DPS in Applied Computing

1. DPS in Applied Computing School of Computing & Software Engineering Southern Polytechnic State University August, 2009

2. Doctoral Degree Classifications • In the report, “Doctorate Recipients from United States Universities: Summary Report 1998,” Doctor of Professional Studies (DPS) is listed as a “title of research degrees” in the Appendix E (from NSF site: www.nsf.gov/statistics/srs00410) • DPS is listed along with many other doctorate degrees, including PhD, EdD, DBA, etc. as titles for “research degrees.” The point here is that DPS is considered a “research” doctoral degree; thus the dissertation has to be a reasonably deep one.

3. Some Assumptions for Our DPS in Applied Computing • DPS in Applied Computing candidates: • possess a MS degree in a CS/SWE/IT or related field • Possess at least one year of working experience in the CS/SWE/IT field • Our DPS program will be: • Cohort in nature (full-time) • “Normally” takes 3 years of (fall-spring-summer semesters) • A doctoral dissertation is required • Only dissertation completion may extend into 4th year • Partially on-line • Meets one weekend/month (about 15-20 hours) • Our DPS program is financially self-funding • Initially there is no student financial aid given • Program is funded within the School of Computing • Does not preclude other sources of funding Geared towards working students

4. SPSU Previously Proposed Curriculum for DPS in IT • Summer before year 1 – Short course(s) on essential prerequisites if needed • ============ • Year 1 – Fall (8 hours total) • IT Enterprise Architecture I: Design (3 hours) • IT Communications I: Net-Centric Computing (3 hours) • Research Seminar (2 hours) • Year 1 – Spring (8 hours total) • IT Enterprise Architecture II: Implementation and Maintenance (3 hours) • IT Communications II: Mobile Computing (3 hours) • Research Seminar (2 hours) • Year 1 – Summer (6 hours total) • Research Proposal (3 hours) • Elective course (3 hours) • ============ • Year 2 – Fall (6 hours total) • Dissertation Research (3 hours) • Elective course (3 hours) • Year 2 – Spring (6 hours total) • Dissertation Research (3 hours) • Elective course (3 hours) • Year 2 – Summer (3 hours total) • Advanced Research Proposal (3 hours) • ============ • Year 3 – Fall (6 hours total) • Dissertation Research (3 hours) • Topical seminar (3 hours) • Year 3 – Spring (6 hours total) • Dissertation Research (3 hours) • Topical seminar (3 hours) • Total hours for program = 49 semester credit hours Even though others may participate, at the time this curriculum was conceived, it was meant to be IT focused. Thus it had an IT slant.

5. PACE University’s DPS in Computing Curriculum • Total of 48 credits through a 3 year (fall-spring-summer) cohort program • 1st Year: (building a strong foundation) • DCS 801, 802, 803: Software Design and Implementation (6 credits total) • DCS 821, 822, 823: Software Systems Development and Engineering (6 credits total) • DCS 833, 834, 835: Data Communications, Networking, and internet (6 credits total) • DCS 891 A, B, C: Research Seminar (3 credits total) • 2nd Year: (exploring emerging technology & students interests) • DCS 860, 861: Topics in Computing and Information Technology (12 credits total) • DCS 891 D,E, F: Research Seminar (3 credits total) • 3rd Year: (completing an independent research) • DCS 990, 991: Dissertation for DPS in Computing (12 credits total) In a post mortem paper, PACE U. pointed out their problem with students not completing their dissertation in the 3rd year --- and is now getting students to consider their dissertations as early as 1st year summer.

6. SPSU’s DPS in Applied Computing • Re-start of an earlier endeavor of DPS in IT • Modeled after PACE University program • Still in “proposal” stage

7. 2 - 5 years post DPS attainment • SPSU’s DPS in Applied Computing graduates is expected to participate in the following roles, after 2-5 years of receiving the degree. • Technical leadership positions such as chief designer or architect, lead consultant, principal technical advisor, etc. in computing industry, consulting industry, and in government. • Teaching positions in community colleges through universities with graduate & research programs. • Management positions such as product manager, senior development manager, senior quality assurance officer, chief information officer, senior administrator, etc. in various commercial industries, educational industry, and in government. • Research positions in computing such as research analyst, lead analyst, etc. in research laboratories (national and state governmental, university associated, and computing companies.)

