UW-Whitewater’s MCS again ranks No. 1 in North America
Released: September 8, 2003
UW-Whitewater’s Management Computer Systems (MCS) once again received the No. 1 ranking for undergraduate computing degree programs in North America by the Association of Information Technology Professionals (AITP).
“We’re very honored to win the award again,” said Robert Horton, coordinator of the MCS program. “Everyone associated with the program feels a real sense of pride in the fact that we’ve achieved top status for so many years.”
Since 1984, AITP began honoring outstanding achievements in industry and education. Each year, an award is given to the top-ranked computing degree program, as selected by a panel of academic and industry representatives. UW-Whitewater won the first award in 1984 and again in 1986, 1991, 1994, 1997, 2000 and now in 2003.
AITP rules do not allow winners to be eligible for competition again for a two-year period. In the ten years the MCS program has been eligible to compete, it has won a total of seven times.
“To have a program be so highly regarded nationally for so long is particularly gratifying since this is an industry where change occurs rapidly,”Horton said.
Horton said a key to the long-term success of the MCS program has been assessing trends in the IT field. The program’s curriculum is revised every two to three years to keep up with the changes, and maintains strong ties with area businesses.
Now in its 24th year, MCS will be introducing its ninth different curriculum in the spring semester of 2004. The program has about 500 majors and graduates 65 to 75 students each year.
“We rely on the active support from our industrial partners, including the 25 companies on our executive advisory board and our four financial supporters who are part of the MCS Business Partnership Consortium,” Horton explained.
“I also credit a strong, dedicated staff, the administration and of course the students, whose work is valued by employers, thus maintaining the program’s reputation for quality,” he said. Companies in the MCS consortium include Harley-Davidson and Quad Graphics of Milwaukee, TeamSoft of Madison and CNH Global of Racine. The consortium won a UW System Partnership Award in 2002.
Horton plans to travel to St. Louis to receive the award at the AITP National Convention October 23-25.
- Karen Kachel,lkkach@hotmail.com
