Management Information Systems BS

College of Management
Undergraduate major / Bachelor of Science

About this program

The management of information systems and information technology is a critical challenge for every organization. The MIS major prepares students for careers in high-demand IT occupations such as a business systems analyst, enterprise technology architect, application developer, data scientist, security analyst and helpdesk support.

The MIS major provides knowledge and skills that enable students to succeed in a professional environment. Students develop understanding of the entire process of planning, designing and managing/using information technology (IT). Students not only learn theory, but also attain a working knowledge of how to apply technology to solve business problems. This balance of theory and practice facilitates students' preparedness to begin working on IT planning and decision making in real life situations.

Student outcomes

A student graduating with a major in Management Information Systems will be able to: 

  • Demonstrate an understanding of core knowledge in MIS. 
  • Analyze business problem and develop information systems-based solution. 
  • Understand and apply design principles in Information Systems. 
  • Effectively communicate to both business and IT professionals.

Enrolling in this program

Program eligibility requirements

Once you’re admitted as an undergraduate student and have completed MIS 100 and MIS 310 with a grade of B- or higher and the remaining COM Foundation Courses with a grade of C- or better, you declare your major.  The COM Foundation Courses are prerequisites for many upper division College of Management courses. Completing these courses early in your program will help you succeed and have the most valuable experience in other College of Management courses.

Current students: Declare your program

Once you’re admitted as an undergraduate student and have met any further requirements your chosen program may have, you may declare a major or declare an optional minor.

Future students: Apply now

Apply to Metropolitan State: Start the journey toward your Management Information Systems BS now. Learn about the steps to enroll or, if you have questions about what Metropolitan State can offer you, request information, visit campus or chat with an admissions counselor.

Get started on your Management Information Systems BS

Program requirements

At least three (3) courses from Tier One/Tier Two and Tier Three MIS Capstone must be completed at Metropolitan State.  See also the COM policies page for requirements that are common to all programs.

Course requirements

Requirements (120 credits)

College of Management Foundation (22 credits)

MIS 100 Fundamentals of Information Technology in Organizations

4 credits

This course is the first information technology foundation course in the College of Management. It focuses on the technology literacy, managerial and business problem solving dimensions of computer based information systems. It provides students with an introduction to the fundamental terminology of the hardware, software and the people involved with computer based information systems. The course includes hands on computer lab time to introduce students to word processing, database, spread sheet, and Internet microcomputer applications. This course is designed specifically to prepare students for information technology competence as needed in College of Management courses.

Full course description for Fundamentals of Information Technology in Organizations

MATH 115 College Algebra

4 credits

This course develops the fundamental concepts of algebra with an emphasis on the classification and analysis of linear, quadratic, polynomial, exponential and logarithmic functions. Applications to the natural and social sciences are given throughout. It aims to provide insights into the nature and utility of mathematics, and helps students develop mathematical reasoning skills.

Full course description for College Algebra

STAT 201 Statistics I

4 credits

This course covers the basic principles and methods of statistics. It emphasizes techniques and applications in real-world problem solving and decision making. Topics include frequency distributions, measures of location and variation, probability, sampling, design of experiments, sampling distributions, interval estimation, hypothesis testing, correlation and regression.

Full course description for Statistics I

ECON 201 Macroeconomics

3 credits

This course focuses on the economy as a whole and studies how government can affect the economy. After starting with principles of markets, the price system and supply and demand, the course covers national income accounting, business cycles, inflation, unemployment, fiscal policy, monetary policy and the Federal Reserve System, different approaches to economic growth, and the foundations of international trade.

Full course description for Macroeconomics

ECON 202 Microeconomics

3 credits

This course focuses on the interactions between the consumer and the producer. It begins with the theory of markets, supply and demand, and the price system. Then it covers demand elasticity, the costs of production including the various factor inputs, the four major market structures (pure competition, monopolistic competition, oligopoly and monopoly), and ways to increase the competition in markets.

