Northwestern Engineering Announces New AI Major
The AI major is the first offering of McCormick’s new bachelor of science in engineering degree
Starting this fall, undergraduate students at Northwestern University will have the option to major in AI, thanks to a new academic offering announced today. The major, administered by Northwestern Engineering’s Department of Computer Science, will prepare students to lead in a rapidly evolving field.
Artificial intelligence now underpins innovation across industry, drives discovery at the frontiers of research, and shapes how technology affects people and communities. Graduates with AI expertise are in high demand, whether in tech companies and startups or healthcare, government, nonprofits, and graduate programs. As organizations race to build smarter systems, researchers continue to expand what machines can learn, create, do, and decide.
“We aim to prepare students for the future of a quickly changing and expanding field,” said Sara Owsley Sood, Chookaszian Family Teaching Professor of Instruction and associate chair for undergraduate education in the McCormick School of Engineering. “The AI industry demands specific technical skills that differ from the core CS curriculum, drawing from fundamentals in sub-fields including computer vision, knowledge representation and reasoning, natural language processing, machine learning, and robotics. This new major will span the breadth of AI, while also preparing students to deploy AI systems (work with GPUs), build systems that interact with users (human-computer interaction) and consider their impact (ethics).”
Northwestern faculty have a long history of combining technical expertise with a culture of interdisciplinary collaboration to build meaningful bridges across engineering, business, creative arts, the humanities, law, medicine, and social sciences. The faculty in the AI major will bring this expertise to the program, spanning fundamentals such as machine learning and cognitive modeling to knowledge of how to pair those skills with language understanding and generation, planning and reasoning, robotics and human-robot interaction, computational journalism, creativity and education, and how AI intersects with law and society.
McCormick students who declare the new major will graduate with a bachelor of science in engineering (BSE) and a major in AI. Undergraduate students enrolled in any Northwestern school may elect to add AI as a second major while remaining in their current school.
Learning Goals
“Our new undergraduate major is designed to bridge the gap between academic computer science and applied AI,” said Samir Khuller, Peter and Adrienne Barris Chair of Computer Science at Northwestern Engineering. “Modern AI systems, which adapt and learn strategies over time, are built on decades of evolving CS knowledge. The ability to collect and analyze massive amounts of data has opened new avenues in areas including robotics, autonomous machines, natural language processing, vision based systems, and audio processing.”
Designed to prepare students to become versatile builders and critical thinkers in a rapidly evolving technological landscape, the AI major curriculum will equip students with a deep, practical understanding of how intelligent systems are built, deployed, and used responsibly.
Our new undergraduate major is designed to bridge the gap between academic computer science and applied AI. Peter and Adrienne Barris Chair of Computer Science at Northwestern Engineering
Through rigorous training in machine learning and natural language processing, AI systems and infrastructure, data structures and algorithms, and the mathematical foundations that underpin modern AI, students will learn to design efficient, reliable, and scalable solutions to complex problems.
The program curriculum emphasizes fluency across programming languages and paradigms, preparing graduates to collaborate effectively in diverse technical environments. Equally important, the program also emphasizes the human and societal dimensions of AI, training students to apply user-centered design principles and critically evaluate the impacts of AI on privacy, sustainability, and intellectual property.
AI Major Faculty Team
Sood will serve as the AI major program director. A faculty committee adds diverse expertise to curriculum development and administration. Members include: Larry Birnbaum, professor of computer science; David Demeter, assistant professor of instruction in computer science; Edith Elkind, Ginni Rometty Professor of Computer Science; Bryan Pardo, professor of computer science; and Zach Wood-Doughty, assistant professor of instruction in computer science.
"I am so glad to see the AI major become a reality,” Khuller said. “After an initial proposal at our CS faculty retreat in fall 2023, the AI major team has worked diligently to launch this new program and meet this exciting moment in tech.”
Declaring the AI major
Beginning this fall, Northwestern students may declare the AI major, whether as a new major, change in major, or addition as a second major. Students who plan to declare or shift to the AI major, or have any questions about the program, may contact senior academic adviser Melissa Duong and Sara Sood and complete this form.
Transform Engineering Education: Flexibility and Innovation in Degree Programs
Guided by our strategic vision, Northwestern Engineering is adapting curriculum and degree offerings to match the needs of a rapidly evolving engineering landscape. By launching new opportunities like the AI major, McCormick aims to prepare students to excel in industry and drive transformation in their chosen fields.