Course Descriptions

The following are high-level descriptions for a sample of the doctoral courses in the DPS Program of study. More course descriptions are included in the University Course Catalog.

IST 770 Advanced Topics in Research Methods (3 credits). Research methods used in information studies. May include designs for survey, experimental or historical research; data collection. Statistical methods, content analysis, computer simulation, model simulation, and model building.

IST 775 Information Industry Strategies (3 credits). Issues in converging information industry sectors such as hardware, software, telecommunications, information services, and content.

IST 776 Research Methods in Information Science and Technology (3 credits). Philosophies, approaches, and practices of research in information transfer. Statistics as a tool and as a framework for understanding the research process. Prereq: Doctoral student or permission of instructor.

IST 777 Statistical Methods in Information Science and Technology (3 credits). Classical statistical procedures used in information research. Emphasis on underlying rationale for each procedure and on criteria for selecting procedures in a given research situation. Prereq: IST 776.

IST 778 Elicitation and Analytical Techniques for Information Science (3 credits). Techniques for data elicitation and analysis for research in information science and technology. Includes intellectual history, assumptions, procedures and practical experience with a range of techniques, including both qualitative and quantitative approaches.

IST 780 Advanced Topics in Information Resources (3 credits). May include the study of specialized information resources and systems in medicine, law, music, etc.; community organizations as information resources; specialized resources and systems in government, industry, and education.

IST 782 National and International Information Policies (3 credits). Seminar on the role of information in economic and social systems. Major issues in various countries with an emphasis on the United States.

IST 790 Advanced Topics in Information Organization (3 credits) May include the organization of bibliographic information in libraries, information centers, and retrieval systems; vocabulary control in information retrieval systems, classification theory; problems in the organization of media.

IST 800 Seminar in Behavioral Sciences (3 credits). Selected areas within the social/behavioral sciences, emphasizing relationship of these fields to the diagnosis of information needs and the collection, storage, and dissemination of information.

IST 830 Seminar in Information Systems (3 credits) Theory and practice in the analysis, design, management, and evaluation of existing and hypothetical information systems, including computerized storage and retrieval systems, libraries, management systems, and networks.

IST 880 Intensive Seminar (new course; 1 credit; may take multiple times). Intensive residential seminar on doctoral level education in the information professions. Close tutorial support for thesis topic selection, research proposal writing, data collection, data analysis, and related topics.

Note: In addition to doctoral level courses, DPS students may choose six credits (or more) of professionally focused coursework from the summer offerings of our three master’s programs.