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The Information Networking Institute (INI) was established by Carnegie Mellon University in 1989 as the nation’s first research and education center devoted to Information Networking. As a cooperative endeavor of:

The College of Engineering
The School of Computer Science
The Tepper School of Business
The Heinz School of Public Policy and Management

Pittsburgh MSIN Curriculum

 

The MSIN curriculum consists of three main components: the core courses, electives, and a curriculum specialization/research seminar.

The core courses establish the necessary background and a common competence level, and the elective courses build upon the core. Students can choose from a wide variety of technical and management elective courses according to their interests and career needs.

For the curriculum specialization, students have unprecedented flexibility to customize the program according to their career goals, whether they want to focus on an industry or specialized area of study.

Core Course Requirements
72 units
Restricted Electives
48 units
Curriculum Specialization / Research Seminar
39 units
Total
159 units
MSIN Core Courses - 72 units
(core courses may not be waived)
Networking and Systems Requirement - 48 units

All students must take:

18-342: Fundamentals of
Embedded Systems (Fall)
(Prerequisite to 18-842)
OR
15-410: Operating System Design
and Implementation (Fall)
(Prerequisite to 18-842)
Note: You must take 15-213: Introduction to Computer Systems as a prerequisite to 15-410.
AND
18-842: Distributed Systems (Spring)
AND
18-756: Packet Switching
and Computer Networks (Fall)
OR
14-740: Fundamentals of Telecommunications and Computer Networks (Fall)
Note: This class has a limited enrollment.
OR
18-345: Introduction to Telecommunications Networks (Fall)
AND
AND
One course from ECE/CS in the areas of Software Systems & Computer Networking and Signal Processing & Communications Two courses from ECE/CS in the areas of Software Systems & Computer Networking and Signal Processing & Communications

Management Requirement - 18 units

Students must take each of the following classes:

    • 14-774: Managerial Economics (Fall)
    • 14-775: Business Management (Fall)
    • 14-777: Information Systems Modeling (Spring)
Database Requirement - 6 units

Students must take one of the following classes:

    • 15-415: Database Applications (Fall)
    • 45-872: Information Resources Management (Spring)
    • 95-703: Database Management (Fall)
    • 95-704: Advanced Database Management (Spring)

Note: 15-415, 95-703 and 95-704 are 12 unit courses, so the extra 6 units will be used toward the restricted elective requirement.

Restricted Electives - 48 units

Restricted electives form the area of a student's specialization. This portion of the curriculum is made up of 48 units. Of the 48 required units, 12 units must be a course in ECE or CS numbered 300 or above. The remaining 36 units can be fulfilled by any courses in the Heinz School or the Tepper School or any courses in ECE, EPP or CS that are numbered 300 or above. 15-213: Introduction to Computer Systems can now also be counted as a restricted elective, but only if it is taken as a prerequisite to 15-410: Operating System Design and Implementation.

Restricted electives may not be taken pass/fail.

Curriculum Specialization - 36 units

Curriculum specialization must be chosen by the end of the first Spring semester. Students choose either a Professional Track or Research Track:

  • Professional Track: Either 1.) a set of courses that will equip students with the knowledge and skills they need to succeed in industry; 2.) a supervised practicum that will provide students with industry experience while gaining significant knowledge; or 3.) a development-based project that allows students to build up knowledge and skills in delivering successful solutions for industry.

  • Research Track: A master’s thesis that will allow students to delve deep into a problem and create a solution for a research-based project, offering them the opportunity to gain significant knowledge and skills in a particular area.

Research Seminar - 3 units

Research seminars require students to attend presentations that take place during the Fall and Spring semester. Speakers present on current issues in areas of industry and research. Students must take both:

  • 14-704: INI Seminar (Fall)
  • 14-705: INI Seminar (Spring)

 

   
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