Texas Schools - Information Systems

[oldprogrammer]

How would you guys rank the following Texas schools for their Information Systems PhD programs:

A&M (discontinued?)
Baylor (inaugural PhD class starting this Fall)
UT-Dallas
UT-Arlington
University of North Texas
University of Houston
Texas Tech



Would it be a huge risk to enroll in a program like Baylor's, which is brand new.

[Prawler]

I don't know anything about the ranking of these schools. But as someone whispered to my ear, MIS job market is in big trouble in US.

[oldprogrammer]

Originally Posted by Prawler

But as someone whispered to my ear, MIS job market is in big trouble in US.

Why is that? It seems to be a relevant, though fragmented, discipline.

[appler]

Originally Posted by oldprogrammer

Why is that? It seems to be a relevant, though fragmented, discipline.

Outsourcing...to India in particular?

[oldprogrammer]

Originally Posted by appler

Outsourcing...to India in particular?

Is that to imply that student enrollment is down, causing a decrease in demand for MIS faculty? I was under the impression that most of the jobs being outsourced were more in the Computer Science area and less so in the business side of IT.

[Denver-Broncos]

Shhhhh,

Don't let the secret out; this just might be the best kept secret in academia. The Information Systems field has progressed through a hiring dip over the past decade. So if you're the type to buy stock when it's at its peak, don't apply for an IS PhD (go for Accounting or Finance or something). However, if you like to buy stock when it's cheap, and believe that organizations will increasingly need to manage the development of Information Systems and technology into the future (through BPO or otherwise), then now is precisely the right time to apply for an MIS PhD.

The academic study of Information Systems is indeed fragmented, but over the past several years the real world has placed increasingly more value on those able to manage Information Systems.

As an area of inquiry, the study of Information Systems needs more time to develop. But to me, the fact that a few Universities have attempted to scale-back their Information Systems departments is more a reaction to the dot-com bubble bursting than a cause to think that Management Information Systems is an increasingly irrelevant part of the development of business leaders.

What do you think?

[Prawler]

As far as I heard, United States is over-saturated for the MIS market. On the other hand, there is a great chance for MIS graduates in the developing countries since these countries highly demand management information system graduates. I might me totally wrong or right. I'm just telling what I heard and some of my observations.

[appler]

Originally Posted by oldprogrammer

Is that to imply that student enrollment is down, causing a decrease in demand for MIS faculty? I was under the impression that most of the jobs being outsourced were more in the Computer Science area and less so in the business side of IT.

I was giving a possible culprit to what Prawler said.

As for enrolment there are always int'ls to make up. American enrolment in grad programs is down in most areas except law, medicine, MBA, some others. The MIS at my school is mostly int'ls. With all the visa problems that might be an advantage if you're American. With a PhD I'm sure you'll have even less to worry about.

From some glowing recruiting flyers with 'fat' undergrad IS salaries pasted at my school maybe even undergrad and MIS people are quite well off. My worry was if it's that good do you have to scream it all over the walls?

I hope others will drop in with some details on the schools you've listed

[oldprogrammer]

Originally Posted by Denver-Broncos

Shhhhh,

Don't let the secret out; this just might be the best kept secret in academia. The Information Systems field has progressed through a hiring dip over the past decade. So if you're the type to buy stock when it's at its peak, don't apply for an IS PhD (go for Accounting or Finance or something). However, if you like to buy stock when it's cheap, and believe that organizations will increasingly need to manage the development of Information Systems and technology into the future (through BPO or otherwise), then now is precisely the right time to apply for an MIS PhD.

What do you think?

This is actually my line of reasoning, so I'm in agreement. As someone who had been a software developer for the last 8 years, I can say that the job market for people who understand business and can write solid code are in great demand. Everyone I work with is constantly getting calls from recruiters, and salaries are once again on the rise. Sure, this is purely anecdotal, but things are looking positive. Many students want a business degree because of its practicality, so why not combine that with knowledge of information systems, which is becoming increasingly prevalent and intrinsic to business operations. Because of that I would student enrollment in MIS will begin to rise again over the next few years, which will cause a corresponding increase in the demand for MIS faculty.

Or maybe I'm just looking for validation...

[Denver-Broncos]

I agree.

A number of people on this forum have informally identified a correlation between the bursting of the tech bubble and the subsequent lull in Information Systems faculty hires. To take it a step further, if you accept that the tech bubble bursting had something to do with the decline in Information Systems faculty hires over the past five years or so, then chew on this one for a while:

Now that it's generally accepted that we're in the midst of a financial market meltdown, what might this mean for future Finance PhD graduates facing academic employment? I don't want to infer anything in particular here. I have virtually no real data to support the notion that the field of Finance may experience a similar backlash in hiring as IS did, but it is an interesting thought to consider.