University of Michigan School of Information Launches Nation's First
Master's Degree Specialization in Social Computing

Ann Arbor, Michigan -- The University of Michigan School of Information
(SI) offers students the nation's first graduate-degree specialization
in social computing, as part of its Master of Science in Information.

SI faculty have been leaders in inventing and analyzing many of the
underlying techniques that have powered the rise of social computing,
including recommender systems, reputation systems, prediction markets,
social network analysis, online communities, and computer-supported
cooperative work.

The specialization is one of nine the School offers -- six of which are
newly launched -- that prepare students for careers in long-established
and newly emerging fields.

"Our specializations give students more choice and more flexibility than
ever before," says Judy Lawson, director of academic and career
services. "They also respond to the needs of organizations in hot fields
like social computing. Employers want graduates with a deep
understanding of how to manage information and at the same time make it
easily accessible to users. SI is staying ahead of the curve."

In addition to Social Computing, the School offers new specializations in:

- Incentive-Centered Design -- Teaches the art of designing systems or
institutions to align individual incentives with overall organizational
goals. It draws deeply from economics, psychology, and sociology, with
computer science as a unifying thread.

- Community Informatics -- Prepares students for positions as public
interest information professionals and technical leaders for nonprofit
organizations, government agencies, community development agencies, and
entrepreneurial social ventures.

- Information Analysis and Retrieval -- Teaches how information is
stored in computer systems, how it is searched and analyzed, and how
humans access it.

- Preservation of Information -- Identifies preservation challenges and
standards-based preservation practices and responds to the urgent need
for expertise in preservation, digital curation, and Web archiving.

- Information Policy -- Prepares students to analyze and design
information policy at both the organizational and general public policy
level.

These six new programs join existing specializations in:

- Library and Information Services -- Prepares students for all aspects
of librarianship. Students may also choose a track for careers in K-12
school media.

- Archives and Records Management -- Teaches concepts and techniques to
manage historical materials as well as methods that can be applied in
information systems design to support integrity, authenticity, access,
and long-term preservation of records.

- Human-Computer Interaction -- Educates the professional who designs
and develops technologies that fit the organization and work practices,
the work to be done, and the capabilities of the user.

The multidisciplinary School of Information has a rich history of
innovative teaching and path-breaking research. The School also offers
dual master's degrees in business, law, medicine, nursing, public
policy, and social work, and a Ph.D. in information.

Details about the School are available at si.umich.edu/go or by calling
(734) 763-2285.

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Frank DeSanto
Communications
School of Information
University of Michigan
2258 SI North
1075 Beal Ave
Ann Arbor, MI 48109-2112
(734) 647-7313
(734) 647-8045 fax
fdesanto@umich.edu
si.umich.edu