IST students gain real-world experiences in new distributed team project course

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — When Associate Teaching Professor David Fusco walked into his College of Information Sciences and Technology classroom last August, the first thing he told his students was that his class would be different from any class they had ever taken.  

Fusco, who also serves as the college’s director of experiential learning, launched a new course in the college titled Distributed Team Project. With all undergraduate students in the college required to complete a professional internship before graduating, the course provides an opportunity for students to participate in a pre-internship class that emulates a real-world professional experience. According to Fusco, the course gives students an authentic experience in information project development in a controlled environment where they can feel safe to make mistakes and ask questions.  

“When students take this class, they will get a better understanding of how to communicate with stakeholders, identify project scope, and realize that it’s not about the technology, but about meeting business goals,” Fusco said.  

The three-credit course is available to all IST students regardless of their major. Students are assigned to groups based on their strengths when working with a team, which connects students across diverse skill sets and majors. The groups are then paired with real-world startups and companies, and students immediately get to work on a project related to their organization.  

“The class is very open-ended in allowing students to work on a project. The hope is that students will be able to walk into an internship with a much better understanding of how projects are created, scope is defined, and communication is done,” Fusco added.  

Cayden Wilson, a second-year student majoring in data sciences, enrolled in the course because of its unique structure. He knew his skill set would be well suited to the class and he was curious to see what an internship in the technology field could potentially look like.  

“This class appeared as a perfect stepping stone into the professional world,” he said. “I am constantly looking for new challenges that will test my limits and push me out of my comfort zone, so I knew that I could take charge of this opportunity to create something excellent.”

This semester, Wilson and his group are working to launch a new leadership tracking app called BloomRadius. The app uses a design-centric approach and artificial intelligence to help young professionals plan and track the development of self-leadership skills that are essential to thrive in career and life but are not traditionally taught in school. An example of Wilson’s work is using parameters and surveys to collect data to improve instructional and promotional videos for the app.  

“I think this class is a great window into the professional world. You are held to higher standards of communication and group work, but the pressure is much less than in an actual internship or job. You get to see what skills you can offer and what areas you can improve, but you will always have something valuable to contribute to the project,” Wilson said.  

Mary Connolly, a second-year student studying human-centered design and development, and her team are working on a project for HAXTheWeb. They are working on redesigning the organization's website to become applicable to students. Her sponsor required a student’s perspective and opinion, and she said this has been extremely beneficial because she was hoping to gain more knowledge about open web development.  

“Since I am creating a website for students, I have formed a deeper relationship with development. This project has been an eye-opening experience on how long these kinds of projects take,” Connolly said. “The most rewarding part is turning my sponsor’s vision into action.”  

While the course is exclusive to IST, Connolly thinks other students would benefit from working with established organizations on real projects in a mock professional environment.  

“I think everything I learn from the course can be carried into my career in so many different ways,” she said. “Once I get a job, I will be able to use all the professional and collaborative skills I have learned in this class.” 

The students aren’t the only ones benefiting from the class. Fusco has enjoyed seeing his students grow throughout the semester.  

“Seeing students learn how to interact with others and realizing that not all projects are well established or well-defined has been my favorite part,” he said. “I appreciate the students and their willingness to try something new and venture into a course that’s different than what they normally take.”  

For more information about IST 295A, visit the University Bulletin.