Information Systems Major, Concentrations and Courses
Information Systems Major Requirements
(212) 998-0816
Norman White, Undergraduate Program Coordinator
(212) 998-0842
The
Stern
School of Business has always been a leader among management schools in
teaching and research on information technology in business. In the
current
climate of rapid globalization and electronic commerce, an
understanding of why
and how information technology is driving changes in markets and
businesses is
essential for every business manager. Increasingly, many of the
strategic and
day-to-day decisions general managers face involve information
technology. The
information systems (IS) major provides
students with
the skills and knowledge they require to prepare for and manage the
transition
from entry-level positions to management.
The central question that Information Systems courses address is the following: Why do some organizations get value from their information technology investments while others do not?
“Decisions
about information technology are critical, as is the ability to
understand and
work with systems. In this emerging marketplace, a strong background in
information
technology is essential for opening doors as well as career
advancement.”
David
Baker, Stern Alumnus
and Global Head of Program Trading, Deutsche Bank.
Professionals with skills in management and information systems work in both business and government. Typical problems handled by IS professionals include designing and maintaining the information infrastructure of organizations, aligning information technology strategy with business strategy, and supporting the technology requirements of the various functional areas of organizations. Information technology skills are particularly important in industries such as financial services, consulting, telecommunications, and technology.
Information Systems Major Requirements (12 points)
An Information
Systems major at
Stern needs to take any four Information Systems Electives (in addition
to
C20.0001). Students who wish to pursue a career in information
technology are
advised to take C20.0035 and C20.0046 as two of their required four
courses.
(Note, these classes presume programming background equivalent of
V22.0002,
Intro to Computer Science). Students may also take selected Computer
Science
electives, with the permission of the Undergraduate Program
Coordinator.
Information Systems Concentration Requirements (9 points)
The Information Systems Concentrations are separate from the Information Systems Academic major. They are designed for students who want/need some knowledge of technology to augment another major. An Information Systems Concentrator needs to take 9 credits of Stern Information Systems electives from the courses listed for that concentration. Typically, at least one of the courses is required for the concentration. Students cannot complete more than one concentration. Students receive a separate certificate when they graduate indicating they have completed a concentration.
The
Concentrations
and the courses towards the major are:
•Financial Systems – This concentration is designed for students co-majoring in Finance who want to understand systems in the financial services industry.
Financial Information Systems (C20.0050) (Required for concentration)
Data Mining with Spreadsheets (C20.0057)
Data Base Systems (C20.0046)
Operations in Financial Services (C60.0006)
Decision Models
(C60.0007)
Electronic Commerce (C20.0038) (Required for concentration)
Data Mining with Spreadsheets (C20.0057)
Web Based Systems (C20.0022)
Data Base Systems (C20.0046)
Decision Models
(C60.0007)
Web-Based Systems – This concentration is designed for students who are interested in using the web to interface to customers and suppliers. The web has become the standard method of delivering content to both internal and external users, as well as the basis for new XML based standards for interfacing between business processes. This concentration includes courses that cover both development techniques for web based systems as well business applications.
Fundamentals of Computer Systems (C20.0035) (Required for Concentration)
Data Base Systems (C20.0046)
Electronic Commerce (C20.0038)
Web Based Systems (C20.0022)
Systems Analysis and Design (C20.0043)
Streaming Media
(C20.0020)
Students majoring in information systems should consult with an adviser in the Office of Undergraduate Advising and Student Services by the end of their sophomore year to ensure that course distribution requirements are being met and to declare formally the information systems major. The Department of Information Systems undergraduate program coordinator is always available to advise on information systems course selection or other matters information systems students may wish to discuss.
FUNDAMENTAL
COURSE
Computer-Based Systems for Management Support
C20.0001 4 points. Fall and spring.
Provides the background necessary to make decisions about computer-based information systems and to be an “end-user.” Two major parts of the course are (1) hands-on experience with personal computers and
(2) information systems management. Group and individual computer assignments expose students to electronic spreadsheet analysis and database management on a personal computer. Management aspects focus on understanding computer technology, systems analysis and design, and control of information processing by managers.
