Information Technology (Ph.D.)
Prepare to pursue a career in academic or industrial research with a Ph.D. in Information Technology at Illinois Institute of Technology. Become a master in several areas of information technology such as software development, cybersecurity, data science, artificial intelligence, system technologies, business development, and management. Complete the program by making a significant original contribution to research in the field of information technology.
Research, design, and deliver optimal technical and policy technology solutions for the problems of business, industry, government, nonprofit organizations, and individuals. Learn the essential skills to lead, manage, and work with teams in an enterprise environment to collaboratively arrive at optimal technology solutions.
Take advantage of strong industry and academic connections with faculty who are actively involved in the Association for Computing Machinery’s Special Interest Group on Information Technology Education (ACM SIGITE), ABET, and the National Initiative for Cybersecurity Education. Deep connections with the United States Department of Defense, the U.S. Department of State, and the National Security Agency, as well as companies such as Motorola Solutions, Accenture, J. P. Morgan Chase, and Zurich, provide a variety of research opportunities.
Learn more about ongoing and past research projects and the program’s associated centers.
Program Overview
To receive a Ph.D., coursework requirements must be met and qualifying exams, including a comprehensive exam, passed. A thesis defense is required. Graduates of this degree should be able to demonstrate mastery of one or more core areas of information technology though original research, and publish documentation of such research.
Students in the Ph.D. program have course requirements that depend on whether they enter the program with a Master of Science in Information Technology or a related computing field, a master’s degree that is not in information technology or a computing field, or with a bachelor's degree in information technology. A student’s adviser may require specific core or elective courses be taken. Possible elective courses may include PSYC 540, PSYC 545, PSYC 546, PSYC 554, and MATH 525.
Students with a Master of Science in Information Technology or a Related Computing Field
| Minimum Total Credits Required | 72 |
| Maximum Transfer Credit2 | 32 |
| 500-, 600-, or 700-LevelCourse Credit Required | 40 |
| Select a minimum of three courses from three different core course groups as listed below. | 9 |
| ITM 695 Doctoral Seminar | 3 |
| ITMT 597 Special Problems in Information Technology4 | 0-6 |
| Select zero to six credit hours | 0-6 |
| ITM 691 Research and Thesis Ph.D. | 24-28 |
| A maximum of 32 credit hours of master's transfer creditis allowed. | 32 |
Students with a Degree Not in Information Technology or a Computing Field
| Minimum Total Credits Required | 72 |
| Maximum Transfer Credit2 | 23 |
| 500-, 600-, or 700-Level Course Credit Required | 49 |
| Select a minimum of one course from each of the following core course groups: Software Development, System Technologies, and Business Development | 9 |
| Select a minimum of two courses from two of the following core course groups: Cybersecurity, Data Analytics and Management, Management | 6 |
| ITM 695 Doctoral Seminar3 | 3 |
| ITMT 597 Special Problems in Information Technology | 0-9 |
| Select zero to nine credit hours in conjunction with the adviser | 0-9 |
| ITM 691 Research and Thesis Ph.D. | 24-31 |
| A maximum of 23 credit hours of masters transfer credit is allowed. | 23 |
Students with a Degree in Information Technology
| Minimum Credits Required | 72 |
| 500-, 600-, or 700-LevelCourse Credit Required | 72 |
| Select a minimum of one course from each of the following core course groups: Software Development, System Technologies, and Business Development | 9 |
| Select a minimum of two courses from two of the following core course groups: Cybersecurity, Data Analytics and Management, Management | |
| ITM 695 Doctoral Semina3 | 3 |
| Select 9-21 credit hours in conjunction with adviser | 9-21 |
| ITM 691 Research and Thesis Ph.D. | 24-36 |
1 Students with a degree in a related computing field or a master’s degree not in information technology or a related computing field may be required to complete prerequisite and specific core or elective courses selected by their adviser.
Undergraduate-level prerequisite courses will not be applied to the degree.
2 400-level Information Technology and Management courses earned at Illinois Institute of Technology may not be applied. A maximum of 12 credit hours of 400-level courses may be transferred if the courses were applied to a master’s degree.
3 Students must take three sequential semesters of ITM 695.
4 At least three credit hours of ITMT 597 or ITMT 691 are required in the first year.
Notes
To be used to satisfy requirements, courses must be passed with a grade of "B" or better. 400-level Information Technology and Management courses earned at the Illinois Institute of Technology and accelerated courses cannot be used. With department approval, courses may be replaced by more advanced courses.
