Permanent Status Program Review

Request for Permanent Status of Undergraduate Major:

Information Systems BSAS

Reviewed: February 8, 2007

By: Dr. Christine Kydd, Associate Professor Business Administration

  and Thomas Johnston, Instructor, Accounting and MIS

 

 

Objectives, Strengths and Weaknesses:

  1. The Information Systems (INSY) undergraduate degree was designed to offer students an alternative to the complementary Management Information Systems (MIS) undergraduate degree in MIS.  The INSY degree leans more toward science while the MIS degree more in line with business. The INSY has been successful with its goals and objectives.
  2. The INSY major conforms to the requirements and curricula as outlined within the Academic Priorities of the University.
  3. The INSY program has attracted almost the number of students that are allowed (20), and has attracted those students with above average SAT scores.  One of the weaknesses pointed out is the lack of enough introductory labs, but this is due to resource issues, and is not an overall weakness in the program.  The program’s statistics and demand seem to bear out the fact that this program can stand on its own merits.

Impact and Demand:

  1. The INSY major in CISC is one that is complementary to the MIS major in Business and Economics.  Therefore, INSY offers the student a clear choice of career paths to follow, while integrating both colleges within the University.  Courses like CISC250 are cross-listed for MIS majors. There is no impact on instructional resources, research and service programs.  The impact to the students has been a significantly more educated graduate in this field.  If the demand for this major continues to grow, then more resources would need to be allocated in the future
  2. The INSY major conforms to the requirements for admission and clearly states in the course catalogue, the curricula the INSY students will follow.
  3. Yes, the goals for INSY was set at 20 for resource purposes and the numbers demonstrate the success of this major.  Therefore, this program should receive permanent status. 
  4. Yes, I think this is demonstrated by the letter of a current INSY major (Michael Barugel), who is very upbeat about how the positive experiences the INSY major has challenged him.

Impact and Demand (cont.)

5.  It appears that this course does not require any additional purchase for supplies, computer hardware or computer software over and above what is recommended for incoming freshmen.  In the future there may be a need for more technical testing software.

6. Yes, the Interim Chair of Accounting and MIS department, Dr. Jeff Gillespie, has given his unbiased approval; the Chair of the CIS, Dr. Saunders has signed off as well as the Dean of Arts and Science, Dr. Tom Apple.

7. Yes there is sufficient support and an influx of new students that will maintain and grow this major.

 

Evaluation

1.  It is not applicable, per statement of Dr. Earl Lloyd on the University Faculty Senate Forms – [Academic Program Approval Form]

2.  Yes, the INSY students in the major have been monitored during this trial period and their outcomes have been tracked.

3.   Yes, the curricula provides for a capstone project in the senior year that evaluates each student working in a group project setting that emphasizes all of the courses that have been taken by the student.

4.  There are currently 11 seniors who will graduate this spring from the INSY major, but there is no information in this report on how many have already graduated and/or have obtained positions. 

Additional Comments

            Dr. Gillespie’s letter of recommendation to support the permanent status of the INSY undergraduate major as designed to be a complementary program to the MIS major in College of Business and Economics demonstrated that the INSY program has accomplished its goal of being a well-defined major separate, but not totally distinct from the MIS major. Thus, giving the student alternate choices in career path – science and technology or business. This was the original goal of INSY, and it has not changed since given an opportunity to prove its worth four years ago.