A New Course in Systems Analysis and Design

In October 1988 the Department of Information Studies at the University of Sheffield introduced an MSc programme in information management incorporating a course in systems analysis and design. This paper outlines the content of that course now that it is entering its third year. The course encourages a contingency approach to systems development based on the techniques of soft systems methodology (SSM) and structured systems analysis and design method (SSADM) supported by the computer assisted systems engineering (CASE) tool Excelerator (marketed by Index Technology Inc.) and the relational database management system R:Base (marketed by Microrim). These tools and techniques are introduced in the first half of the course; the second half gives students a chance to put the methods to work in the context of a real-world systems development project.