Indiana University School of Informatics
Academics
Undergraduate Program

Requirements

Note: Requirements posted on the School of Informatics Web site are considered informational, not official. Official graduation requirements are contained within the Informatics Undergraduate Bulletin. The following requirements are effective as of fall 2006 (last updated 01/11/2006).

Undergraduate students wishing to major in informatics must be admitted to Indiana University and first enter the University Division at IUB.

School of Informatics Requirements

Students must complete the specific degree requirements of the School of Informatics as listed below:

  • Students must complete a minimum of 122 credit hours.
  • Students must complete a minimum of 30 credit hours in courses at the 300-400 (junior-senior) level.
  • Students may transfer no more than 60 credit hours.
  • Students must have a minimum cumulative grade point average of 2.0 (C). Any course taken to satisfy the major core requirements must be completed with a minimum grade of C- unless otherwise specified, and the grade point averageof all courses taken in the major must be at lest 2.0. The major core requirements for infomatics include core courses, Informatics elective courses, and cognate area courses.
  • Students are expected to complete the requirements for their undergraduate degree within eight years of admission to the School of Informatics. Students are allowed to continue beyond this time period only at the discretion of the dean. If a student has not taken classes for three years or more, that student must satisfy program requirements of the School of Informatics in effect at the time of reactivation.
  • Courses that fulfill cognate area requirements may also meet the general education distributional requirements.
  • Cognate area courses cannot count as Informatics core courses or Informatics elective courses.
  • If cognate area courses are equivalent to Informatics core courses, students should substitute additional Informatics elective courses in place of Informatics core courses to meet the 35 credit hour requirement.
  • Courses that fulfill the requirements for a B.S. in Informatics also may apply to a minor outside of the School of Informatics.
  • Students must file a degree application with the School of Informatics Student Services office (room 120 of the Informatics Building) by March 1 for December graduation and October 1 for May or August graduation.

The course work required for the B.S. in Informatics consists of the following parts:

Informatics Core Courses (35 cr.)

These courses are required for a B.S. Degree in Informatics:

  • I101 Introduction to Informatics (4 cr.)
  • I201 Mathematical Foundations of Informatics (4 cr.)
  • I202 Social Informatics (3 cr.)
  • I210 Information Infrastructure I (4 cr.)
  • I211 Information Infrastructure II (4 cr.)
  • I300 Human Computer INteraction — Design and Programming (3 cr.)
  • I308 Information Representation (3 cr.)
  • Y395 Career Development For Informatics Majors (1 cr.)

IUB students who wish to pursue a concentration in computer science may substitute CSCI C211 for INFO I210, CSCI C212 for INFO I211, and CSCI C241 for INFO I201. If you count these courses for your cognate area courses, you must take additional Informatics electives courses to fulfill the 34 credit hour Informatics core requirement.

Select one three credit hour 300-level or above informatics course:

  • I303 Organizational Informatics (3 cr.)
  • I310 Multimedia Arts and Technology (3 cr.)
  • I320 Distributed systems and Collaborative Computing (3 cr.)
  • I330 Legal and Social Informatics of Security (3 cr.)
  • I421 Applications of Data Mining (3 cr.)
  • I430 Security For Networked Systems (3 cr.)
  • I433 Protocal Design and Analysis (3 cr.)

Select one of the following capstone options:

  • INFO I450/451 Design and Development of an Information System (3/3 cr.)
  • INFO I460/461 Thesis (3/3 cr.)

With prior approval from the dean, a student may substitute for I450/451 and I460/461 with an equivalent capstone experience in another department, or complete 6 credit hours of INFO I491 Capstone Project Internship, to fulfill the capstone requirement. Internships require students to be at a junior or senior standing. A project or report must be submitted after the internship is completed.

Recommended Courses

These courses are not required, but are recommended for students who lack a strong computing background. These courses are considered general elective courses.

  • INFO I110 Basic Tools of Informatics: Programming Concepts (1.5 cr.)
  • INFO I111 Basic Tools of Informatics: Introduction to Databases (1.5 cr.)
  • INFO I112 Basic Tools of Informatics: Programming and Database Concepts (3 cr.) IUPUI only.

Informatics Electives (6 cr.)

All courses listed below are subject to the successful completion of prerequisites or approval of the instructor.

Note that Informatics elective courses cannot count as Informatics core courses.

6 credits of electives may be selected from the following:

  • BUS S302 Management Information Systems (3 cr.)
  • BUS S305 Business Telecommunications (3 cr.)
  • BUS S307 Data Management (3 cr.)
  • BUS S310 Systems Analysis and Design (3 cr.)
  • BUS S405 Alternative Development Methods and Systems (3 cr.)
  • BUS S410 Systems Implementation (3 cr.)
  • COGS Q351/ B351 Introduction to Artificial Intelligence and Computer Simulation (3 cr.)
  • INFO I300 Human Computer Interaction (3 cr.)
  • INFO I303 Organizational Informatics (3 cr.)
  • INFO I310 Multimedia Arts and Technology (3 cr.)
  • INFO I320 Distributed Systems and Collaborative Computing (3 cr.)
  • INFO I330 Legal and Social Informatics of Security (3 cr.)
  • INFO I400 Topics in Informatics (3 cr.)
  • INFO I421 Applications of Data Mining (3 cr.)
  • INFO I430 Security for Networked Systems (3 cr.)
  • INFO I433 Protocol Design and Analysis (3 cr.)
  • JOUR J300 Journalism/Communications Law (3 cr.)
  • JOUR J414 Globalization of Information (also International Newsgathering Systems) (3 cr.)
  • TEL T321 Telecommunications Policymaking (3 cr.)
  • TEL T421 Economics of Communications (3 cr.)
  • TEL T427 International Telecommunications (3 cr.)

