• IST 597-001: Engineering of Human-Centered AI Systems
• IST 597-003: Cyber-Physical Systems/IoT Security
• IST 597-004: User Experience Evaluation
• IST 597-005: Community AI Development and Evaluation

The College of IST will allow students to take independent study courses (IST 596) with IST graduate faculty members to learn about areas that are not taught in currently offered Penn State graduate courses.

The college will use the following guidelines for the Independent Study policy:

• Students requesting an independent study course must submit a completed Independent Study Form to the Office of Graduate Programs for review by the director of graduate programs before or during the first week of the semester in which the student plans to take the independent study course.
• Students can earn a maximum of six credits of independent study during the duration of their studies. Independent study course hours can range from one to three depending on the work proposed. These credits will count toward the specialization area course requirements.
• Independent study is not to be used for M.S. or Ph.D. research credits. Rather, it is for students to do independent coursework on a subject that is not being offered in IST or elsewhere at Penn State.
• The student must meet with the independent study instructor for the contact hours related to the number of requested credits. For example, a three-credit independent study course would require three contact hours a week.
• The output of the independent study course must be a deliverable that is relevant to the course and agreed upon by the student and the instructor.

• M.S. students completing a scholarly paper will take IST 594 for the required three credits
• Students who wish to be enrolled in IST 594 should email Jenna Hart an approval email from the student's adviser stating that they need to be enrolled. Once approval is received, the student will be registered for IST 594.

Thesis Research (IST 600)

• IST 600 for IUG and M.S. students writing a thesis, and for Ph.D. students who have not yet passed their comprehensive exams and are actively doing research on campus
• Students are able to enroll themselves in 1-12 credits of IST 600 via LionPATH. Graduate students need to be enrolled in at least nine credits each semester to be considered a full-time student.

PH.D. Dissertation Full-Time (IST 601)

• IST 601 is for Ph.D. students who have passed their comprehensive exams and who are actively doing research on campus
• Students are able to enroll themselves in IST 601 via LionPATH. Although IST 601 is not associated with any credits, a graduate student enrolled in this course is considered a full-time student.

Thesis Research Off-Campus (IST 610)

• IST 610 is for Ph.D. students who have not yet passed their comprehensive exams and who are semi-actively doing research off campus
• Students are able to enroll themselves in IST 610 via LionPATH

PH.D. Dissertation Part-Time (IST 611)

• IST 611 is for Ph.D. students who have passed their comprehensive exams and who are semi-actively doing research off campus
• Students are able to enroll themselves in IST 611 via LionPATH