March 9, 2025 | 3 minute read
Course work and equivalencies
I'm starting to look at my future course work. Some of it will be completely new to me, and some will be duplicative not only of what I've already learned, but of what I've been teaching for decades. Part of this process has been identifying potential course equivalencies that I can use from my Carnegie Mellon experience (25 years ago?!), so that I'm not taking classes where I won't learn very much. I'm not in a hurry to complete the degree—my goal isn't speed—but I also don't want to be sitting through material that isn't challenging.
To identify potential equivalencies, I'm taking a walk down memory lane, looking at my CMU transcripts and trying to remember what the course material was. Some of this is on the web, and I've even found an archive of undergraduate course catalogs, but finding original graduate course descriptions is difficult. Course numbers appear to have been reused in creative ways, and even with CMU's rich internet presence decades ago, some of the course information is simply missing.
Here's what I've found so far, and potential equivalencies.
| UC Irvine's Informatics PhD | My Carnegie Mellon Equivalency (Proposed) |
|---|---|
| Seminar in Informatics (IN4MATX 209S, 1) Current research and research trends in informatics. Forum for presentation and criticism by students of research work in progress. | |
| Seminar in Informatics (IN4MATX 209S, 2) Current research and research trends in informatics. Forum for presentation and criticism by students of research work in progress. | |
| Research in Human-Centered Computing (IN4MATX 232) Introduction to contemporary topics in human-computer interaction, including methods, technologies, design, and evaluation. Emerging application domains and their challenges to traditional research methods. Advanced architectures and technologies. Critical issues. | |
| Social Analysis of Computing (IN4MATX 261) The social and economic impacts of computing and information technologies on groups, organizations, and society. Topics include computerization and changes in the character of work, social control and privacy, electronic communities, and risks of safety-critical systems to people. | |
| Research Methodology for Informatics (IN4MATX 201) Introduction to strategies and idioms of research in Informatics. Includes examination of issues in scientific inquiry, qualitative and quantitative methods, and research design. Both classic texts and contemporary research literature are read and analyzed. | |
| Qualitative Research Methods in Information Systems (IN4MATX 203) Introduction to qualitative research methods used to study computerization and information systems, such as open-ended interviewing, participant observation, and ethnography. Studies of the methods in practice through examination of research literature. | HCI 05610 User-Centered Research and Evaluation (12 units) |
| Quantitative Research Methods in Information Systems (IN4MATX 205) Quantitative research methods used to study computerization and information systems. Design of instruments, sampling, sample sizes, and data analysis. Validity and reliability. Longitudinal versus cross-sectional designs. Analysis of secondary data. Studies of the methods through examination of research literature. | 36-201 Statistical Reasoning (9 units) and 36-202 Introduction to Statistical Methods (9 units) and 36-203 Sampling, Surveys, and Society (9 units) |
| Doctoral Seminar on Research and Writing (IN4MATX 207S) Doctoral seminar centered on original research and writing. Provides a chance for doctoral students at all levels to present original work, brainstorm ongoing issues, and learn to provide and receive critical feedback from peers. | |
| Individual Study (4 quarters required pre-advancement, recommended at least 2 quarters per year in each of the first 2 years) (IN4MATX 299, 1) Individual research or investigation under the direction of an individual faculty member. | |
| Individual Study (IN4MATX 299, 2) Individual research or investigation under the direction of an individual faculty member. | |
| Individual Study (IN4MATX 299, 3) Individual research or investigation under the direction of an individual faculty member. | |
| Individual Study (IN4MATX 299, 4) Individual research or investigation under the direction of an individual faculty member. | |
| Elective | HCI 05671 HCI Project (12 units) |
| Elective | HCI 05672 HCI Project (12 units) |
| Elective | HCI 05630 Programming Usable Interfaces (12 units) |
| Elective | PPM 90728 Management Information Systems / Database Management (12 units) |
| Elective | DES 51727 Time, Motion and Communication (12 units) |
| Elective |
I have a feeling that the biggest mismatch is going to be quantitative methods, which is unfortunate; I took three undergraduate classes (that had, at the time, grad equivalencies) and these probably over-map to the UCI requirement, but I'm not sure they will allow undergrad classes to count for these requirements.
I'll be in Irvine next week to discuss this in more depth with Paul and Katie.