Home About UH Academic Calendar Courses Undergraduate Education Graduate Education Degrees, Minors, & Certificates Colleges, Schools, & Academic Units

Aging and Gerontology

Cell and Molecular Biology

Communication and Information Sciences


Graduate Interdisciplinary Specializations

Ecology, Evolution, and Conservation Biology

Marine Biology


Interdisciplinary Studies

International Cultural Studies

Peace Studies

Population Studies

Resource Management

Communication and Information Sciences

Department of Information and Computer Sciences
POST 317
1680 East-West Road
Honolulu, HI 96822
Tel: (808) 956-7420
Fax: (808) 956-3548
E-mail: cis-chair@hawaii.edu
Web: www.hawaii.edu/cis

Graduate Faculty

D. Suthers, PhD (Chair)—human-computer interaction: cognitive, social and computational perspectives on designing and evaluating software for learning, collaboration, and community
N. Asato, PhD—Japanese/Japanese American print cultures; Asian librarianship; censorship
K. Baek, PhD—computer vision, neural computation, machine learning
E. S. Biagioni, PhD—networking protocol design
K. A. Binsted, PhD—artificial intelligence, software design
for mobile devices, human-computer interaction
T. X. Bui, PhD—electronic commerce, information policy
H. Casanova, PhD—high performance computing, distributed systems
H. M. Chen, PhD—e-business, service engineering, business-IT alignment, electronic customer relationship management, multimedia database systems, software engineering, enterprise architecture, MIS
D. Chin, PhD—artificial intelligence, natural language processing, user modeling, intelligent agents, intelligent user interfaces, intelligent software maintenance, empirical evaluation, geographic information systems
W. G. Chismar, PhD—information technology, telecommunications, medical informatics
M. E. Crosby, PhD—human-computer interaction, cognitive science, interface design for searching
E. J. Davidson, PhD—social cognitive aspects of information systems development methods
D. Davis, PhD—social impact of communication technologies and computer-based services, communication and gender, gendered applications of telecommunication technologies
G. M. Fontaine, PhD—intercultural and organizational communication
R. S. Gazan, PhD—social aspects of information technology
V. H. Harada, PhD—library management, information literacy
R. Huard, PhD—human-computer interaction, user research, emerging communication technologies
C. S. Ikehara, PhD—biometrics and physiological sensors, adaptive human-computer interfaces
S. Y. Itoga, PhD—database systems, expert systems, logic programming, information and computer sciences
P. Jacso, PhD—digital libraries, webometrics, database content evaluation
P. M. Johnson, PhD—software engineering, high-tech entrepreneurship
R. Kazman, PhD—software engineering, human-computer interaction
T. Kelleher, PhD— public relations, online media, communication campaigns, mass communication, organizational communication
B. Keever, PhD—public affairs reporting, evaluating race and ethnicity in the news, media history
J.-I. Kim, PhD—communication research methods, communication
theories, diffusion of innovations
R. Knuth, PhD—information policy, children’s materials, international librarianship, history of the book and libraries
A. Y. Lew, PhD—algorithms, systems programming, systems analysis, software engineering
C. G. R. Macdonald, PhD—new communication technologies, multi-media, telecommunication
D. M. Nahl, PhD—human-computer interaction, affective computing, information literacy, driving informatics
D. Pager, PhD—compiler theory, theory of computability, artificial intelligence
R. R. Panko, PhD—risks in information systems, organizational communication and technology
*W. W. Peterson, PhD—programming languages, software engineer-ing, signal and data transmission
G. Poisson, PhD—cognitive informatics, bioinformatics, machine learning
D. Port, PhD—software economics, management information systems, software engineering
L. Quiroga, PhD—information filtering systems, virtual collaboration, information retrieval, databases, library systems
N. Reed, PhD—artificial intelligence, autonomous agents
W. E. Remus, PhD—information technology management, human judgment and forecasting, artificial intelligence and neural networks
S. Robertson, PhD—human-computer interaction, digital government and digital democracy
R. H. Sprague, PhD—information sciences, decision support systems, electronic document management, management of information systems
J. Stelovsky, DrTechSc—computer hypermedia, human-computer interaction, cognitive science
S. Still, PhD—bioinformatics/theoretical biology, information theory, machine learning
D. Streveler, PhD—medical informatics, international public health, issues in the electronic medical record and in telemedicine
K. Sugihara, DrEng—algorithms, distributed computing and database systems, visual languages
D. J. Wedemeyer, PhD—telecommunication policy and planning, new media and society, forecasting methods and application in communication development in Asia and the Pacific
A. Wertheimer, PhD—information science, library history, Japanese-American print culture
R. G. Worthley, PhD—statistics, information technology management

Cooperating Graduate Faculty

J. C. Ady, PhD—organizational communication, sojourner adjustment, international negotiation, conflict management
D. L. Alden, PhD—marketing communications
A. R. Arno, PhD—ethnography of communication, communication and law, social theory, news media
D. Ashworth, PhD—learning technology
K. Bridges, PhD—computer cartography
R. W. Brislin, PhD—intercultural communication
T. J. Brislin, PhD—mass communications, ethics
R. Doktor, PhD—international business, organizational behavior, strategy
J. M. Gersting, PhD—computer science
J. L. Gersting, PhD—computer science
C. P. Ho, PhD—instructional technology
M. K. Lai, PhD—research methods
M. P. McGranaghan, PhD—computer cartography, geographical information systems
N. Ordway, PhD—real estate
J. R. Wills, DBA—technology marketing
S. Zhang, PhD—quantitative research methodology, statistics

Degree Offered: PhD in communication and information sciences

The Academic Program

The Interdisciplinary Doctoral Program in Communication and Information Sciences (CIS) offers a PhD degree integrating and drawing faculty from the fields of communication, computer science, library and information science, and management information systems. Because of the broad knowledge base required to support this interdisciplinary approach, the program also draws on such fields as political science, economics, engineering, operations research, and behavioral sciences.

