Breadth and Depth of Coverage in IS Areas for Curriculum Accreditation: A National Study

Using the six information systems core areas for accreditation and the IS 2002 model curriculum as a framework, this paper proposes and uses metrics for reporting the breadth and depth of coverage across content areas, using data from a sample of 18 four-year IS degree programs. The results indicate that analysis and design and role of IS in organizations are covered in the greatest breadth, according to aggregate mappings of local courses to IS 2002 learning units and IS core accreditation areas. Networks and telecommunications and hardware and software are covered in the least breadth and depth. The remaining two areas— data management and modern programming language— are covered in the most breadth and depth as a percentage of core area size and total coverage, respectively. The results provide IS institutions with a basis for comparing their IS curricula both in terms of accreditation standards and the IS model curriculum.