Information Systems BSIS

Major: Information Systems
Degree Awarded: Bachelor of Science in Information Systems (BS)
Calendar Type: Quarter
Minimum Required Credits: 185.0
Co-op Options: Three Co-op (Five years); One Co-op (Four years)
Classification of Instructional Programs (CIP) code: 11.0401
Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) code: 11-3021

About the Program

Note: this program will not accept students for the 2026-27 academic year.

The School of Computer and Information Sciences' Bachelor of Science in Information Systems (BSIS) prepares students to apply information technology for the benefit of individuals and organizations. Students develop the skills and knowledge to design, develop, and manage leading-edge information systems. Since many Information Systems students choose careers in business organizations, a minor in business is built into the degree requirements.

The Information Systems curriculum prepares students for a wide range of information technology applications. Students learn how to determine client needs, design appropriate solutions, specify data architectures, and improve the usability of systems.

The core courses in the program address topics including fundamentals of programming, systems analysis and design, database management systems, networking, security and privacy, and social aspects of information systems. These courses provide a foundation for more advanced courses in technical areas of interest to each student. The technical courses are supplemented by courses in business, behavioral sciences, natural sciences, mathematics, and the humanities to provide balance and useful supplemental materials for information systems careers.

The BSIS has four (4) core competencies students will have mastered upon graduation. The core competencies are supported by three (3) courses in each area.

• Requirements and Design

1. INFO 200 Systems Analysis I
2. INFO 324 Team Process and Product
3. INFO 355 System Analysis II

• Database and Information Management

1. INFO 210 Database Management Systems
2. INFO 315 Advanced Database Management Systems
3. INFO 371 Data Mining Applications

• User Experience 

1. INFO 150 Introduction to Ubiquitous Computing
2. INFO 310 Human-Centered Design Process & Methods
3. INFO 405 Social and Collaborative Computing

• Security and Assurance

1. CT 201 Information Technology Security I
2. CT 250 IT Security Awareness
3. INFO 375 Introduction to Information Systems Assurance

The degrees in Computing and Security Technology, Data Science, and Information Systems share a common first year. This allows students to easily switch among the degrees early in their studies. In addition, some of the electives in each degree are accessible to students in the other two majors, and this provides a deeper and broader set of advanced topics for students in all three majors.

Additional Information

For more information about this program, please visit the BS in Information Systems webpage on the School of Computer and Information Sciences website.

Degree Requirements

*

Any non-required INFO or CT course

**

Minor Requirements:

Students must complete the requirements for a minor in an information systems application area. The following minors are approved for this requirement:

• College of Business minors – Note: the MIS minor cannot be used for this requirement due to its considerable overlap with the IS major
• Close School of Entrepreneurship minors
• School of Public Health minors
• Other minors in IS application areas may be taken for this requirement with prior approval of an advisor

Writing-Intensive Course Requirements

In order to graduate, all students must pass three writing-intensive courses after their freshman year. Two writing-intensive courses must be in a student's major. The third can be in any discipline. Students are advised to take one writing-intensive class each year, beginning with the sophomore year, and to avoid “clustering” these courses near the end of their matriculation. Transfer students need to meet with an academic advisor to review the number of writing-intensive courses required to graduate.

A "WI" next to a course in this catalog may indicate that this course can fulfill a writing-intensive requirement. For the most up-to-date list of writing-intensive courses being offered, students should check the Writing Intensive Course List at the University Writing Program. Students scheduling their courses can also conduct a search for courses with the attribute "WI" to bring up a list of all writing-intensive courses available that term.

Sample Plan of Study

5 YR UG Co-op Concentration

*

 See degree requirements.

COOP 101 registration is determined by the co-op cycle assigned and may be scheduled in a different term.  Select students may be eligible to take COOP 001 in place of COOP 101.

4 YR UG Co-op Concentration 

*

 See degree requirements.

COOP 101 registration is determined by the co-op cycle assigned and may be scheduled in a different term.  Select students may be eligible to take COOP 001 in place of COOP 101.

