Course Descriptions

The overall focus of the MS in MIT program is on the management of information technology. To this end, the curriculum consists of a set of courses that integrate technical and business-related content, delivered in an executive format. 

GCOM 779: IT Architecture (6 credit hours)
The class provides foundational knowledge of IT at a level of detail that is appropriate for IT managers. These foundations include data modeling and database design, business process modeling and management, and data communication and network design.  Students in GCOM 779 learn how to envision IT infrastructures and applications that meet the needs of the business enterprise and add economic value.

GCOM 780: Advanced IT Architecture (3 credit hours)
Building on the foundations provided in GCOM 779, this class fosters insights on contemporary IT trends in Enterprise Architectures. Sample topics include IT Security, Enterprise Application Integration (EAI), and Technology Visioning. Students design an enterprise-level IT initiative for a large company, analyze it with the Zachman framework, and evaluate it both from a technical and business perspective.

GCOM 781: Innovation and Technology Management (3 credit hours)
GCOM 781 develops a deeper understanding of how to manage IT for the creation of business value through an intensive focus on strategic and financial issues. IT professionals can make better decisions when they understand the specific kinds of value created by IT for the end consumers of the products and services provided by the firm, and the ways in which that value produces financial returns for the firm. By analyzing a firm’s industry and its competitive position within that industry, students learn how to producing technologies that can have an important impact on the firm’s competitive position.

GCOM 783: IT Project Management (6 credit hours)
This course is designed to develop more effective project managers through its coverage of concepts, techniques and technologies relevant to the manager of an IT project.  To this end, the module is closely tied to the requisite body of knowledge espoused by the Project Management Institute (PMBOK) and consists of seminars on such topics as planning (including integration & scope management), estimation & scheduling, cost management, risk management, sourcing and vendor management, portfolio management, project recovery, change management, and measuring project value; workshops on communication and negotiation; and tutorials on project management tools such as Microsoft Project and Construx Estimate.  In addition, student teams conduct a project retrospective over the course of the module for class presentation.

GCOM 784: Strategic Management of IT (6 credit hours)
Through readings, classes, and projects, GCOM 784 will develop your skills in discovering, describing, and securing management support for new IT-based initiatives operating within an existing IT organization. While IT has the potential to enhance operational efficiency, in this course we focus instead on identifying opportunities that are more transformational in nature. Projects of this sort have the potential to impact how an organization pursues its strategic goals, and in some cases may also suggest shifts in strategy to pursue new opportunities that are compatible with the firm’s resources and capabilities. Students will become comfortable in the role of internal IT entrepreneur – someone who can see how developments in information technologies can open up new strategic possibilities for how their organizations choose to compete, and who can package those ideas in compelling ways.

GCOM 785: Enterprise IT Management (3 credit hours)
This course explores the roles of the IT manager in enterprise operations management.  Students gain a broad and deep understanding of how IT supports and enhances enterprise operations and decision making.

GCOM 786: Advanced Enterprise IT Management (3 credit hours)
This course focuses on the technologies and processes that support the organization's day-to-day operations and decision making.  Course work utilizes lectures, case discussions, projects, and workshops to learn about enterprise technologies.

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Why McIntire
"My skills were becoming a commodity and to get ahead, I needed to gain a higher-level perspective. I needed a balance between IT and business, and McIntire is providing that."

--Gerald "Jerry" Nguyen
M.S. MIS '02
Educational Background: B.S. Engineering, U.Va. '97
Employment: Mantas, Systems Engineer