Master of Science in Information Systems Technology (MSIST)

• 11 graduate level courses, 33 credit hours, 3 potential technical pre-requisites
• FT/PT
• Multiple locations
• Specialize your electives to give a managerial or technical focus or a combination of both

Throughout the curriculum the faculty challenge students to think critically, analyze problems and effectively acquire and integrate knowledge, strategies, and key technologies to solve the business problems faced by IT management. Students can specialize their electives by selecting a focus ranging from the managerial aspects of IT to the highly technical and complex components of IT projects and systems.

Course Locations

Main Campus

Funger Hall, Suite 515
2201 G Street, NW
Washington, DC 20052

The Virginia Science and Technology Campus

44983 Knoll Square
Ashburn, VA 20147

Degree Requirements

All fields of concentration require completion of core technology-oriented courses including a capstone project. Each stage of the information systems life cycle is discussed in terms of technologies, impact and management. Topics include structured and object-oriented analysis, prototyping, software reuse, testing, life cycle costs, software development environments, and organizational and behavioral aspects of project development.

Required Courses for all MSIST concentrations (please refer to the Graduate Bulletin for course descriptions)

• ISTM 6201 Information Systems Development
• ISTM 6202 Relational Databases
• ISTM 6203 Telecommunication and Enterprise Networks
• ISTM 6204 Information Technology Project Management
• ISTM 6205 Internet Computing
• ISTM 6206 Information Systems Security
• ISTM 6207 Information Resource Management
• ISTM 6210 Integrated Information Systems Capstone

Electives (Choose 3)

Students may choose from a variety of electives to specialize the focus of their experience. Any combination of electives may be chosen from a set of Managerial or Technical based courses.

Managerial Electives

• ISTM 6221 Management Perspectives of Electronic Commerce
• ISTM 6222 IS/IT Strategy
• ISTM 6223 Technology Entrepreneurship
• ISTM 6224 Management of Technology and Innovation
• ISTM 6225 Enterprise Architecture

Technical Electives

• ISTM 6211 Data Warehousing and OLAP
• ISTM 6213 Enterprise Web and Database Applications
• ISTM 6214 Advanced Programming and Business Applications
• ISTM 6215 Human Computer Interaction

Technical Foundation Courses and Waivers:

Students may be required to complete up to three of the following technical foundation courses either prior to or within the first year of coursework:

• ISTM 3119 Introduction to Structured Programming
• ISTM 4120 Structured Development with CASE
• ISTM 4121 Database Design and Applications

The foundation courses may be satisfied by prior appropriate undergraduate or graduate coursework or by waiver exam. Professional seminars are not considered as appropriate coursework and may not be used to satisfy a prerequisite.

The foundation courses must be complete prior to registration for the following graduate level courses:

• ISTM 6201 Information Systems Development requires the Systems Analysis Foundation Course
• ISTM 6202 Relational Databases requires the Database Foundation Course
• ISTM 6205 Internet Computing requires the Programming Foundation Course
• ISTM 6210 Integrated Information Systems Capstone requires all core graduate level courses and all foundation courses to be complete prior to registration.