Co-op/Career Opportunities

Co-Op Options

Two co-op options are available for this program:

• five-year/three co-op
• four-year/one co-op

The following list is a sample of recent co-op job titles and employers:

• Applications Architect, Aetna
• e-Communications Intern, Airgas
• PC Network Support, Aramark
• Information Systems Intern, Campbell's Soup
• Distributed WAN Support Co-op, Cigna
• Network Services, GlaxoSmithKline
• Programmer/Analyst, Independence Blue Cross
• Information Management Co-op, Johnson & Johnson
• Database Developer, Princeton Plasma Physics
• Website Developer, QVC
• Shared Services Co-op, Wyeth

Career Opportunities

The demand for information systems professionals is strong. Graduates find careers in a number of areas, including designing information systems, leading project teams, planning, developing, and marketing information systems. Most information systems students enter the professional world right after graduation, but some continue their studies in advanced information technology programs.

Job titles of recent information systems graduates include:

• Security Analyst
• Network Systems Analyst
• Database Administrator
• Data Communications Analyst
• Systems Administrator
• Systems Engineer

Visit the Drexel Steinbright Career Development Center page for more detailed information on co-op and post-graduate opportunities.

3675 Market Street

The School of Computer and Information Sciences (SCIS) is located at 3675 Market. Occupying three floors in the modern uCity Square building, SCIS's home offers state-of-the-art technology in our classrooms, research labs, offices, meeting areas, and collaboration spaces. 3675 Market offers Class A laboratory, office, coworking, and convening spaces. Located at the intersection of 37th and Market Streets, 3675 Market acts as a physical nexus for our school, bridging academic campuses and medical centers to the east and south, the commercial corridors along Market Street and nearby Chestnut Street, and the residential communities to the north and west.

The uCity Square building offers:

• Speculative lab/office space
• World-class facilities operated by CIC
• Café/restaurant on-site
• Quorum, a two-story, 15K SF convening space and conference center
• Adjacency to future public square
• Access to Science Center’s nationally renowned business acceleration and technology commercialization programs

Drexel University Libraries

The Drexel University Libraries is a one-stop resource for all members of the Drexel community, providing access to millions of print and online books, journals, databases and other media, as well as hundreds of online course and research guides, workshops, and tutorials. Expert librarians offer a variety of consultation services virtually or in person, including help with course-related projects, strategies for finding and evaluating authoritative information, and approaches to utilizing, organizing, and presenting scholarship.

Students in SCIS also have access to the W. W. Hagerty Library where they can take advantage of the Libraries’ various learning environments, including group study rooms, collaborative and silent study areas, and 24/7 study space in the Dragons’ Learning Den. The Libraries also offers a wellness room, printing and scanning services, and laptops, portable power chargers, and other equipment you can borrow for use in the Library.

SCIS Commons

Located on the 10th floor of 3675 Market Street, the SCIS Commons is an open lab and collaborative work environment for students. It features desktop computers, a wireless/laptop area, free black-and-white printing, and more collaborative space for our students. Community members have access to 3675 Market's fully equipped conference room with 42” displays and videoconferencing capabilities. The SCIS Commons provides technical support to students, faculty, and professional staff. In addition, the staff provides audio-visual support for all presentation classrooms within 3675 Market. Use of the SCIS Commons is reserved for all students taking SCIS courses.

The computers for general use are Microsoft Windows and Apple macOS machines with appropriate applications which include the Microsoft Office suite, various database management systems, modeling tools, and statistical analysis software. Library-related resources may be accessed at the SCIS Commons and through the W.W. Hagerty Library. SCIS is a member of the "Azure Dev Tools for Teaching” platform that allows students free access to a wide array of Microsoft software titles and operating systems.

The SCIS Commons, student labs, and classrooms have access to networked databases, print and file resources, and the Internet via the University’s network. Email accounts, Internet and BannerWeb access are available through Drexel's Office of Information Resources and Technology.

Computer Support for Teaching

The SCIS server room houses a multitude of servers to support faculty research, staff operations, and student learning. Services provided include a Linux compute cluster which is open to all faculty, staff, and students, multiple virtualization environments to meet different needs of faculty, staff, and students, and other single-purpose servers to support various operations throughout the school. The compute cluster provides a common environment for students to develop software, which makes testing easier for the TAs and faculty. Our virtualization environments allow community members the flexibility of a cloud environment with local support and direct cost recovery options. For those who need dedicated hardware, we also support dedicated research systems.