Recipients of the PhD will undertake careers in colleges and universities, industry, government, and private organizations.

Complete details on this program are outlined on the website, www.hawaii.edu/cis.

Admission Requirements

  • Master’s degree in business administration, communication, library and information science, information and computer sciences, or a closely related field
  • GRE or GMAT scores
  • Three letters of recommendation
  • Knowledge of elementary statistics and at least one computer programming language
  • Statement of research objectives
  • Essay on interdisciplinary studies

Applicants from foreign countries must be academically qualified, proficient in English, and financially self-sufficient.

Minimum TOEFL scores of at least 600/250/100 (paper/ computer/Internet based TOEFL) are required for admission.

Program Requirements

The student will select four areas of emphasis from the following eight: communication and information theories, communication policy and planning, computer software systems, data communications, human-computer interaction, information storage and retrieval, management information systems, and organizational communication.

Students must pass comprehensive examinations in the four of these areas of emphasis, and complete and defend an original dissertation.

Course Requirements

Regardless of area of emphasis, students are required to complete the following three core courses with a grade of at least a B:

  • CIS 701 Communication/Information Theories of Society
  • CIS 702 Communication/Information Technologies
  • CIS 703 Communication/Information Research Methods

All students are required to be enrolled every semester while in residence in CIS 720 Interdisciplinary Seminar in Communication and Information Sciences, and to receive credit for the seminar.

Courses to be taken in preparation for the comprehensive exams are to be selected from among the courses listed below and from graduate offerings in related disciplines as directed by the student’s advisory committee

Communication/Information Theories

COM 611 Communication Theories (3)
COM 633 Telecommunications Architectures (3)
COM 645 Mass Communications (3)
COM 650 Communication Policy (3)
COM 660 Communication Planning (3)
ECON 606 Microeconomic Theory I (3)
ECON 607 Macroeconomic Theory I (3)
LIS 715 Seminar in Information Policy (3)
POLS 610 Political Theory and Analysis (3)
SOC 611 Classical Sociological Theory (3)
SOC 612 Contemporary Sociological Theory (3)
SOC 711 Seminar in Sociology of Knowledge (3)

Communication Policy and Planning

COM 633 Telecommunication Architectures (3)
COM 634 Telecommunication Services (3)
COM 643 Intercultural Communication (3)
COM 644 International Communication (3)
COM 650 Communication Policy (3)
COM 660 Communication Planning (3)
LIS 715 Seminar in Information Policy (3)
PLAN 600 Public Policy and Planning Theory (3)
POLS 630 International Relations (3)
POLS 635 Topics in International Relations (3)
POLS 640 Comparative Politics (3)
POLS 645 Politics and Development: Regional (3)
POLS 670 Introduction to Public Policy (3)
POLS 675 Topics in Public Policy (3)

Computer Software Systems

ICS 611 Compiler Theory and Construction (3)
ICS 612 Theory of Operating Systems (3)
ICS 613 Advanced Software Engineering (3)
ICS 621 Analysis of Algorithms (3)
ICS 622 Systems Modeling and Evaluation (3)
ICS 641 Advanced Theory of Computation (3)
ICS 661 Advanced Artificial Intelligence (3)
ICS 681 Computer Graphics (3)
ICS 691 Topics in Software (3)

Data Communications

ICS 451 Data Networks (3)
ICS 651 Computer Networks (3)
EE 449 Computer Communication Networks (3)
EE 668 Telecommunication Networks (3)

Human Computer Interaction

ICS 463 Human Computer Interaction I (3)
ICS 464 Introduction to Cognitive Science (3)
ICS 664 Human-Computer Interaction II (3)
ICS 665 User Interfaces and Hypermedia (3)
ICS 667 Advanced HCI Design Methods (3)
ICS 668 Technology Supported Collaboration (3)
LIS 677 Human Dimension in Information Systems (3)

Information Storage and Retrieval

LIS 663 Basic Database Searching (3)
LIS 667 Advanced Database Searching (3)
LIS 670 Introduction to Information Science and Technology (3)
LIS 671 Digital Librarianship
LIS 674 Database Design and Creation (3)
LIS 675 Content Evaluation of Databases
ICS 321 Data Storage and Retrieval (3)
ICS 421 Database Systems (3)
ICS 461 Artificial Intelligence (3)

Management Information Systems

BUS 630 Managing Information Technology for Strategic Advantage (3)
ITM 660 Current Topics in Information Systems (3)
ITM 704 Doctoral Seminar in Information Systems (3)
Organizational Communication
COM 623 Organizational Communication (3)
COM 624 Organizational Communication Training (3)
COM 643 Intercultural Communication (3)
MGT 648 International Business: Environment and Enterprise (3)
MGT 670 International Management and Industrial Relations
(3)
SOC 613 Organizational Analysis (3)

CIS Courses

Environmental Studies

Degrees and Certificates Offered: Undergraduate Certificate in Environmental Studies, BA in interdisciplinary studies (emphasis on environmental studies)

See the “Colleges of Arts and Sciences” section of the Catalog for more information.