8. Expected Milestones by Year • Assuming “normal” 3 year progress, then the expected “learning outcomes” are: • End of 1st academic Year: • Acquired and/or strengthened the broad knowledge base of 3 related areas (CS/SWE/IT) of computing. • Passing of a “qualifying” exam, covering the cs-series, swe-series, and it-series course materials ----- gaining DPS “advanced” status • End of 2nd academic Year: • Acquired the depth needed for his/her chosen area of research and has established (via formal proposal and approval of) a clear path for the dissertation. • End of 3rd academic Year: • Successfully completed and defended the dissertation.

9. CSE Proposed Curriculum for DPS in Applied Computing • Total of 48 credits for a 3 year (fall-spring-summer) cohort program • 1st Year: Enforcing strong and broad background • CS Series: Database, Computing Systems, and Algorithms (6 credits total) - fall • SWE Series: Process, Requirements, Design, and Testing (6 credits total) - spring • IT Series: Networking & Platforms, Data Management and Web Technologies, Information security, and HCI (6 credits total) - summer • Research Methods: research techniques - (fall), literature survey - (spring) and research proposal - (summer) (3 credits total) • 2nd Year: Narrowing down & conducting formal research • Topics in Computing: advanced and current topics in CS, SWE, or IT (6 credits) – fall • Formal Research Proposal (3 credits total) - fall • Dissertation Research (6 credits total) - spring & summer • 3rd Year: Continuing research and Completing Dissertation • Advanced Dissertation Research and Dissertation Defense (12 credits total) – fall, spring & summer Notes: 1) research “proposal” and guidance starts in 1st year. 2) We already teach the 1st year material in our graduate programs 3) “advanced” topics may be in security, testing, information classification, search algorithms, etc. or research areas in applied computing that some professor is currently engaged in 4) policy and rules, such as what happens if dissertation is not completed in 3 years, are still open

10. After we all “agree in principle” • Must get SPSU to support this • Zvi seems to be receptive • Andy has brought out the doctoral degree topic at a recent SPSU Institutional Effectiveness Council’s strategy planning meeting, which is lead by Lisa and attended by university VP’s and deans. • Must receive USG Board of Regents’ approval • A lot more work ---- see following charts

11. Criteria and Procedures for New Programs USG Board of Regents • The Office of Academic Affairs expects that each doctoral program proposal will: • Demonstrate program need at the state and/or national level (national level required for doctoral proposals). • Provide evidence that program graduates will be nationally competitive and demonstrate that the program of high quality (especially doctoral) will provide outstanding contributions to Georgia. • Provide evidence that doctoral graduates will be capable of creating knowledge and contributing to their discipline or area through a career of research and/or scholarship. • Provide evidence that applied doctoral program graduates can apply knowledge, serve as leaders in the field, and aspire to excellence in professional practice. • Demonstrate full financial program support through an institutional commitment of resources sufficient to guarantee program excellence and/or the ability to obtain external resources. • Build upon existing graduate program strengths. • Identify highly qualified program faculty with national and/or international reputations, researching and publishingin primary refereed journals (books, or other venues) as appropriate to their discipline, who have experience directing doctoral dissertations and also cover an array of subspecialties in their discipline or area; and enough full-time tenured and tenure track faculty to assure that the program will not be built on part-time or temporary faculty. • Show that the program has a clear plan to socialize doctoral students into the discipline or area by teaching, participating in research and research conferences, or having some other clearly delineated professional socialization experience. • Show that plans are in place for doctoral program students to experience practica, internships, and clinicalplacements, as appropriate and demonstrate high institutional standards are in place to guide terminal academic research and advanced professional dissertations. • Show that goals are in place for normative time to degree, with consideration of how to help students complete their degrees in a timely manner. • Demonstrate financial support is available or may be obtained for most full-time graduate students during their studies; if possible, stipends large enough to attract highly qualified students. • Demonstrate that, if the program is in a discipline or an area in which specialized or professional accreditation isavailable, it will attain accreditation in a reasonable time. • Provide evidence of the institutional resources that will be expended specifically for this program (e.g., personnel, library, equipment, laboratories, supplies & expenses, capital expenditures and other, etc.) at two times during the development and maturation of the program: at initial start-up and during the program’s first comprehensive program review

