MSITM - Information Technology Management

Summary of Requirements:

1. Bachelor’s degree in any field of study from a regionally accredited institution
   • If your bachelor's degree is not in Management Information Systems (MIS), you may need to complete the (4) MSITM foundation courses in order to gain the necessary core technical skills needed to be successful in this program.
2. Undergraduate GPA of 3.0 or higher from a regionally or nationally accredited college or university.
3. Graduate Record Examination (GRE) score or Graduate Management Admission Test (GMAT) score taken within the last 5 years*.
   • NO minimum sub-score for either test is required but the admission process is still competitive.
   • We recommend that you take the GMAT, GRE, and/or TOEFL at least one month prior to the application deadline because it takes approximately 3-4 weeks for FAU to receive your test scores.
   • If you need assistance preparing to take either of the GMAT or GRE, please refer to the Graduate College Test Prep Service for more information.
   • *The GRE and the GMAT requirement is waived for any student who has a baccalaureate degree from FAU’s Department of Information Technology and Operations Management (ITOM) with a GPA of at least 3.25 (out of a possible 4.0) in the last 60 credits attempted prior to graduation
     *The GRE/GMAT requirement can also be waived if the applicant has already earned an graduate degree (e.g. master’s) from an accredited institution. Please contact the College of Business Advising Office for more information.
4. One to two page statement of your objectives for pursuing this program.
   • Please email this document to the College of Business Graduate Advising Office at cobgradadvising@fau.edu
5. Official transcript(s) or transcript(s) evaluation reflecting bachelor’s degree.
6. Immunization
   • Proof of immunization is required prior to registration. Click here for more information on the submission process.
7. Residency
   • You will need to submit documents to the University in order to determine your residency for tuition purposes (i.e. in-state or out of state tuition rates). Click here for more information on the submission process.
8. Note: Admission to graduate programs is competitive and meeting minimum standards does not guarantee acceptance into the program.

Additional Requirements for International Students

• A course by course evaluation of your international transcripts must be provided by a NACES member.

• TOEFL scores are required of applicants who attended a non-English speaking institution for their baccalaureate degree and whose native language is not English. A minimum TOEFL score of at least 600 (paper-based exam), 250 (computer-based), or 100 (internet-based) is required.

What If I Do NOT Meet Some of the Admissions Requirements?

• In general, if you do NOT meet some of the admissions requirements (i.e GPA or Test score), you are still encouraged to apply

• While our admissions process is still competitive, our admissions process has the option to work on a sliding scale on a case-by case basis, in that if your GPA is below 3.00, you can make up for that lower GPA by scoring higher on the GMAT and/or GRE.

• In addition, if you do not meet the GPA or GRE/GMAT requirement, you may be able to receive a conditional acceptance into the program.
  • Such applications are reviewed on a case-by-case basis. In some cases, a high GPA can compensate for a lower GRE/GMAT score, and vice-versa. If you receive a conditional acceptance, you are allowed to enroll in graduate classes, but must meet certain performance criteria in the first semester or year that is specified in your conditional acceptance letter. Once these conditions are fulfilled, the conditional acceptance will be converted to full acceptance.

Application Deadlines

For Domestic Students	For International Students
Fall Semester: July 1st	Fall Semester: February 15th
Spring Semester: November 1	Spring Semester: July 15th
Summer Semester: April 1	Summer Semester: January 15th

 

• Applications must be complete and all documents submitted BEFORE the deadlines in the above table to be considered for admission.
  • Once all documents have been received, you can be accepted for the semester corresponding to the application deadline (see the table above).

How to Apply

• You can apply online for the MSITM program on the FAU Graduate College website by clicking  Apply Now  
  • Once the application is completed, you must pay an application fee of $30 and also be sure to submit your transcripts and test scores as well.
  • The application moves to the College of Business Graduate Advising Office, and the application status will say “Referred to Department”. During this stage, the College of Business evaluates the applicant’s credentials and makes admission decisions in consultation with the ITOM Program Director.

