BYU Information Systems Research Ranked in Top Thirty

PROVO, Utah — Oct 08, 2003 — A recent national study has recognized the Marriott School's Information Systems Department as 26th in the country for research.

Professors from Rice University and Pepperdine University conducted the study for Academic Assessment Services. The study included more than one million academic article citations to measure a schools research productivity and to determine the impact research articles have on the academic community.

"This ranking recognized us as a department that is growing and progressing," comments Douglas Dean, Marriott School assistant professor of information systems. "This is the first time we've been ranked; we're on the radar screen now, and I think we'll move up over time."

Some examples of recent publications coming from BYU's information systems department include: Douglas Dean, Paul Lowry, William Heninger and Conan Albrecht's research on group decision and support; James Hansen, Lowry, Bonnie Anderson and Scott Summer's research on model checking; and Dean's research on group support system's impact on creativity.

Scott Summers, an associate professor of information systems, said it can take years to get an article published and then a few more years before an article is cited. "To be cited means you're charting new waters that others follow," he says. "BYU's primary mission is not focused on research, but other schools' are, so being noted in this ranking is really exciting."

The Academic Assessment study results were presented at the International Business and Economic Research Conference on Oct. 6. For more information on Academic Assessment Services or to read a copy of the report, visit academicassessments.com.

"We're pleased that the research efforts of our information systems faculty are shining new light on the field and reflecting positively on the school," says Marriott School Dean Ned C. Hill. "This recognition is evidence of the school's emerging expertise in information systems."

The Marriott School is located at Brigham Young University, the largest privately owned, church-sponsored university in the United States. The school has nationally recognized programs in accounting, business management, public management, information systems, organizational behavior and entrepreneurship. The school's mission is to prepare men and women of faith, character and professional ability for positions of leadership throughout the world. Approximately 3,000 students are enrolled at the Marriott School's graduate and undergraduate programs.