I took Systems Analysis & Design and Database Management from Chadron in the 2nd 8 weeks of the spring 09 term. Two upper-level classes at once is hard; for two months this was my life, apart from work. I managed 2 As which is great for my GPA and I rewarded myself with a bottle of artisanal brandy from
Clear Creek distillery.
Each class requires a discussion posting and two 'meaningful' responses to others each week. As mentioned above other students often write pretty generic postings that make it hard to reply meaningfully if you're looking for an A. I had a couple live wires in each class so engaging with them kept it interesting. It was a little different one week -- I and two others were assigned as "discussion leaders" -- who were tasked with making the first post, keeping the discussion going by writing extra replies, and posting a summary at week's end. Note that I saved myself 4 points by keeping the email in which one of the others agreed to write the summary -- she turned it in late, but since she had agreed to do it I got the points back.
Instructor Dr. Waugh views Systems Analysis as the capstone of their MIS concentration. As such, it's advanced work
for an undergrad program and somewhat challenging. I had experience with some of the topics and time management was perhaps the biggest challenge for me. The assignments in sys anal are all drawn from the scenario in the
book. It's a simulation of you as the newly-hired systems analyst at a fictional IT consulting firm. You have 2-4 to-dos each week that reflect the readings in the book. Stuff like creating Data Flow Diagrams, class diagrams, ERDs, recommendations for technology.
The midterm is open-book essay; if you have read the chapters, it's easy to get done in the time allotted. The final is a powerpoint presentation where you recap the assignments and show you understand how they relate to the SDLC. You have several weeks to complete it, but I banged it out in about 3 hours from an outline I had stuck on my office wall for about a month to let it sink into my brain. Nothing fancy -- all in black and white outline style, no powerpoint tricky junk. You just turn it in; you don't have to "present" it. I got a 100.
Prof's a little particular about the writing of the "business" memos and emails in the simulation. Formal and detached is the way to go. If you've been in anything but the most formal workplace, or a business writing class in the last 5 years (where I was told "the way they teach you to write for business in college is wrong") you'll have to grit your teeth and play along, but it's no big deal.
In Database Management the biggest challenge IMO is keeping up with the
reading. It's information-dense and 50-100 pages weekly. The assignments in Database are built around doing stuff in Access that illustrates basic database concepts like normalization, relational design, and basic SQL. In the course of the class you build a database of your own design to solve a problem you select. If you have done anything in Access before, the use of the program is elementary -- this is not an Access class, Access is just the tool used to teach basic database concepts as applied to business situations. If you're new to Access it moves pretty gradually and is approachable. If you're new to databases, it will be challenging enough but doable.
There's a midterm derived from textbook site quiz questions (do the reading and practice the quizzes & you can score well w/minimal pain)and a final requiring short essay answers (don't let the e-word scare you -- direct copying from the book got me a 98). Two shorty papers where you explain how you would use Access to solve business problems.
The two classes overlap and complement one another. The same prof teaches them both. You do ERDs in database, then do them a couple weeks later in SAD. You do design in both. (Knowing how to use Visio really helped with the diagramming tasks.) If doing systems analysis or DBA is on your career path this would not be the only training you would expect to receive, and so it's OK that in 8 weeks you can only begin to touch the subject. In 15 weeks you might be able to do more projects and have more time to assimilate the reading, but I think you would still walk away needing more specific technical training in order to work in IT. If you're like me, the classes will offer a combination of review and new information. If you have experience, you might wonder "is this all?" (though not from lack of work) but others in the class will remind you through their discussion posts that the level is about right for college seniors, and in some respects the class is validating what you already know.
These are my last classes at Chadron unless something changes my plans. I would do it again. Taking these classes slowed down my testing progress, but I wanted to have a concentration and I do MIS work already, so it seemed the logical choice. If I had time for a degree from a non-Big-3 school, I might finish my degree through Chadron. My local urban U has a few more sophisticated course options, but for the price, service level, and accessibility, Chadron is excellent. Highly recommended.
Now back to testing!
Phillip
![[-]](https://www.degreeforum.net/mybb/images/collapse.png)