ADVANCED
COURSES
C20.0020 3 points.
Prerequisites: C20.0001
Investigates
the use of networked multimedia systems as a new way to deliver
computer-based information.
First reviews basic concepts in multimedia including
an overview of some of the available tools. Next investigates networked
multimedia and some of the additional problems inherent in delivering
multimedia and hypermedia material over networks. Students experiment
with some
of the current technologies as well as new technologies that allow
three-dimensional object manipulation, live streaming video, and
virtual
reality systems delivered over the World Wide Web. Course requirements
consist
of several homework assignments, a midterm exam, and a final
paper/project.
Design
and
Development of Web Based Systems
C20.0022, 3 points. Spring
Prerequisite C20.0001
The world wide web and the new technologies and standards surrounding it have dramatically changed the way systems are developed and used in organizations and markets. This course covers the issues and concepts in developing data driven web sites. Students will evaluate a variety of different web development approaches and architectures, including the common gateway interface model, Java, Active Server Pages, Dot Net and Web Services. A variety of alternative development approaches are compared, looking at issues such as the development environment, and the security, performance, scalability, and maintainability of systems developed with the different approaches. The class will be divided into student teams. Each team will implement a small system using one of the supported technologies and evaluate their experience. Students should have the ability to build a simple web page and be proficient with
common Microsoft office business applications,
especially
ACCESS. There will be light programming used as examples of how to
build
dynamic web pages for B2C and B2B sites. Assignments will include both
Active
Server Pages as well as J2EE. Unix, Windows
2000 and
Linux platforms will be available to host projects.
C20.0035 3 points. Fall and spring.
Prerequisites or corequisites: C20.0001 and programming experience.
This course provides an in-depth introduction to some of the major computer technologies, including computer systems organization, operating systems, Java programming and Web technologies. The students will learn the material through the combination of class lectures and discussions, in-class demos, homework assignments and a project.
The material covered in this course is divided into the following modules:
a crash course in Java
overview of some of the key Web technologies
computer organization and operating systems
The purpose of the brief overview of Java is to familiarize the students with the main concepts of the language so that they could develop sufficient familiarity with the language and acquire basic programming skills required in other parts of this course and possibly other IS courses. It is assumed that the student is either already familiar with basic programming concepts (such as variables, arrays, conditional branching, loops, etc.) or will be able to learn them fast. At the end of this module, the students are expected to be able to write simple Java programs.
In the Web technologies module, the students will learn how the Web “works,” including an overview of the HTTP protocol, Web servers and of the client- and server-side processing. The students will also learn the basics of XML and other types of markup languages, such as wireless markup language (WML), electronic business XML (ebXML), and legal XML (LegalXML). Moreover, the students will also learn how Java and XML can be combined together, using DOM, SAX and JAXP technologies, to create powerful e-business applications. Finally, the course will cover the basics of Web services, including the SOAP language and Microsoft’s BizTalk. Learning these concepts will be combined with the development of practical skills in some of these technologies.
In the Computer Organization and Operating Systems module, the students will learn about the structure and organization of the main components of a computer system including CPU, memory, buses, and I/O devices. The students will also learn how a computer works by studying the fetch-decode-execute cycle and what a Java Virtual Machine (JVM) is and how it works. After that, the students will study the basics of operating systems, i.e., what an operating system is, how it works, what computer resources it manages and how. Then the course provides an in-depth coverage of how an operating system manages processors, memory, files, and different I/O and networking devices.
Upon the completion of this course, the students will be able to:
understand some of the current important Web technologies, including Java, XML, DOM/SAX/JAXP, and Web services technologies;
understand organization of modern computers and the principles of operations of operating systems;
develop practical hands-on skills by learning Java, XML and other Web technologies.
C20.0038 3 points. Fall and spring.
Prerequisite: sophomore standing and C20.0001.