Tuition

• The MSITM program follows the traditional FAU Fees Per Credit Hour schedule for Graduate Courses

• The MSITM program consists of a minimum of 33 credits (not including any of the 12 foundation course credits you may be required to complete for non-MIS undergraduate majors)

• Current tuition rates can be found online on the FAU Controller’s Office webpage or in Tuition, Fees and Refunds section of the FAU Catalog.

Financial Aid, Fellowships, & Assistantships

• Financial Aid:

  • Students in all stages of their academic careers may be eligible for financial aid. While the process is roughly the same for each kind of student, sometimes there are unique requirements.
    • Feel free to reach out to FAU's Financial Aid Office for more information

• Fellowships:

  • FAU Graduate College Fellowships:
    • FAU's Graduate College offers a wide variety of fellowships for graduate students. Click here for more information
  • ITOM Department Fellowships
    • The ITOM Department is sometimes able to award a Provost Fellowship once a year to the top MSITM application. However, the ITOM Department does not have funds for scholarship or financial aid.
    • The College of Business also offers fellowships to graduate students from time to time. For more information, please contact the College of Business Graduate Advising Office.
  • Scholarships for Women in STEM
    
    • ComputerScience.org is part of a new initiative to form the next generation of engineers, developers, and network administrators, and they are striving to get more women involved.
      • To learn more about these scholarships, click here.

• Assistantships

  • ITOM offers Graduate TeachingAssistantships (GTA) on a competitive & semester by semester basis to outstanding full-time graduate students.
    • GTA's are required to work 20 hours a week (part-time) assisting faculty with various teaching activities, including grading, assisting students, and teaching lab sections of introductory MIS courses.
    • GTA's earn an hourly wage and full & partial tuition waivers are also possible but not guaranteed
    • GTA's are only offered to admitted students
    • For more information or to apply, reach out to our department secretary Sheri Sundquist.

Graduate Course Credit Transfer

• No more than two graduate courses or 6 credits of graduate work can be transferred from other accredited institutions and applied towards your MSITM degree program requirements.
  • If you have already earned an MBA from FAU, you will NOT need to re-enroll in GEB 6215 or ISM 6026.
  • Undergraduate credits do NOT as graduate courses.
  • To learn more about credit transfers, please talk to a Graduate Advisor in the College of Business once you are accepted into the program.

STEM & OPT

• While the MSITM program is considered a STEM program (CIP Code 52.1201) due to the technical nature of the coursework, the MSITM program does NOT qualify for STEM OPT or a STEM OPT extension.

• Only degree programs that are on the Student and Exchange Visitor Program (SEVP) STEM-designated degree list allow students to apply for the STEM OPT extension.

• For more information about OPT & STEM OPT, be sure to contact FAU's Office of International Student Services for more details

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Overview

• The MSITM with a concentration Information Technology Management is a 33 credit program consisting of 11 courses (not including foundation courses for non-MIS undergraduate majors).

• This concentration focuses on the management of the resources, equipment, procedures, and people involved in the development, use, and maintenance of information systems and technology within an organization

• The MSITM degree with a concentration in Information Technology Management degree is awarded by the College of Business.

Program Sheets

• Additional details about program courses and application information can be found in the following documents:
  • Program Overview from Graduate College (pdf)
  • MSITM Program Flyer (pdf)
  • MSITM Flow Chart (ITM Concentration) (pdf)
  • MSITM Flow Chart (BA Concentration) (pdf)

Program Duration and Delivery Method

• Full-time students can complete the program in as little as 18 months (4 semesters) by taking 3 courses (9 credits) each in the Fall and Spring terms and 2 courses (6 credits) in the Summer term.

• Part-time students can complete the program in 2.5 years (7 semesters) by taking 2 courses each in the Fall and Spring terms and 1 course in the Summer term.

• Courses are primarily offered over a 16-week period in the Fall and Spring semesters.
  • A limited number of courses are offered in the Summer semester over a 12-week or 6-week period; we do not offer 8-week courses in the Fall and Spring at this time.