The 500- and 600-level electives can include credit hours from ITMT 595. They cannot include credit hours from ITMT 597, ITM691, or ITM 695. With department approval, up to nine credit hours may come from outside the ITM department.
Total credits required for the degree is a minimum. A student's adviser may require other courses to be taken. Consequently the total credits taken may exceed the minimum.
Core Courses
There are six core course areas. To meet a core requirement, a course must be taken at Illinois Institute of Technology as part of the Ph.D. or a previously completed Master's program; transfer courses from other institutions cannot be used. Core courses must be passed with "B" or better to satisfy core course requirements.
| Group 1: Software Development | ||
| ITMD 513 | Open Source Programming | 3 |
| ITMD 515 | Advanced Software Programming | 3 |
| ITMD 536 | Software Testing and Maintenance | 3 |
| ITMD 542 | Full-Stack Web Development | 3 |
| Group 2: Systems Technologies | ||
| ITMO541 | Network Administration and Operations | 3 |
| ITMO544 | Cloud Computing Technologies | 3 |
| ITMO553 | Open Source System Administration | 3 |
| ITMO554 | Operating Systems Virtualization | 3 |
| ITMO557 | Storage Technologies | 3 |
| ITMT 593 | Embedded Systems | 3 |
| ITMD 532 | UML-Based SoftwareDevelopment | 3 |
| ITMD 534 | Humanand Computer Interaction | 3 |
| ITMD 535 | Human-Computer Interaction Design | 3 |
| ITMM 581 | Information Technology Entrepreneurship | 3 |
| ITMM 582 | Business Innovation | 3 |
| ITMM 587 | Product Management | 3 |
| ITMS 528 | Database Security | 3 |
| ITMS 548 | Cyber Security Technologies | 3 |
| ITMS 558 | Operating Systems Security | 3 |
| ITMS 578 | Cyber Security Management | 3 |
| ITMS 584 | Governance, Risk, and Compliance | 3 |
| ITMS 588 | Incident Response, Disaster Recovery, and Business Continuity | 3 |
| ITMD 522 | Data Mining and Machine Learning | 3 |
| ITMD 523 | Advanced Topics in Data Management | 3 |
| ITMD 524 | Applied Artificial Intelligence and Deep Learning | 3 |
| ITMD 526 | Data Warehousing | 3 |
| ITMD 529 | Advanced Data Analytics | 3 |
| ITMT 531 | Object-Oriented System Analysis, Modeling, and Design | 3 |
| ITMM 537 | Vendor Management and Service Level Agreements | 3 |
| ITMM 570 | Fundamentals of Management for Technology Professionals | 3 |
| ITMM 571 | Project Management for Information Technology Management | 3 |
| ITMM 572 | Process Engineering for Information Technology Managers | 3 |
| ITMM 574 | Information Technology Management Frameworks | 3 |
| ITMM 585 | Legal and Ethical Issues in Information Technology | 3 |
Admission to the Ph.D. program is competitive and applicants must have high grade-point averages, GRE scores, and (if required) TOEFL scores. Students may enter the program directly after completing only a bachelor’s degree in information technology or after completing a master’s degree in information technology or a related field. Preferred research areas and preferred Ph.D. advisers should be clearly mentioned in the cover letter.
Program Directors
Research Areas and Featured Faculty
Cybersecurity
Data Science and AI
Web Intelligence, Natural Language Processing, Recommender Systems, Information Retrieval
Information Systems and Socio-Technical Systems
National Center of Academic Excellence in Cyber Defense Education
The United States Department of Homeland Security and the National Security Agency have designated Illinois Institute of Technology as a National Center of Academic Excellence in Cyber Defense Education.
The Bachelor of Information Technology and Management degree is accredited by the Computing Accreditation Commission of ABET.
North American Defense and Security Academic Alliance
The North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) and United States Northern Command (USNORTHCOM) North American Defense and Security Academic Alliance (NADSAA) exists as a collaborative information-based enterprise dedicated to strengthening and normalizing relationships between the two commands and academic institutions. That relationship stimulates and develops new thinking, examines cross-organizational solutions, and helps cultivate future generations of defense and security practitioners.