Classrooms are outfitted with laser projectors, 4K displays, class capture hardware, and the Wolfvision Cynap. The Cynap controls the AV distribution throughout the room and can display up to 4 streams simultaneously. These include the local PC, a laptop connected directly to the podium, or up to 4 streaming devices. Windows, macOS, iOS, and Android devices can all connect wirelessly to the presentation system, allowing collaboration and freedom to roam the classroom for better interactivity. Wireless networking and outlets are also available for students throughout the classrooms. Laptops are available for checkout from the SCIS Commons desk.

Additionally, SCIS hosts and supports multiple Virtual Computing Lab environments for students to use that mimics our physical computer labs. This technology allows both online and face to face students to have the same experience when using computing facilities.

SCIS Virtual Environments

SCIS hosts a variety of virtual environments, which support all levels of research, academics, and administration. These include OpenStack, Proxmox VE, VMWare, and Xen architectures, backed by storage in CEPH. Multiple environments allow SCIS IT to provide researchers with the level of control appropriate for the project at hand and make efficient use of project funding. External cloud vendors such as AWS and Google Cloud Platform are also used when appropriate.

SCIS continues to invest in these virtual environments, and explores emerging environments, to continue to best support research and teaching. CPU cores, storage, and memory are added at every opportunity to these flexible, scalable environments. The current capacity of the system includes:

• 1760 CPU Cores
• 6 TB of Memory
• Over 556 TB of HDD-backed storage
• 122 TB of high-performance SSD-backed storage
• 12 GPUs with room for expansion through funded research for high-performance computing needs

Cyber Learning Center

The Cyber Learning Center (CLC), located in 3675 Market Street's SCIS Commons student computer lab, provides consulting and other learning resources for students taking courses offered by the Computer Science Department. The CLC is staffed by graduate and undergraduate computer science students from across SCIS.

The CLC and SCIS Commons serve as a central hub for small group work, student meetings, and TA assistance. 

Research Laboratories

SCIS houses multiple research labs, led by SCIS faculty, in 3675 Market Street including: the Metadata Research Center (MRC), Interactive Systems for Healthcare (IS4H) Research, Economics and Computation (EconCS), The TeX-Base Lab, SPiking And Recurrent SoftwarE (SPARSE) Coding, Human-System Evaluation and Analysis Lab (H-SEAL), Applied Symbolic Computation Laboratory (ASYM), Security and Privacy Analytics Lab (SePAL), Software Engineering and Analytics Research (SOAR), Software Engineering Research Group (SERG), Social Computing Research Group, Vision and Cognition Laboratory (VisCog). For more information on these laboratories, please visit the our research web page.

Program Learning Outcomes

The School of Computer and Information Sciences works continually to improve its degree programs. As part of this effort, the Information Systems degree is evaluated relative to the following Objectives and Outcomes.

BS in Information Systems Program Educational Objectives

Within three to five years of graduating, alumni of the program are expected to achieve one or more of the following milestones: 

• Be valued contributors to private or public organizations as demonstrated by promotions, increased responsibility, or other professional recognition
• Contribute to professional knowledge as demonstrated by published papers, technical reports, patents, or conference presentations
• Succeed in continuing professional development as demonstrated by completion of graduate studies or professional certifications
• Demonstrate commitment and leadership within their profession and community as demonstrated by professional and community activity or contributions towards society's greater good and prosperity

BS in Information Systems Student Outcomes

The program enables students to attain by the time of graduation:

• An ability to apply knowledge of computing and mathematics appropriate to the discipline
• An ability to analyze a problem, and identify and define the computing requirements appropriate to its solution
• An ability to design, implement, and evaluate a computer-based system, process, component, or program to meet desired needs
• An ability to function effectively on teams to accomplish a common goal
• An understanding of professional, ethical, legal, security, and social issues
• An ability to communicate effectively with a range of audiences
• An ability to analyze the local and global impact of computing on individuals, organizations, and society
• Recognition of the need for and an ability to engage in continuing professional development
• An ability to use current techniques, skills, and tools necessary for computing practice
• An understanding of processes that support the delivery and management of information systems within a specific application environment