• All courses in the MSITM program can be completed in a traditional face to face format or in a fully-online distance learning format.
  • Traditional face to face ISM courses are usually offered in the evenings while traditional face to face Computer Science courses are usually offered during the day. ISM courses generally alternate from being offered fully online to being offered face to face from semester to semester.
  • Please check the FAU Course Schedule for further information and course offerings.

MSITM Foundation Courses

• If your bachelor's degree is not in Management Information Systems (MIS) and you do not have any prior technical IT experience (i.e programming, database management, etc), you may need to complete the (4) MSITM foundation courses (during the first or second semester in the program) in order to gain the necessary core technical skills needed to be successful in this program:
  • ISM 6148, Information Technology Fundamentals (undergraduate equivalent ISM 3230 or similar);
  • ISM 6217, Database Management Systems (undergraduate equivalent ISM 4212 or similar); 
  • ISM 6225, Business Data Communications (undergraduate equivalent ISM 4220 or similar);
  • ISM 6123, Advanced System Analysis and Design (undergraduate equivalent ISM 4133 or similar); 

• Once an applicant is admitted into the MSITM Program, the ITOM Program Director will interview the student to determine which of the (4) MSITM Foundation Courses must be taken.
  • Here are some of the preliminary questions you can ask yourself:
    • Can you program, using structured or object oriented programming languages, such as Java or C++?  Do you have experience with software development and have an overall understanding of computer system components?  If yes, then you probably will not need to take ISM 6148, Information Technology Fundamentals.
    • Have you worked with databases? Do you know how relational databases are created and operate? Have you written SQL queries and communicated with a database server through a database client? If yes, then you probably will not need to take ISM 6217 - Database Management Systems.
    • Do you know how computers communicate with each other? Do you know how to set up a network – peer-to-peer workgroup or domain? What are the various TCP/IP protocols? Can you perform simple system and network administration tasks? Are you familiar with computer system security issues and protection methods? If yes, then you probably will not need to take ISM 6225 - Business Data Communications.
    • Have you performed the duties of an Information Systems Manager? Did you create, manage, or bring an IT project to completion? Do you know about the System Development Life Cycle? If yes, then you probably will not need to take ISM 6123 - Advanced System Analysis and Design.

• If you need to take any of the Foundation Courses, you have the option take the equivalent undergraduate courses as a non-degree seeking student prior to your admission in the MSITM Program (Once admitted into the MSITM program, you are only allowed to take the graduate courses).
  • Please visit the Office of the Registrar or call (561) 297-3050 regarding non-degree admission. 
  • Please note:  If you take the undergraduate courses as a non-degree seeking student, you are only allowed to register for these courses the week before classes start for that semester, as degree-seeking students receive priority registration for courses

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Recommended Course Order

• Students are generally advised to take GEB 6215 during their first semester in the program either before or concurrently with other ISM courses, as GEB 6215 requires you to complete integrated assignments in your other ISM courses.
  • Please contact your Graduate Advisor in the College of Business to discuss more about GEB integration and how to create your Plan of Study (POS) .

Course Offerings

• In the Fall and Spring semesters, courses are offered during 16-week terms; we do not offer 8-week courses in the Fall and Spring at this time. 

• In the Summer semesters, course are generally offering during a 12-weeks term and course offerings are limited.
  • Generally, only GEB 6215, ISM 6026, ISM 6942, ISM 6148, and ISM 6405 are offered in the Summer term.

• All courses in the MSITM program can be completed remotely, either through online classes or Virtual Classrooms. Many courses can also be completed in the traditional format. In-person ISM courses are usually offered in the evenings while in-person Computer Science courses are usually offered during the day. ISM courses can alternate from semester to semester between being offered fully-online and being offered face to face.

• Please check the FAU Course Schedule when planning your classes, and also work with your Graduate Advisor to create your Plan of Study (POS).