Full course description for Microeconomics

ACCT 210 Financial Accounting

4 credits

This course in financial accounting acquaints students with the "language of business" and the concepts and practices of accounting in order to understand, interpret, and analyze the financial accounting reports of economic entities. Topics include: economic context of accounting; introduction to basic financial statements with emphasis on the statement of cash flows; measurement fundamentals; analysis of financial statements; cash; receivables; inventories; investments in equity and debt securities including Consolidations; long-lived assets; current and long-term liabilities; stockholders' equity; and time value of money concepts and computations for decision making: international accounting practices are incorporated into every topic. This is not a bookkeeping course.

Full course description for Financial Accounting

College of Management Business Core (20 credits)

DSCI 434 Introduction to Operations Management

4 credits

The purpose of this course is to introduce students to the fundamental concepts and techniques of production and operations management for both service and manufacturing organizations. It will address the role of operations in relation to other functions and the methods to increase organizational effectiveness and efficiency. Topics covered include: product and service design, capacity planning, design of work systems, location planning and analysis, material requirements planning, supply-chain management, enterprise resource planning, inventory management, total quality management, Six Sigma, lean enterprise and kaizen approaches, aggregate planning, just-in-time systems, scheduling, and project planning. Also included are tools and processes used in operations decisions such as forecasting, breakeven analysis, and critical path method using available software.

Full course description for Introduction to Operations Management

FIN 390 Principles of Finance

4 credits

This course introduces the application to financial decision-making of mathematics, statistics, economic theory, and accounting procedures. The two central ideas are time value of money and the relationship between expected return and risk, and how these ideas are used to value bonds, stocks, and other financial securities, and to make capital investment decisions.

Full course description for Principles of Finance

MIS 310 Principles of Management Information Systems

4 credits

This course is designed to define the role of information systems in organizations, and in particular the roles of IS staff and end-users in developing and maintaining computer systems. The managerial aspects and implications of databases, telecommunications, hardware, software and e-commerce are included. Special attention is given to management information systems theories in the organizational setting including: infrastructure, transaction processing, operational reporting, decision support systems and executive information systems. Also included are all phases of the systems development life cycle (SDLC) as well as alternative development methodologies. The course prototypically includes analysis of real world business cases and post-implementation audit report of a recently completed management information system. All students taking this class must have completed as a prerequisite the MIS 100 Fundamentals of Information Technology in Organizations course or its approved…

Full course description for Principles of Management Information Systems

MKTG 300 Marketing Principles

4 credits

This course surveys factors that marketing managers take into account when creating a marketing plan, including consumer behavior principles, market segmentation, product life cycle, packaging, branding, pricing, advertising, sales promotion, public relations, personal selling, product distribution methods and key laws affecting marketing practices. The course takes a practical approach to explaining how to identify marketing objectives and determine strategies for reaching them. It is useful to general business students, students who plan marketing management or marketing communications careers and those who wish to be better informed consumers. This course is also offered online. Prerequisite: Goal 1 writing requirement plus 30 credits must be satisfied.

Full course description for Marketing Principles

Tier one (all 16 credits are required)

MIS 320 Information Systems Analysis and Design

4 credits

This course presents approaches and methods for the analysis and design of IT applications. It also covers different methods for creating graphical models of IT project requirements. System development life cycle (SDLC) and alternate development approaches to information systems development are examined in detail. The course provides students with critical tools and representations (both traditional and object-oriented) for eliciting and documenting user requirements and for developing effective applications that meet organizational technology needs. Students work individually and in teams on assignments and projects. The roles of open source software, component based development and service oriented architecture in systems development are also examined.

Full course description for Information Systems Analysis and Design

MIS 328 Applications Development I

4 credits

This course provides an overview of applications development methods for managers of information systems. The course assumes no previous programming experience. The course develops elementary concepts of structured programming in the context of a third generation programming language (typically C# ) and then proceeds towards application design using .NET C#. Students learn to apply analytical concepts to translate common business problems into programs using proper design, structure, methodology, and syntax. Students are also exposed to release management and version control concepts in the Enterprise. The goal is to understand the management issues in programming and application development.

