Bachelor of Science in Information Systems

Administrative Office - San Francisco

415-422-2592

Administrative Program Director: Moira A. Gunn, Ph.D.

The Bachelor of Science in Information Systems (BSIS) program equips students with critical skills and knowledge required to direct and to control computerized information resources within diverse organizational settings. The study of Information Systems provides professionals with the expertise and knowledge to support innovation, planning, and management of information infrastructures as well as the coordination of information resources. The curriculum is designed to respond to the need for information systems professionals with systems management and development expertise. The BSIS program, based upon nationally approved curriculum recommendations from the Association for Information Systems (AIS) and the Association for Computing Machinery (ACM), continuously updates its curriculum. The program is taught within an Ignatian framework fostering ethical and social awareness.

Program Objectives

To prepare students to:

• Become Information Systems leaders.
• Develop a critical understanding of the IS role in modern organizations.
• Develop sound technical and managerial skills.
• Effectively manage projects.
• Implement critical decision-making skills.
• Build a professional code of ethics.

Program Requirements

Students are expected to have basic Microsoft desktop skills in MS Word, PowerPoint and Excel. If prospective students are uncomfortable doing basic manipulations in these desktop software packages, they will need to obtain such skills elsewhere. The reason for the requirement is that many of our courses require writing (Word), making presentations (Powerpoint), and formulating decisions using spreadsheet calculations (Excel). As the BSIS program is quite demanding, taking time out of our required courses to include basic skills development is not possible. Students are required to have these desktop skills before being accepted into the program.

Students are required to complete the 37 semester units of credit included in the undergraduate Information Systems program. Required courses are usually sequenced as follows:

• PSIS - 307 Experience and Critical Writing
• PSIS - 308 Advanced Expository Writing
• BSIS - 310 Information Systems Theory and Practice
• BSIS - 312 Managing and Leading the Information Technology Organization
• PSIS - 300 The Critical Thinking Seminar
• BSIS - 320 Systems Analysis and Design
• PSIS - 304 Social Ethics
• BSIS - 315 Software Programming Concepts
• BSIS - 400 Information Technology Hardware and Systems Software
• BSIS - 405 Database Concepts
• BSIS - 340 Telecommunications
• BSIS - 330 Electronic Commerce Strategy, Architecture and Design
• BSIS - 430 Project Planning and Development

Please see Information Systems Interdisciplinary Studies Course Descriptions.

Please see Bachelor of Science in Information Systems Course Descriptions.

Degree Requirements

• Complete 128 semester units of credit.
• Complete the Information Systems Management major requirements.
• Satisfy the Core Curriculum requirements.
• Achieve a minimum cumulative GPA of 2.0.

Learning Outcomes

Upon completion of the Bachelor of Science in Information Systems, a graduate will have acquired:

• A comprehensive overview and understanding of the components of information systems infrastructures, computing platforms, software architectures, and telecommunications networks.
• Learning about the growth and importance of the digital economy and its socioeconomic implications on information technology and electronic commerce.
• A comprehensive set of methods, techniques, and models for planning, analyzing, and designing information systems. The student is then required to implement these in a class project.
• Understanding and experience of the principles of software design, development, testing, and maintenance using a popular programming language.
• A comprehensive understanding of hardware and deep layers of system software required for modern computer systems.
• The concepts, principles, issues and techniques for managing corporate data resources. Students are able to define and model the database systems and understand data administration, data warehousing, and data mining issues relevant to today's interconnected organizations.
• A fundamental understanding of all aspects of telecommunications, including data, voice, image and video, and the critical need for security of networks and data inside and outside the organization.
• Knowledge of the effect of high-tech marketing on consumer behavior, organizational research, marketing functions, and policy are explored, and the student examines the implications of this new form of electronic marketing on society.
• Thorough exploration of all aspects of managing a project, and a project team - from initiation through planning, analysis, design and implementation. The student will use project management software to simulate projects and will learn to manage on-going issues and change within a project. Service learning projects are a required component of the curriculum.