Minot State University Online MSIS

I wanted to add a bit of detail to this post for those of you who already have a graduate degree and are looking to obtain a second Masters degree. I recently applied to Minot State's MSIS program (last week) and am looking forward to starting the program. I just graduated in December 2011 with an MBA with a concentration in Information Assurance & Security Management from a brick & mortar school (3.94 GPA) and luckily Minot State said they would transfer over 3 of my classes (Info Mgmt, Networking, Databases). So I will only have to complete 7 classes to obtain my MSIS with a cost of approx $7,000. So if you already have a graduate degree in IS, IT, or CS this would be a good choice if you want to transfer credits.

I did a lot of research and this looks like a very good program for working IT business professionals looking to move into leadership and management roles. Already having a MBA in IA, I'm looking to use this degree to fill some gaps in my education I missed studying InfoSec and make me more marketable (Graduate Exertise in Business Admin, InfoSec and General IT Mgmt). I plan on starting the program this fall and completing it in 1 academic year. As I progress through the program, I'll be sure to post my experience on here and compare it to my B&M graduate education.

 

do you think minot's program or MS IT Network Management Course of Study is betteR?

 

They are really two different programs so it depends on what you want to do with it

I see the Minot program as IT Management, Database Management, Development Management or Project Management

I see the WGU program as IT Management, Network Management, Infrastructure Management

 

so basically if a person would go for the WGU IT degree, they should have a CCNA for example right? would it seem that a person that would go for that degree would be required to have that for the jobs they would apply?

also there are many computer adjunct positions that say they need a person with computer, IT, etc degree. which would be better for that?

 

That's the question I would also like to know.

What's needed to teach an undergrad introductory database class? Will any MSIS, MSIT, MSCS, MSSE degree suffice? Does the degree need to have one or more graduate level database classes? If the degree doesn't have a graduate level database class will work experience be acceptable? Is there a difference if the database class was an advanced database concepts class?

 

Minot State's MSIS program is less technical in nature and more focused on the business aspects of IT Management while WGU's IT degree is more technical. So the two degrees are much different. Minot State's degree prepares you more for a leadership role, while WGU's degree prepares you to be more hands-on at an operational level.

I chose Minot State's degree because that is the route I want to go; I'm no longer in operations and now a Cybersecurity Business Analyst looking to move into management. Additionally, while both schools are Regionally-accredited, Minot State is an B&M school with an actual campus and WGU is on-line ony...so in the academic world it has distance-only school stigma attached to it, which is not good if you want to teach.

To answer you question about adjuncting, it depends on where and what you want to teach. If you want to teach Business Information Systems classes within a School of Business, Minot State's degree is preferrable. If you want to teach in a Comp Sci or Technical School (ITT Tech), WGU's degree would be more preferrable, especially with the certs.

 

I think it depends where you want to teach. Technical schools (ITT Tech), community colleges, and 4-year universities have different requirements. I teach at a 4-year university where I obtained my MBA and was near the very top of my graduate class. Moreover, the department head taught several of my classes and was impressed with my work. On top of that I have 10+ years of experience and industry certs. Because the university I teach at is AACSB-accredited, I can teach lower-division undergraduate courses with my graduate degree, my certs, and my professional experience. However, upper division and graduate courses are usually only taught by PhDs who are academically qualified.

I have never taught anywhere else, so I don't know outside of my university. But I have looked at community colleges and they usually require a Bachelors with an several years of experience or a Masters or PhD. I have also read on these forums that many schools require 15-18 units of graduate courses in the area.

So to answer your question, yes a graduate course would most likely be required and your degree should be tailored to the environment you want to teach in.

 

from what I am thinking, MSIS is good for people who have computer experience but want to grow. The WGU degree and other more technical degrees are good for people who currently have solid hands on experience and may have a cert like CCNA, but want to grow more into management level hands on areas.

It would not make sense for someone with no cert or solid experience to study a heavy technical masters like the one offered by WGU.

you guys agree?

 

Depends on where you're looking to teach.

Some schools will want exactly 18 hours in exactly the program name and/or prefix they use at that institution. Others won't care as long as the degree generally covers what they're looking to teach (e.g. private technical training schools).

