Course Descriptions

Below are short descriptions of the graduate level coursework that I have taken or plan to take as part of my MLIS program.

Introduction to Information Systems Analysis: back; Presents information systems development as a life‐cycle process, incorporating problem definition, modeling and analysis, system design, implementation, evaluation, support, and maintenance. Provides an introduction to those modeling and analysis tools and techniques necessary for leveraging information and information technologies to achieve business objectives. Gives students practice in modeling information systems with respect to functions (functional decomposition), processes (dynamic modeling), and data (data‐flow diagramming).
Action Research and Statistics: back; Surveys the basic statistical, tabular, and graphic methods as applied to decision making, requirements analyses, user studies, and implementation of change in information organizations when generalizability of results beyond the organization is not a primary concern. Focuses on formulating researchable problems, sampling, data gathering, and computer-assisted analysis of data. Develops skills for preparing reports and presentations and for reading research literatures.
Professional and Social Aspects of Information Services: back; Surveys the professional, social, ethical, and legal issues that affect information service professionals and organizations. Addresses such topics as information law, access, ownership, and censorship. Studies professional organizations and the sociology of professions.
Information Users and Services: back; Relates basic theories and concepts about information behavior to contemporary provision of information services. Focuses on the conceptual structures of LIS: user communities, factors affecting use of information services and resources, and trends in supporting information services. Develops practical skills in meeting users' information needs, such as answering virtual reference questions and creating online resources.
Information Access and Resources: back; Presents access and applied information retrieval as the foundation for information services. Provides an overview of contemporary information sources and access methods. Focuses on the structure of tools used for satisfying users' information needs. Emphasizes techniques for building effective search strategies for large-scale retrieval systems. Affords opportunities to evaluate sources.
Application Programming for Information Systems: back; Introduces issues in application programming via hands‐on activities in a particular programming language, currently C. Assumes basic knowledge of the programming language and focuses on application techniques. Covers selected advanced language features, programming with standard libraries and off‐the‐shelf components, and layout for both data and control aspects of programming. Discusses issues of code design, style, standards, and techniques applicable to medium‐and large‐scale systems.
Database Management I: back; A first course in database management systems. Covers database design, data manipulation, and database integrity. Emphasizes concepts and techniques related to the entity-relationship model and relational database systems. Discusses normalization up to third normal form and commercial query languages.
Human-Computer Interaction: back; This course focuses on the design and evaluation of human-computer interfaces covering such topics as task analysis techniques for gathering design information, iterative design through prototyping, and formative and summative usability testing; theoretical foundations of HCI and cognitive modeling of user interactions; the integration of HCI techniques into the software development life cycle and the use of user constraints to generate new interaction designs.
Distributed Computing and Networking: back; Presents the fundamentals of data communications, networking, and distributed computing technologies. Focuses on the broad foundational coverage of key technologies as well as the key concepts in network planning, design, and management. Major topics include network models, data and voice communications, local-area and wide-area technologies, IP networks and their applications, internetworking (with an emphasis on the Internet), client/server systems, and distributed computing applications.
Information Systems Analysis & Design: back; Offers an advanced treatment of systems analysis and design with special emphasis on object-oriented analysis and design techniques based on the Unified Modeling Language (UML). Discusses major modeling techniques of UML including use-case modeling, class modeling, object-interaction modeling, dynamic modeling and state diagrams and activity diagrams, subsystems developments, logical design, and physical design.
Content Representation: back; Focuses on fundamental decisions in designing subject access systems and alternative approaches to indexing. Explores current issues in content representation: principles of subject analysis; natural language vs. vocabulary control; manual, computer-assisted, and automatic indexing; faceted indexing and classification systems; image indexing and retrieval; indexing and the World Wide Web. Includes evaluation of indexer consistency and indexing system performance.
Information Retrieval Systems: back; Covers the theoretical underpinnings of information retrieval to provide a solid base for further work with retrieval systems. Emphasizes systems that involve user-computer interaction. Covers aspects of information retrieval including document selection, document description, query formulation, matching, and evaluation.
Managing Information Organizations: back; Applies theories and techniques of management to libraries, information centers, and information enterprise, concentrating on political processes, leadership, communication, human resources, organizational structure, decision making, planning, and control. Also includes elements of project management.
Internet Information Resource Design: back; Offers a hands-on introduction to creating sophisticated websites to support users' information needs. Covers website design, implementation, and evaluation. Requires the student to establish a website, compose its text and graphic files, use scripts for interactive application, install a search engine, and create reports on usage.
Digital Libraries: back; This course introduces research and development in the world of digital libraries. Focuses on intellectual access to digital information resources. Topics include foundations and architectures of digital libraries, searching and resource organizing, knowledge representations and discovery, metadata and standards, interfaces and information visualization, intellectual property rights and electronic publishing.