course intends to provide students with broad and in-depth knowledge of the concepts of Business Intelligence (BI).  The course exposes students to varieties of BI techniques that include the use of data warehouse in dimensional modeling, business performance management, descriptive analytic, predictive analytic, prescriptive analytic, and the application of big data. Students participate in the development of group project and will be given individual case studies that cover range of BI applications. 

Computer Vision and Pattern Recognition – MAI609

Credit hour: 3  Theory: 3  Lab: 0  Prerequisite:MAI602

This course provides a broad coverage of the fundamental techniques of image processing and computer vision. Course topics include: essential mathematical background, image geometry, image processing operations and filters, edge detection, segmentation, image features extraction, object recognition techniques, and synthesis and analysis. Students also work on group projects (2 to 3 students) to create an object recognition software component or system.

Data Mining – MAI601

Credit hour: 3  Theory: 3  Lab: 0  Prerequisite: None

Data mining is the process of discovering patterns and knowledge from huge amount of dataset. This course aims to equip students with the necessary skills and knowledge that allow them to develop models using data mining techniques that include association, clustering, outlier, web mining, text mining, and pattern mining approaches.  Students will also learn to collate, filter, clean, transform, and sort data using established contemporary tools. Validation and performance assessment is applied to compare test data with training data and assess accuracy of processes and models. 

Evolutionary Computations – MAI607

Credit hour: 3  Theory: 3  Lab: 0  Prerequisite: MAI602

This course will cover topics in evolutionary computations and their application to solve optimization problems. Course topics include: basics of genetic algorithms; constrained optimization; Multimodal Optimization; Multi objective Optimization; Swarm Intelligence; Genetic Programming; and Combinatorial Optimization. Students also are required to review research on evolutionary computation and work in group projects (2 to 3 students) to solve a problem using evolutionary-based algorithms.

Human Computer Interactions – MAI608

Credit hour: 3  Theory: 3  Lab: 0  Prequisite:None

This course provides students with the necessary knowledge and skills needed to design and implement interactive computer systems using the latest human computer interaction (HCI) principles and theories.  Topics covered by this course include, general overview of HCI, universal usability, guidelines, principles, and theories of HCI, managing design processes, evaluating design, Interaction styles, devices, communication and collaboration, critical design issues, search and visualization. 

Machine Learning – MAI603

Credit hour: 3  Theory: 3  Lab: 0  Prerequisite: None

This course aims to provide students with an in-depth introduction to the main areas of machine learning. Topics covered include, supervised and unsupervised learning models and algorithms in classification, regression, and clustering, reinforcement learning algorithms and models, genetic algorithms in machine learning, and model selection and evaluation. Students also work in group projects (2 to 3 students) that embodies the solution to a machine learning problem. 

Master Project – MAI698

Credit hour: 3    Prerequisite: completion of core courses with success  

Student is required to plan, design, build, and test a high functionality project in coordination with a project supervisor. The student should use the experience and knowledge gained from preceding courses taken earlier to improvise and build an AI based application that has great potential of being transformed into a commercial asset. Research component is highly recommended in the master project especially if it constituted a heuristic or technological addition. The project requires a written proposal, a proposal presentation, and a final presentation.

Master Thesis – MAI699

Credit hour: 9    Prerequisite: Passing core courses + MSAI council approval  

Students are required to investigate some contemporary AI related topic, prepare a high quality proposal, and write a high quality manuscript with content and organization that meet international standards. Students should follow the rules and regulations set by the MSAI council for that purpose. All work should be done in coordination with a thesis supervisor. The thesis must constitute original contributions, in the form of theories or heuristics, to the fields of AI and its applications. There will be an oral presentation for the submitted proposal and oral defense for the thesis. Manuscript of the thesis will be archived and copyrighted. 

Natural Language Processing with Deep Learning – MAI612

Credit hour: 3  Theory: 3  Lab: 0  Prerequisite:MAI603

Fundamental concepts of Natural Language Processing (NLP) and deep learning methods are introduced. Word level syntactic and semantic processing from linguistic and algorithmic perspectives are discussed. Statistical acquisition and modern quantitative techniques are presented.  Deep learning neural networks paradigms are introduced. Deep Learning techniques in NLP utilizing different learning methods and architectures such as Multi-layer perceptron, convolutional, encoder-decoder, GreedyWiser DBN will be used in solving underlying problems. Comparisons with classical methods (HMM/statistical) are presented. Corpuses preparation is presented. A research or application oriented project in text and/or speech recognition will be conducted.

Robotics – MAI605

Credit hour: 3  Theory: 3  Lab: 0  Prerequisite: None

Methods of analysis for operations of robotics are presented. The manipulators dynamics and kinematics including trajectory planning along with motion control, vision, and sensing are covered. Programming to control robots using hardware interfaces (microcontrollers) for motion and motion planning along with task assembling. Optimum trajectory and optimum grippers are presented. Uncertainty and stability issues in grasping and planning. Applications of robots in several areas of real life. Hybrid AI and robotics techniques.  Lab work will provide hands on experience. 

Special Topics in Artificial Intelligence – MAI613

Credit  hour: 3  Theory: 3  Lab:0   Pre-requisite: None

The course should demonstrate an in depth understanding of the theories of AI techniques and applications in a relevant field. Students also need to be able assess and critique some research findings in that AI field. They will integrate AI technologies to improvise innovative solutions for some complex problem. During the course, they must function independently and collectively and take full responsibility to complete a research/project development. They should resolve complex ethical issues when implementing AI- based solutions.