The Ira A. Fulton Schools of Engineering recently announced that students can now pursue a new type of doctoral degree in the School of Computing and Augmented Intelligence (SCAI): a degree in AI. The priority application deadline for the Fall 2026 term is Jan. 15.
The degree path will build students' foundational skills relevant to AI while working closely with the University's AI-focused faculty and conducting original research. Ross Maciejewski, the director of SCAI, said AI has been the school's "bread and butter" for years.
"This is a top-tier place to get your next generation of artificial intelligence training," he said. "We've got world-class scientists winning research awards, coming up with project ideas, so you've got a nice home for the ability for research to grow here."
Maciejewski also said the rise in AI use and its current societal prominence prompted the SCAI faculty to establish the program. He added the work was a part of a "ground-up approach."
Siddharth Srivastava, a professor at SCAI, will be the graduate chair for the Ph.D. and master's programs in AI at the school. Maciejewski and Srivastava collaborated to gather feedback from SCAI's AI-focused faculty to develop the doctoral degree plan.
"We've got a broad mix of faculty experience and interest in AI, and so that gives you a lot of ability to learn different flavors of artificial intelligence problems here at ASU," Maciejewski said. "I'm really excited to have students come and work with our great faculty."
Srivastava said the program is structured to bring in students from interdisciplinary backgrounds. He also said that the program aims to increase students' depth of knowledge in statistical learning; embodied AI, cognition and perception; and reasoning and decision-making.
"What we are trying to do here is to have a more well-rounded platform to begin with," Srivastava said. "We want to build a curriculum that incorporates all of these, so that distinguishes us quite a bit from what exists out there."
Beyond gaining an understanding of the AI systems, students in the doctoral program will be trained in how to conduct research. Srivastava said the program will show students how to apply current ideas, find gaps in existing knowledge and then apply problem-solving approaches to develop new understandings.
"We want these students to be able to develop the next generation of AI systems, more reliable, more resilient, able to be deployed in the real world safely and effectively," he said. "I'm hoping all of these things, not just understanding the field, but how to take it further."
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Gunika Dhingra, co-president of The AI Society at ASU and a graduate student studying data science, analytics and engineering, said she has been interested in AI since she was working on her undergraduate degree.
"All of my learning in my undergrad days and my grad, as well, has been revolving around how all these models work around, and how the science behind all these large language models look like, and how we can optimize them," she said.
Dhingra said she is considering pursuing a Ph.D., and she was excited to hear about the new program at the University. She emphasized the importance of integrating the specific track at the graduate level to keep pace with advancements in the AI field.
"I haven't seen any university out there in the U.S. doing such great or taking such huge steps towards adoption of AI; the way (ASU) is embracing it is quite phenomenal," Dhingra said. "It's not just in the air, it's backed by certain solid steps that are taken."
Edited by Natalia Rodriguez, Henry Smardo and Ellis Preston.
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Kate Gore is the Science and Tech Desk editor, ensuring accurate coverage of the scientific endeavors completed by ASU faculty and students and their impact on the broader community. She is beginning her second year on staff at The State Press. She previously worked as a Community and Culture Reporter, shining light on important events and happenings around campus.
