Defense giant BAE Systems needs a software tool to manage its legions of subcontractors and is looking to students in the School of Information Sciences and Technology (IST) for analysis, design and development expertise.
This fall, a team of students in IST 421 Advanced Enterprise Integration: Technologies and Applications will research requirements for and propose a system solution to integrate contractors' financial information with an Oracle database accessible to other financial systems.
Working with an actual client on a real-world project gives IST students valuable skills and experience, said Brian Cameron, assistant professor of information sciences and technology, who will teach the class.
"The student team will have to understand a complex and unstructured problem, translate business needs into possible technical solutions and evaluate those solutions whether Web services or middleware," Cameron said. "Then they will have to design their solution."
In addition to weekly conference calls with BAE Systems, the team is required to write a project plan as well as design and development documents. The students also will meet with Walt Havenstein, executive vice president of BAE Systems North America, who will be on campus Nov. 4. A formal presentation of the team's solution is planned, Cameron said.
The project likely will extend into spring semester to allow students to build out a working system, Cameron said.
Headquartered in Rockville, Md., BAE Systems North America is a high-tech U.S. company that employs more than 25,000 people who live and work in some 30 states, the District of Columbia and the United Kingdom. The company is dedicated to solving its customers' needs with highly innovative and leading-edge solutions across the defense electronics, information technology, systems and service arenas.