Course List - Information Technology Management Concentration

• Students pursuing the Information Technology Management Concentration of the MSITM program must take the 8 courses (7 Required Courses & 1 Elective Course) in the College of Business listed in the table below

• In addition, students must take three electives from the courses offered by the College of Engineering and Computer Science (see Electives table below)

• To see the course descriptions for any of the courses below, please visit the FAU Catalog

Required Courses - Information Technology Management Concentration (Must Take all 7 Courses)
Management of Information Systems and Technology	ISM 6026
Information Technology Project and Change Management	ISM 6316
Management of Information Assurance and Security	ISM 6328
Enterprise Information Technology Service Management	ISM 6368
Web-Based Business Development	ISM 6508
Information Technology Sourcing Management	ISM 6509
Communication Strategies for Business Professionals	GEB 6215
Elective Course - Information Technology Management Concentration (Choose any 1 Course)
Advanced Business Analytics	ISM 6405
Mobile Apps for Business	ISM 6058
Data Mining & Predictive Analytics	ISM 6136
Social Media & Web Analytics	ISM 6555

CS Elective Courses - Information Technology Management Concentration (Choose any 3 Courses)
Please refer to the MSITM Flow Chart (ITM Concentration) for more information on the CS course electives

 

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MSITM Placement

• Through the Summer 2015 semester, 100% of MSITM students have had a job upon graduating from the program.
  • Here is a running list of the recent placement for our MSITM graduates

Company Name	Position
Modernizing Medicine	Corporate IT Director
SBA Communications	ERP Specialist
Humana Insurance	Business Analyst
ADT Security	IT Manager
Toyota	Senior Solution Architect Manager
Office Depot	IT Functional Analyst
Citrix	Renewal Sales Manager
RSource Healthcare	Director of Data Analytics

 

Alumni Spotlight

• To view some of the success stories from our MSITM, click here

Exciting Statistics

• The demand for university graduates with skills in information technology and business remains strong. The inter-disciplinary nature of the program and more recent trends suggest a larger, global market with many opportunities for career growth and development for MSITM graduates.

• Several reputable sources predict substantial growth and compensation for employees with these skills. The MSITM program at FAU addresses this urgent need for university educated individuals.
  • Employment of “computer and information systems managers” is projected to grow 22.5% from 2018 to 2028 (Bureau of Labor Statistics)
  • The “computer systems design and related services” industry is expected to grow 22.5% from 2018 to 2028 (Bureau of Labor Statistics)
  • The median annual pay for “computer and information systems managers”  in 2018 was $142,530 or $68.53 per hour (Bureau of Labor Statistics)
  • IT Managers were ranked #13 in the Best Paying Jobs by US News and World Report

Career Opportunities for MSITM graduates

• Job Titles:

  • MSITM graduates can expect to pursue jobs with the following titles, depending on years of experience:
    • Executive Positions:
      • Chief Information Officer (CIO)
      • Chief Technology Officer (CTO)
      • Chief Information Security Officer (CISO)
      • Knowledge Management Officer
    • Management Positions:
      • Information Systems/Information Technology Director/Manager
      • Information Security Manager
      • Network and Computer Systems Manager
      • Computer and Software Marketing Manager
      • Business Processes Engineering Manager
      • System Integration Manager
      • Enterprise Systems Manager
      • ERP Manager
      • Global Sourcing Director/Manager
      • E-Commerce Manager
      • Help Desk/Support Systems Manager

• Typical Job Responsibilities

  • Common responsibilities of these computer and information systems managers include the following, and will vary by the size of the company where the individual works:
    • Overseeing the hardware and software investments companies make
    • Overseeing the corporate network system and contracts with telecommunication utilities
    • Working with corporate executives to ensure that investments match corporate strategies
    • Overseeing the development of software written within companies
    • Establishing and monitoring the service level agreements (i.e., contracts) for outsourced IT services
    • Managing the implementation of new systems
    • Overseeing the training of employees who use the new systems
    • Managing IT personnel

• Personal attributes and skills

  • To be successful as a computer and information system manager, an MSITM graduate should possess these personal attributes and skills:
    • Creativity and innovation
    • Enthusiasm and energy
    • Intellectual curiosity
    • Passion for learning
    • Flexibility
    • Problem solving
    • Willingness to do what it takes
    • Communication
    • Collaboration
    • Leadership

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