 

FHSU's program is an MPS now.

 

Got a link for that?

 

Just to clarify things, the WGU MS-ISA is very technical, while their other IT-related master's degrees are more management-oriented. They are:
Online IT Network Degree | MS in Network Management
MBA in Technology Management | Online MBA | WGU College of Business Online

IMO, the network management degree is a good program, but may limit the graduate to certain infrastructure-related roles. The MBA-ITM would possibly help some folks move upward further in their careers, not to mention possibly open up teaching opportunities.

 

Petedude , what do you think of the MSIS program at minot?

and i dont see anywhere that fort hays program is now MPA, still says MLS

 

Looks like a solid, cheap, relatively quick program with a state name. Hard to beat for most IS/IT folks.

 

Program: Information Systems, M.S.I.S. - Dakota State University - Acalog ACMS

this cost about 11k or so, but how is this compared to minot? which is better?

 

It would be hard to guage which program is better than the other without experiencing both. Given that they are both state schools tells me that they are both quality programs.

However, there are some differences:

• Minot State University is a smaller regional university in ND, while Dakota State University appears to be a larger university in SD.

• 
  Minot State's program is a general program with no specializations, while Dakota State's program is much more detailed and offers several concentrations

• 
  Minot State University requires you to complete a professional consultation project, while Dakota State requires you to either complete a project or pass a comp exam.

I've considered both programs in the past and its my opinion that Minot State is less intensive and focuses more on the business-aspects of Information Systems. On the other hand, Dakota State's program is more technically-developed and allows students to pick and choose the concentration that best suits them.

I've heard good things about both programs, so I think the answer would be that they are both good, but different programs. The good thing about DSU is that it is a segway into the doctoral program is that interests you. I think you really need to review the course descriptions of each program and see which courses would benefit and interest you personally.

 

I believe ahardinjr's response is correct. One other thing about these programs as well as any others. Always check the course rotations and availabilities. Can you finish in 1, 2 or 3 years? Of course whether you are part-time or full-time also makes a difference.

The Minot can be done in 9 months if you start in the fall and take the classes they specify
MSU - College of Business

I'm not sure of the time needed for the DSU degree. Here's the course rotation
MSIS Course Rotation

 

here is more info

MSIS Course Rotation

MSIS Course Schedule

 

I guess overall price and ease play a big role. I love to learn but a lot of work required for a degree is busy work with all the papers. based on what I found on google comparing the classes, minot seems to have a lighter work load and no comprehensive exam at the end.

And thank u all for all your help!

 

Update

Sorry in advance for the length of this post.

So I thought I would revisit this thread - I have just completed the MSIS program at Minot State. I did it in 4 semesters instead of 2 because I missed the first session fall in 2011 so i had to wait for prerequisites to come back around. Here are some of my impressions, I'd be happy to answer any questions anyone has.

Pros:
-Great value, everyone pays instate tuition regardless of where you are
-State school with an actual campus, been around since 1913, 3rd largest in ND
-All of my professors except 1 were in-residence PhD's, the one outside PhD was for a Project Management class and he is considered a PM expert from California.
-Split sessions make it reasonable to finish in 2 semesters if you want (only if you start in the 1st session fall) - each semester is 2 8 week sessions, so you're not taking 5 classes for 16 weeks, youre taking 3 for 8 and 2 for 8 or vise versa.
-No "tests" - everything is based on written papers, group projects, and assignments.
-No comprehensive final, but there is a final individual project which requires 2 webconference presentations (paper length about 30-40 pages and presentation about 30ish minutes with 30 minutes for the faculty grad committee Q&A)
-Business/management-focused approach so it's great for people who already have a technical background.

Cons:
-Online based, so you get out of it what you put in from an effort standpoint
-Not a technical program
-A couple of the classes had a ton of work to fit within the 8 weeks (a couple were really really light, the rest felt manageable for someone who works full time)
-Group projects play a big role in many of the classes - this isn't necessarily a con if you have a group that works well together over the 3 separate classes your group stays together

All in all I'm happy with my experience at MSU - the people there are extremely nice, very helpful, and the professors are great at giving feedback and guidance - they want you to succeed in the program. If anyone has any questions for me, let me know.