Information Technology (MS) at Minnesota State University

In an age of increasing technological advancements the synergy between science and information technology will only become stronger. IT underpins virtually all areas of science and the world needs graduates who can straddle both.

In this double degree course you will acquire creative and analytical skills to use IT to advance science. This could be anything from designing a stunning visualisation of scientific data, to building an app for fieldwork data collection to setting up the business IT processes to deliver a scientific product via the internet.

Depending on the IT major you choose, you could:

• use your technical skills from software development to create simulations and visualisations for anything from weather forecasting to threatened species population modelling
• apply your creative skills and design flair from interactive media or games development to create an app or game that gets kids excited about science
• use your practical understanding of business information systems to launch a science-enabled online business
• put your networks and security skills to work setting up the scientific instrumentation for tsunami warning or monitoring ice melts in Antarctica.

This course is about the application of computer-based technologies and systems to meet individual and organisational information needs. The course will enable you to gain the knowledge and skills needed to use IT effectively and to use, develop and manage IT-based systems. The flexibility of the course and the range of majors and minors will allow you to explore new areas, develop your strengths in IT and pursue your interests. It is a highly practical course that will prepare you for a career working with information and IT in business, government and industry.

The course covers a wide range of aspects of IT, from technical computing, which focuses on the technology itself, games and interactive media to information and business-related themes, which focus on information needs and the way in which IT can be used to support them. In addition to core studies in fundamental IT concepts, the course provides you with a choice of majors in your preferred fields of study, as well as the option to take a second major within IT or in another discipline. Knowledge and skills in IT coupled with the emphasis on generic skills problem solving, information literacy, communication and presentation skills, project management skills, and the capacity for team work will ensure that you have a firm foundation for a career in IT.

The Master of Information Technology prepares you for work in the information technology industry at the highest levels. It provides you with the knowledge, understanding and skills to enable you to deal effectively with advanced issues involving the application of information technology in various domains.