The Proceedings of the Information Systems Education Conference 2007: §3145 Home Papers/Indices prev (§3144) Next (§3152)

Sat, Nov 3, 9:30 - 9:55, Haselton 1 Paper (refereed)

Recommended Citation: Soe, L L and D Hwang. Career Track Design in IS Curriculum: A Case Study. In The Proceedings of the Information Systems Education Conference 2007, v 24 (Pittsburgh): §3145. ISSN: 1542-7382. (A later version appears in Information Systems Education Journal 5(29). ISSN: 1545-679X.)

Recipient of Distinguished Paper Award

Career Track Design in IS Curriculum: A Case Study

Refereed

18 pages

Louise L. Soe    [a1] [a2]
Computer Information Systems
California State Polytechnic University Pomona    [u1] [u2]
Pomona, California, USA    [c1] [c2]

Drew Hwang    [a1] [a2]
Computer Information Systems
California State Polytechnic University Pomona    [u1] [u2]
Pomona, California, USA    [c1] [c2]

An important aspect of undergraduate curriculum in the field of Information Systems is the design and arrangement of specializations or career tracks. Given limited resources and a highly dynamic information technology environment, faculty in Information Systems programs have career tracks face the challenge of designing a career track structure that is not only competitive and marketable but also manageable, flexible, and sustainable. This case study shows how the faculty in a large Computer Information Systems program undertook this challenge by comparing their curriculum with model curricula and with the track curricula of other four-year programs. In order to compare with peer programs, faculty members built a database containing track design data for the 96 baccalaureate Information Systems programs in the United States that have career tracks. They first evaluated their core curriculum, which provides the base knowledge for the career tracks, with the IS 2002 and IT 2005 model curricula. Next, they evaluated their current career track structure in two areas: (1) the current availability of departmental resources to support existing career tracks, and (2) a comparison of the current career track design with track designs of peer programs. The entire faculty reviewed the results of these analyses and agreed to consider changing the track curriculum structure. The department curriculum committee then developed three alternative proposals and presented them to the entire faculty, which reached consensus on one of the proposals.

Keywords: Information Systems education, Information Systems curriculum, career tracks, IS 2002 Model Curriculum, IT 2005 Model Curriculum, case study

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