Students may also count other courses with informatics content at a 300 level upon approval of the associate dean of undergraduate studies.

The selection of Informatics electives will vary between the IUB and IUPUI campuses. Any course at the 300 level or above in Computer Science (IUB), Computer Technology (IUPUI), Computer and Information Science (IUPUI), or New Media (IUPUI), can count as an elective.

Cognate Area Courses (15–18 cr.)

Students should, in consultation with their academic advisors, chose cognate areas before their sophomore years.

Our cognate list will display a full list of cognates and the courses required to achieve them. Students must receive a grade of C- or higher in each course and acumulative GPA of 2.0 or higher.

General Education Requirements (38–41 cr.)

English Composition (3 cr.)

Completion of any of the following options with a minimum grade of C (2.0) in each course:

  1. ENG W110 Writing Across the Curriculum (3 cr.)
  2. ENG W131 Elementary Composition (3 cr.)
  3. ENG W170 Projects in Reading and Writing (3 cr.)
  4. ENG L141 and L142 Introduction to Writing and the Study of Literature I–II (4–4 cr.)
  5. AFRO A141-A142 Introduction to Writing and the Study of Black Literature I–II (4–4 cr.)
  6. Two semesters of ENG W143 Interdisciplinary Study of Expository Writing (1 cr.), combined with two introductory courses (3 cr.) from the following: CMLT C145 Major Characters in Literature, C146 Major Themes in Literature.
  7. A combination of any two courses from 4, 5, and 6 above.

Note: Courses taken under these options, except for ENG W110, W131, W143, and W170, may, if they are so designated, be applied toward distribution requirements.

Writing (3 cr.)

ENG W231 Professional Writing Skills, an approved substitute (3 cr.), or completion of one intensive writing course at the 200 level or above after completing the English composition requirement.

Intensive writing courses at IUB are defined by the College of Arts and Sciences (COAS); at IUPUI they are defined by the “writing throughout the curriculum” requirements.

Students must check the listings for courses in the online enrollment system each semester to make certain the course section they have chosen fulfills the requirement.

Oral Communications (3 cr.)

cmcl C121 Public Speaking, or approved substitute (3 cr.)

Quantitative and Analytical Skills (6 cr.)

Select one of the following:

  1. Select on of the following: MATH D116-117 Introduction to Finite Mathematics I–II; MATH A118 Finite Mathematics for the Social and Biological Sciences, M118 Finite Mathematics, or S118 Honors Finite Mathematics.

    Students must receive a minimum grade of C in each course to meet the School of Informatics admission requirements.

  2. Required: an approved, 300-level, 3 credit hour course in research methods and statistics.

    Credit will be given for only one of the following; MATH/PSY K300 Statistical Techniques, K310 Statistical Techniques; CJUS K300 Techniques for Data Analysis; SPEA K300; ECON E370 Statistical Analysis for Business and Economics, S370 Statistical Analysis for Business and Economics: Honors; or SOC S371 Statistics for Sociology; or MATH M365 Introduction to Probability and statistics.

Natural Sciences (8 cr.)

A minimum of 8 credit hours of natural science (life and physical science) courses selected from the following list. One of the courses must have an associated laboratory section.

A topics course (COAS E105 or COAS S105) will count as one of the required courses in this area.

  • Anthropology: ANTH B200 Bioanthropology (3 cr.), ANTH B301 Laboratory in Bioanthropology (3 cr.), ANTH B368 Evolution of Primate Social Behavior (3 cr.), ANTH B370 Human Variation (3 cr.).
  • Astronomy
  • Biology
  • Chemistry
  • Geography: GEOG G107 Physical Systems (3 cr.), GEOG G109 Weather and Climate (3 cr.), GEOG G185 Global Environmental Change (3 cr.), GEOG G208 Human Impact on Environment (3 cr.), GEOG G304 Physical Meteorology (3 cr.), GEOG G305 Environmental Change (3 cr.), GEOG G336 Remote Sensing (3 cr.), GEOG G350 Atmospheric Science (3 cr.), GEOG G431 Meteorology (3 cr.), GEOG G433 Synoptic Meteorology (3 cr.), GEOG G434 Air Pollution Meteorology (3 cr.), GEOG G471 Boundary Layer Meteorology (3 cr.), GEOG G473 Mesoscale Meteorology (3 cr.), GEOG G475 Climate Change (3 cr.), GEOG G477 Atmospheric Science (3 cr.).
  • Geology
  • Physics
  • Psychology (excluding all courses that are considered mathematical science and social and historical studies courses).

At least one of the above courses must be a laboratory course or have a laboratory section.

Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences (15 cr.)

Five courses in arts and humanities and social and historical studies, as defined by the College of Arts and Sciences. At least two courses must be in social and historical studies, at least one course must be in arts and humanities, and one course must be in ethics.

Topics courses may count as one of the required courses in arts and humanities (COAS E103), and one of the required courses in social and historical studies (COAS E104).

One of the five courses must be a course in ethics::

  • PHIL P140 Introduction to Ethics (3 cr.)
  • REL R170 Religion, Ethics, and Public Life (3 cr.)
  • PHIL P242 Applied Ethics (3 cr.)
  • PHIL P340 Classics in Ethics (3 cr.)
  • PHIL P342 Problems of Ethics (3 cr.)
  • an approved professional ethics course

General Electives (23–29 cr.)

Courses for the remaining 23–29 credits will be decided by the individual student, in consultation with an advisor, to fulfill additional career and/or personal interests. Students may take a maximum of 4 credit hours of HPER elective ("E"-prefix) physical education courses.

The School of Informatics reserves the right to amend program requirements. Interested students are strongly encouraged to consult with the School of Informatics’ academic advisor for the latest information available.