Full course description for Applications Development I

MIS 335 Management and Use of Databases

4 credits

Competence in management and use of organizational and external databases is a skill needed by all business people and critical to management information systems effectiveness, especially in the new era of "big data". This course teaches the development and accessing of internal and external information resources. Topics include: ensuring the availability of appropriate data; interrelating and applying data to typical business problems; normalized database design; protecting and managing information resources; scalability; and compatibility issues.

Full course description for Management and Use of Databases

MIS 467 Telecommunications and Internet Management

4 credits

This course explores the range of available network and telecommunications technologies and how they can be used to facilitate information access and dissemination at all levels of an organization and through the Internet. Trends of telecommunications services are analyzed. Telecommunications trends in the United States and Europe are addressed in detail. A range of emerging telecommunications services is explored as well as how such services radically alter the ways that organizations gather information for decision making. The widespread use of mobile technologies, the cloud and the World Wide Web has required many changes both in architecture and concept. The student learns how to manage these new environments.

Full course description for Telecommunications and Internet Management

Tier two (Choose 2 Elective courses, 8 credits)

MIS 329 Applications Development II

4 credits

This course completes the overview of applications development methods for managers of information systems as begun in the MIS 328 (Applications Development I) course. Advanced features of applications development in Visual Basic are taught, including design prototypes, object-oriented components, code debugging techniques, and utilization of code libraries. Other topics include ADO, ODBC, OLE DB, Database connections with Access and MS SQL, Multiple Tiered application development, and comparisons between WAN and Web applications (with Javascript). The goal is to understand the entire application development process adequately to be able to manage the process.

Full course description for Applications Development II

MIS 370 Retail Information Systems

4 credits

This course examines the use of retail information systems applications at an advanced level to improve efficiency and effectiveness of retail stores and chain retailers. Topics covered include: Retail data configuration (the story of a sku), Merchandise planning and IT, Purchasing & replenishment and IT, Role of IT in Merchandising and store operations, Post-season analytics. The course will prominently feature hands-on exercises with actual Retail management software. The software used may include Oracle Retail, SAP Retail, Microsoft Dynamics AX, etc.

Full course description for Retail Information Systems

MIS 380 Business Intelligence and Analytics

4 credits

Business Intelligence is the user-centered process of exploring data, data relationships and trends - thus helping to improve overall decision making for enterprises. This course addresses the iterative processes of accessing data (ideally stored in the enterprise data warehouse) and analyzing data in order to derive insights and communicate findings. Moreover, the course also addresses the use of software tools for analysis and visualization of data, especially report design along with the use of dashboards.

Full course description for Business Intelligence and Analytics

MIS 456 Supply Chain Information Systems

4 credits

This course examines the role of information systems applications involved in supporting supply chain operations. Topics covered include electronic purchasing, RFQ, reverse auctions, B2B exchanges, warehouse management systems, bar coding / RFID, mobile solutions for distribution and field force automation, ERP, reverse logistics, equipment maintenance tracking systems, transportation/shipping management and GPS. The underlying technologies of EDI and XML are also examined. Special emphasis is placed on building analysis skills for the detailed assessment of vendor software solutions in the supply chain arena.

Full course description for Supply Chain Information Systems

MIS 459 ERP Systems

4 credits

Introduction to ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) systems, components/submodules of ERP, configuration of ERP, operation of ERP for logistics and manufacturing (MRP), the ERP life cycle and the cash-to-cash cycle, the pros and cons ERP systems as well as the risk factors that go into success or failure for ERP implementations, Open Source ERP software options.