The purpose of this
course is
to provide an understanding of e-commerce and its impact on firms,
industries,
and markets. In a few short years the Web has already had a large
impact on how
we shop, read, conduct business, learn, and consume information like
music and
art. The fundamental architecture of information processing within the
firm is
changing as new Internet technologies appear. Internet technologies are
also
having a broad impact on the management of firms. How well firms are
able to
master these new technologies and business models is having an
important impact
on their overall success. The course will describe the technologies
used in
electronic commerce; discuss the resulting changes in organization
structure,
industry, and societal behavior and seek to understand the forces that
bring
about these changes; and, where possible, extrapolate to the next five
years.
C20.0043 3 points. Fall.
Prerequisites or corequisites: C20.0001,
Stresses concepts
and methods
used in the analysis and design of computer-based information systems. Explores the major issues at each stage in the design of
a system,
including the management of the implementation process. Various
technical tools ranging from flow charts and decision tables to
automated
design techniques are discussed. Emphasizes the importance of users in
the
design process and focuses on approaches that improve the successful
implementation of a computer system. A team project provides students
with an
opportunity to apply the concepts in class to a systems analysis and
design
problem.
C20.0046 3 points. Fall and spring.
Prerequisites or corequisites: C20.0001 and some programming experience.
Focuses
on
the overall management of the data needs of an organization and the
design and
development of database applications.
Covers global database architecture, logical and
physical
data design, and the integration of databases with programming and
fourth-generation languages. Topics include conceptual data
modeling,
data security and integrity, distributed data management, recovery
strategies,
and overall database administration. Students learn the SQL language—an
industry standard for relational databases—and design their own
database
applications using an available DBMS such as Microsoft Access or Oracle.
C20.0050, 3 points, Fall
Prerequisite C20.0001
As financial markets
become
more electronic and more liquid, a higher degree of knowledge about
systems and
analytics is required in order to compete. This course teaches students
how
modern financial markets function as a network of systems and
information
flows, and how to use information technology for decision making in
trading and
managing customer relationships. Information systems serve two purposes
in the
financial industry. First, they facilitate markets and their supporting
services such as payment, settlement, authentication and
representation.
Second, they facilitate or engage in making decisions such as when and
how much
to invest in various instruments and markets. The first part of the
course
describes how systems facilitate various kinds of payment and
settlement
mechanisms, enable financial markets such as exchanges and ECNs,
and support inter-institution communication. The second part of the
course
describes how traders, analysts, and risk managers use systems to cope
with the
vast amounts of data on the economy, markets, and customers that flow
into
their systems each day. It covers automated trading systems and other
types of
customer-oriented analytic systems that are becoming increasingly
intelligent
in how they make or support decisions. The course features a mix of
case
studies, Excel-based illustrations and assignments, and the latest
industry
tools. It is particularly suited for finance and marketing students
interested
in understanding information technologies in financial services from a
practical career standpoint.
C20.0056, 3 points. Summer.
Prerequisites: C20.0001 and programming experience
Presents the UNIX operating system and its related programming languages and software infrastructure. Topics include the languages awk, csh (C-shell), C, C++, and Java object-oriented programming and design; software reuse and engineering; exploring cyberspace using the Internet; and UNIX security, lore, and culture. Course requirements include programming assignments and exams.
Modeling and Data Mining with Spreadsheets
C20.0057, 3 points. Spring
Prerequisite: C20.0001
As the Volume of data that organizations collect continues to grow rapidly, so does managers’ struggle to make sense of it. People who are facile with data and can leverage it into valuable intelligence are in short supply. This course teaches students how to structure and solve business problems using analytical and data-driven models. It provided a hands-on learning experience using the familiar Microsoft Excel modeling environment, while significantly extending its power through plug-ins. The aim is two fold:
To provide students with powerful spreadsheet modeling skills that enable them to implement and solve a wide range of problems – from capital budgeting and investments to marketing and operations.
To introduce students to state- of –the-art data mining methods that support decisions making by extracting useful knowledge from the increasingly large volumes of raw data that organizations collect through their business processes.
The course will be taught almost entirely through examples and emphasis will be on creative problem formulation and implementation. Technical details will be kept to a minimum. The course assumes prior knowledge of Microsoft Excel and the fundamentals of finance, marketing and operations at the level of the core courses at Stern. Prior experience with a programming language or data mining, though useful, is by no means necessary.