Application Development in Computer Information Systems

January 18, 2023

An interest in computer experience and learning how to use technology to implement projects in business led Ben Batie to the Computer Information Systems (CIS) major, specializing in Application Development.

“Application development focuses on developing applications for businesses,” said Assistant Professor Andy Behrens. “Our specialization will teach students how to develop full stack applications. This allows them to work either on the front or back end. Students in this specialization also learn to develop applications through a waterfall and agile methodology.”

Computer Science programs will teach students how to write programs for a company. However, the Application Development specialization of a CIS degree “ties the program into the databases that store information to the websites that users and employees interact with,” Batie explained.

The program also teaches planning techniques that help students meet deadlines smoothly and effectively for projects.

“I enjoy web design,” Batie said. “Database design also fascinates me, so I am looking forward to learning more as my senior year focuses on hosting websites and information.”

So far, Batie, a senior from Eureka, S.D., has learned how to design websites using HTML, CSS, JavaScript, and PHP. He’s also learning to store information and sort through large amounts of data effectively in database programming.

“Application development students learn what information to collect with our systems and send the data to the business leaders, giving them much-needed information for their decisions,” Batie explained. “Without application development, businesses would have to make uninformed decisions.”

Through his time in the program, Batie has learned how much a properly designed system can learn to help customers.

“Realizing this helped shed light on why application development focuses so much on how projects should be designed to make the most of information for the business,” he said.

Batie recommends a CIS degree for those interested in business and computers.

“The blend of business and computers puts students at a unique advantage, learning to use computers to boost businesses with better information for better decision making,” he said.

“It is a good degree for a student who is interested in the business domain and in solving organizational problems with technology,” Behrens said.

Once he graduates from the program, Batie hopes to work for a company in South Dakota, helping them make the best decisions possible through the system he creates.