Full course description for ERP Systems

MIS 462 Management of Distributed Computing

4 credits

Managers need to know how to manage the diverse distributed computing environments in which they work, and leverage the opportunities these architectures provide. Integration of data and users, graphics and telephony are illustrated through emphases on client/server and N-Tier architectures, Internet, intranet/extranet, groupware, mobile, cloud and other technologies. This elective course reviews state-of-the-art technologies in each of the basic software and hardware arenas, while emphasizing management models and higher-level analysis, including the relationship with general database strategy and data warehousing. Practical projects are assigned, giving students real-world opportunities to use the tools to enhance their work and build productivity. Theory and models are taught with a management perspective as opposed to platform-specific training. Participants are asked to complete a comprehensive and applied class project and final exam.

Full course description for Management of Distributed Computing

MIS 463 Strategic Management of Technology and Innovation

4 credits

This course analyzes issues involved in the planning, development, and implementation of technological capabilities to achieve the strategic and operational objectives of an organization. Students investigate the role of product and process innovation in creating, developing and implementing new product and process technology in organizations. The course also examines the complex relationships of a firm's product and process technologies to its competitive environment and organizational structure. New technologies are reviewed and assessed through life cycle analysis, technology assessments and case studies. Technology-based product design is reviewed. Building managerial environments that enhance technological creativity is explained.

Full course description for Strategic Management of Technology and Innovation

MIS 480 Predictive Analytics

4 credits

This course builds upon prior coursework related to analytical thinking and competence in business intelligence and analytics approaches. The course serves to advance and refine expertise on theories, approaches, tools and techniques related to prediction and forecasting in business. Students will gain practical experience in analyzing a variety of business analytics cases and scenarios using industry-standard tools and platforms. The course prepares learners to help organizations make more effective business decisions based on the gathering and analysis of data. The design and delivery of the course enables an engaged learning environment.

Full course description for Predictive Analytics

MIS 498 Telecommunications Economics and Policy

4 credits

This course covers a range of telecommunication applications and explores how the regulatory and legal environments relating to those technologies are impacting the business enterprise. It addresses the legal impact of various telecommunication services on day-to-day business operations and analyzes the productivity and revenue-enhancement potential available to business. The course also addresses the issues of creating mass customization for end users. This course is targeted at students who are working business managers with a need to understand the impact of the new and emerging telecommunications services and how they can be harnessed to add value to business operations.

Full course description for Telecommunications Economics and Policy

MIS 533 Special Topics: Emerging Technologies

4 credits

This elective course is designed to address emerging technologies such as Web development, Internet/intranet/extranet, decision support systems, expert systems, rapid technology development, technology assessment, newly emerging architectures and organizational structures to address technology changes, as well as emerging strategic technology issues. Students should note that this elective course is not listed in the course schedule on a regular cycle and should consult with the MIS faculty to find out when it may be offered.

Full course description for Special Topics: Emerging Technologies

Tier three (4 credits)

Choose one

MIS 412 Administration of the Management Information Systems Function

4 credits

This is an alternate capstone course for MIS majors that emphasizes both the technical and strategic planning and as well as organization frameworks necessary to successfully select, deploy and manage information systems. Other areas of study include the roles of executive and staff, administrative structures, outsourcing decisions & outsourcing frameworks. Several IT management methodologies will be examined,including ITIL and COBIT. This course was formerly numbered MIS 312.

Full course description for Administration of the Management Information Systems Function

MIS 499 MIS Capstone

4 credits

This course is designed to help students integrate the concepts and themes from the courses in the MIS major into a comprehensive experience in which these concepts are applied. The MIS capstone course is the final course taken in the MIS major and therefore students must complete all other required coursework and elective coursework in the MIS major before registering since the course is planned to be the final one in the major. Prerequisite: All work in the MIS major must be completed prior to registration.

Full course description for MIS Capstone

College of Management Capstone Course (4 credits)

MGMT 499 Case Studies in Strategic Management

4 credits

This advanced course uses the case study approach to develop systems and techniques for analyzing the internal strengths and weaknesses of diverse organizations and the external environments in which they operate. Students craft strategies and develop implementation plans that apply organizational resources to opportunities and threats in its external environment. This course should be taken during the last semester of a student's program.

Full course description for Case Studies in Strategic Management