Volume 6
Volume 6, Number 55 |
December 11, 2008 |
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Musa J. Jafar
Russell Anderson
Amjad A. Abdullat
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Abstract: Information Systems accreditation bodies require degree granting programs to adequately support and make available computing resources to appropriately prepare students in advanced Information Systems areas. Corporations in the software applications business strive to use the latest software tools in building and managing their applications. Students graduating from Information Systems programs should have the ability to design and implement information technology solutions using these software tools. Accordingly, keeping a portfolio of software tools that is current and complies with industry needs, supports an Information Systems curriculum, and within a managed budget is a challenging task. In this paper we evaluate offerings from three different commercial academic initiatives (Microsoft, IBM and Oracle) that provide a comprehensive set of software tools across the life cycle of Information Systems solutions in support of an Information Systems Curriculum. These initiatives provide Information Systems programs with a current set of software tools that fulfill the technology requirement of accreditation, satisfy corporate recruiting needs, and do not encumber the program with a heavy financial burden or resort to substandard software tools.
Keywords: Information Systems, Information Systems Curriculum, Software tools, Academic Initiatives
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Recommended Citation: Jafar, Anderson, and Abdullat (2008). Software Academic Initiatives: A Framework for supporting a Contemporary Information Systems Academic Curriculum. Information Systems Education Journal, 6 (55). http://isedj.org/6/55/. ISSN: 1545-679X. (A preliminary version appears in The Proceedings of ISECON 2007: §3355. ISSN: 1542-7382.)