12. USG Board of Regents’ Process for Review of Doctoral Program Proposal • Composed of 2 major steps: • Letter of Intent • Formal Proposal (must be preceded by an approved letter of intent)

13. STEP ONE: Letter of Intent • 
The institution’s purpose for writing a letter of intent is to alert the Board of Regents/University System of Georgia and System institutions of new program development at the institutional level. This submitted letter of intent should address the following issues and may be submitted electronically or in hard copy format: • Programmatic information – name, classification, CIP code. Ensure that the degree nomenclature is aligned with national, regional, and state norms as well as accrediting body prerequisites, where applicable, for the discipline with due consideration for accurate representation of the program content, facilitation of promotion and marketing, and consistency with nomenclature of similar degrees. • Description and objective of the degree – one page abstract suitable for presentation to the Board of Regents. • Program fit to institutional mission and to nationally accepted trends in the discipline. • Program demonstrates a response to demand and is justified within the discipline/ geographic region/state/nation and is not unnecessary program duplication. • Institutional resources that will be expended specifically for this program (e.g., personnel, library, equipment, laboratories, supplies & expenses, capital expenditures and other) at two critical times: a) program start-up, and b) when the program undergoes its first comprehensive program review.

14. STEP TWO: Formal Proposal • 
A formal proposal will be developed and submitted after approval for a letter of intent has been garnered by the institution from the Office of Academic Programs. The formal proposal should address the following issues and may be submitted electronically or in a hard copy format: • Basic information: Name of institution, institutional contact (President or Vice President for Academic Affairs), institutional contact for program, school/office, department, name of proposed program, degree, degree inscription, major, CIP code, starting date. • Ensure that degree nomenclature is aligned with national, regional, and state norms and accreditation, where applicable, for the discipline with due consideration for accurate representation of program content, facilitation of promotion and marketing, and consistency with the nomenclature of similar degrees. • Curriculum. • Student admissions criteria. • Availability of assistantships as well as outcomes associated with the program inclusive of careers/jobs available to graduates. • Anticipated student learning outcomes associated with completion of the proposed program. • Administration. • Accreditation. • Projected enrollment, revenues, and expenditures for the first three years. • Facilities implications of the proposed program. • Inventory of faculty directly involved. For each faculty member, give the following data: name, rank, highest degree, degrees earned, academic discipline, current workload for a typical semester, explanation of how workload will be impacted with the addition of the proposed program; expected responsibilities in the proposed program. If it will be necessary to add faculty in order to begin the program, give the desired qualifications of the persons to be added, with a timetable for adding new faculty and plan for funding new positions. • External Reviews – each institution will provide a list of five to eight reviewers from aspirational or comparable programs/institutions, and should include an explanation of why these reviewers are suggested. This list should not include individuals who the department or institution has consulted during the process of program proposal development.

15. DOCTORAL DEGREES • NEW PROPOSAL FORMS • (Submit One Copy) • LETTER OF INTENT • Institution: • Institutional Contact (President or Vice President for Academic Affairs): • Date: • School/Division: • Department: • Name of Proposed Program: • Degree: • Major: • Degree Inscription: • CIP Code: Anticipated Starting Date: • Program Classification: • 1. Program Description and Objectives: • a. Objectives of the program • b. Needs the program will meet • c. Brief explanation of how the program is to be delivered • d. Prioritization within the institution’s strategic plan • Description of the program’s fit with the institutional mission and nationally accepted trends in the discipline. • Description of how the program demonstrates demand and a justification of need in the discipline and geographic are (region, state, and nation) a and is not unnecessary program duplication. • 4. Brief description of institutional resources that will be used specifically for the program (e.g., personnel, library, equipment, laboratories, supplies & expenses, capital expenditures at program start-up and when the program undergoes its first comprehensive program review.)

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