MS CS Deadlines Fall 2027: US Programs and Time Zones

MS CS Deadlines Fall 2027: US Programs and Time Zones

Fall 2027 MS CS deadlines at the 13 US programs below run from November 18, 2026 (CMU's early date) to March 1, 2027 (Georgia Tech Analytics, late). Every deadline that states a time closes on the next calendar day in India: CMU at 1:30 a.m. IST, Eastern 11:59 p.m. deadlines at 10:29 a.m. IST, and Pacific ones at 1:29 p.m. IST.

A deadline list that gives only the date leaves out the number an applicant in India needs: the hour, in India. CMU closes at 3 p.m. Eastern, which is the middle of the night in India, so "I'll submit tonight" on December 9 in Pune is fine for UCLA's deadline a week later and too late to be safe for CMU. Berkeley's odd 8:59 p.m. Pacific is simply 11:59 p.m. Eastern. This page converts each one. If your statement is still a draft, test it against the MS CS SOP rubric before the first date.

Every program page below was checked on October 31, 2026. Several pages give no year or no time; the table says so where they do not. Recheck each page in the week you submit.

On this page:

• Fall 2027 deadline table with India time
• When "tonight" is too late: our submission rule
• Early and scholarship deadlines that change the plan
• Score timing
• Constructed submission calendar
• Programs not verified here
• Questions about MS CS deadlines

Fall 2027 deadline table with India time

US daylight saving time ends on November 1, 2026, according to NIST: "During 2026, daylight saving time is in effect from March 8 at 2 a.m. (local time) to November 1 at 2 a.m. (local time)." Every deadline below falls after that, so US standard time applies. India Standard Time is 10 hours 30 minutes ahead of Eastern, 11:30 ahead of Central and 13:30 ahead of Pacific (our arithmetic from UTC offsets).

If your first deadline is this week, here is how to write an SOP in 2 days.

Day-of-week and IST figures are our arithmetic. Where the page gives no year, the IST time still holds for that date in any December or January, because US standard time applies in both.

Purdue sets deadlines program by program, but the time is university-wide: "Application submission and fee payment is due by 11:59:59 p.m. (EST) on that date" (Purdue Graduate School). That is 10:29:59 a.m. IST the next day.

When "tonight" is too late: our submission rule

Our view: set your own deadline at the evening of the US date, in India, for every program except CMU. For CMU, set it one day earlier.

The basis is the table. For an Eastern 11:59 p.m. deadline, 9 p.m. IST on the US date leaves about 13 and a half hours. For a Pacific one, it leaves about 16 and a half. For CMU's 3 p.m. EST, 9 p.m. IST on the US date leaves 4 and a half hours, and the close falls at 1:30 a.m. while you might be asleep or offline. (All three gaps are our arithmetic.) The programs themselves warn against the last hours. UIUC: "Server traffic around the deadline may cause technical difficulties. It is highly recommended to submit all application materials one month before the deadline to expedite admission decisions." Berkeley EECS: "we recommend submitting your application well before the deadline. Late applications or materials will not be accepted."

The countercase: do not hold your submission for letters. CMU says "it is okay if the letters arrive a few days late" and "do not wait to submit your application." Georgia Tech ECE says late letters "will still be considered as long as a final decision has not yet been made." The application itself is different. UIUC says "Late applications will not be accepted", and Georgia Tech ECE answers "Are the application deadline dates firm?" with "Yes." Submit on time, and let the letters follow where the program allows it. Our guide to what to do if you missed a grad application deadline covers the cases where something is late.

Early and scholarship deadlines that change the plan

• CMU's early date saves money. "The application fee is $100 per program. The fee is discounted to $80 per program if you apply before the early deadline of November 18, 2026 (3 p.m. EST)." The page adds that "The early deadline is not applicable to the MSE, MSE-ES, MSE-SS and MHCI programs". CMU also says some committees "will begin reviewing materials sooner than this deadline".
• USC's December 15 is for scholarships. The Fall 2027 row on USC's page is labelled "scholarship consideration deadline"; the final deadline is January 15, 2027.
• Columbia prefers the first date. "We strongly encourage all applicants to meet the 1st deadline." Applications completed after the second "are less likely to be accepted."
• Georgia Tech Analytics gives priority applicants the fullest consideration. "Applicants who apply by the Priority deadline will receive the fullest consideration for admission."
• UCSD's fee waiver is not for MS applicants. It is for "international PhD applicants", "Financial need alone does not qualify an applicant for a waiver", and the form closes "after December 2nd, 2026 at 3:00 PM PST", which is Thursday, December 3, 4:30 a.m. IST (our arithmetic).

Score timing

• CMU recommends taking tests by November 25, 2026. "If you need to take or retake your GRE for this application, we highly recommend that you take the exam no later than November 25, 2026. Reportable scores can take two weeks to process". The same date is given for English tests. CMU also states that "Medium of Instruction (MOI) certificates are not accepted as a substitute for an English proficiency test."
• Stanford CS recommends taking the TOEFL or IELTS "at least six (6) weeks before the application deadline."
• UCLA warns that your name and email must "match exactly on your ETS registration" and on the application, or scores "might not synch up". It also says "Reports on exams taken in November will be received in time for review."
• UCSD says "The GRE is not required for PhD and MS applications for Fall 2027."
• Georgia Tech ECE says "Duolingo scores are not accepted."

Constructed submission calendar

Context (invented): an applicant in Bengaluru applying to eight of the programs above for Fall 2027. Where a page states no year, the calendar assumes the Fall 2027 cycle date in 2026.

Constructed example, written by us, not a real applicant's plan. Target dates follow our submission rule above.

Two things the calendar shows. Berkeley and UIUC close within about an hour of each other on the same Indian morning, so they need the same finished SOP core in the last week of November. And the CMU row is the only one where the target date is two days before the IST close date. If this applicant wanted CMU's fee discount, row 3 would move to Tuesday, November 17, 9 p.m. IST.

Programs not verified here

These are common on Indian applicants' lists, but they are not in the table because we did not confirm a Fall 2027 deadline on an official page on October 31, 2026: UT Austin CS, Michigan CSE, Texas A&M CSE, UMass Amherst CICS, NYU Tandon, UT Dallas, Stony Brook CS, and Stanford CS, whose FAQ sends applicants to a separate deadline page we did not check. Read the date and the time zone on each program's own page.

Questions about MS CS deadlines

Which time zone is an "11:59 p.m." deadline in?

The one the program states. In the table, CMU SCS (3 p.m. EST), CMU INI and Georgia Tech ECE use Eastern, UIUC uses Central, and Berkeley EECS (8:59 pm PST), UCLA, USC and UCSD use Pacific. Purdue states EST. Where a page states no time zone, as at ASU, Columbia's FAQ and Georgia Tech MS CS, find the time inside the application portal before you plan around it.

Which MS CS programs have a December 15 deadline for Fall 2027?

In our table: UCLA CS (23:59 Pacific), USC Viterbi's scholarship-consideration date (11:59 PM Pacific) and ASU's AI MS (no time stated). USC's final deadline is January 15, 2027.

Which have a January 15 deadline?

USC Viterbi MS (final), Columbia CS MS (first priority), ASU Data Science, Analytics and Engineering, and UIUC's MS in Bioinformatics.

Do I have to wait for my letters before I submit?

No. CMU says not to wait, and Georgia Tech ECE considers late letters until a decision is made. UIUC's deadline covers "All application materials", so check your recommenders early there. Georgia Tech's MSCS closes Feb. 1; its statement rules by program differ for ECE and Analytics.

Purdue's cutoff is 11:59:59 p.m. EST; Purdue's statements and deadline time are covered on its own page.

Columbia counts letters as part of a complete application by the January 15 priority date; see what counts as a complete Columbia application.

Deciding whether to send an optional GRE? See should you mention CGPA, GRE or rank in your SOP.

CMU's early deadline also lowers its fee; for waiver routes, see fee waiver routes for international applicants.

Get a free review of your statement of purpose

Get a free Quick Review of your statement of purpose against GradPilot's MS CS, AI and data SOP rubric. It reads your technical preparation, your own role in team work, and goals tied to the program. Applying to a non-computing program on the same calendar? Use the master's SOP rubric, or start from the master's statement of purpose review.

More guides for the same application:

• MS in USA timeline for Fall 2027 from India: the month-by-month plan around these dates.
• MS CS SOP word limits by university: what each program's statement has to fit.
• PhD application deadlines and timeline for Fall 2027: the doctoral dates.
• Late deadline master's programs for Fall 2027: programs that close in spring and summer.
• All graduate school essay guides.

Sources

Retrieved October 31, 2026, except where noted.

• NIST, Daylight Saving Time (2026): US daylight saving time ends November 1, 2026.
• Carnegie Mellon School of Computer Science, Graduate Admissions (Fall 2027 dates): early and final deadlines, fee discount, test dates, MOI rule, letters.
• Carnegie Mellon Information Networking Institute, How To Apply (Fall 2027): priority and final deadlines, 11:59 p.m. ET.
• University of Illinois Siebel School, Application Deadlines (no year stated): MS CS and MS Bioinformatics dates, Central time, late-application rule, early-submission advice.
• UC Berkeley EECS, Graduate Admissions (Fall 2027): December 1, 2026, 8:59 pm PST.
• UC Berkeley EECS, Master of Engineering (Fall 2027): January 6, 2027, 8:59 pm PST.
• Arizona State University SCAI, Graduate Admissions (no year stated): fall deadlines by program.
• UCLA Computer Science, Graduate Requirements (no year stated): December 15, 23:59 Pacific; score matching.
• USC Viterbi, Application Information and Deadlines (Fall 2027): December 15 scholarship and January 15, 2027 final deadlines.
• Georgia Tech School of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Graduate Admissions (no year stated): December 16, 11:59PM ET; firm deadlines; late letters; Duolingo.
• UC San Diego CSE, Graduate Admissions (Fall 2027): December 16, 2026 deadline; GRE; fee waiver.
• Georgia Tech MS in Analytics, Admissions (Fall 2027): January 1 priority and March 1 late deadlines.
• Columbia University Department of Computer Science, MS Application FAQ (no year stated): January 15 and February 15 deadlines.
• Georgia Tech College of Computing, Master of Science in Computer Science (no year stated): February 1 deadline.
• Purdue University Graduate School, How to Apply (no year stated): 11:59:59 p.m. EST submission time.
• Stanford Computer Science, Master's Admissions FAQ (no year stated): test timing.