MIS 370 — Summer 2026

Management Information Systems — Course Schedule & Resources

Instructor: Nathaniel Hobbs
Section R1: Mon/Wed 1:00–4:40 PM
Location: BRR-5087, New Brunswick
Canvas: canvas.rutgers.edu
Session Dates
Jul 6 – Aug 12, 2026
Class Meetings
12 Sessions (Mon & Wed)
Office Hours
Tue 12:00–2:00 PM • BRR-5132
Contact
mis@hobbsresearch.com
Office
BRR-5132

Required Course Materials

All readings listed in the schedule below correspond to the following sources:

Code Author(s) Title & Access
ES Eckstein & Schultz Introductory Relational Database Design for Business, with Microsoft Access (Wiley, 2018). Free via Rutgers Library →
H Holloway Excel: Data Analysis in Microsoft Excel. Alex Holloway, 2023. ~$4.99 on Kindle (free for Kindle Unlimited). E-copy recommended.
G Google Machine Learning online resources. developers.google.com/machine-learning →
B Univ. of Bucharest MySQL Workbench Tutorial. Download PDF →
C Cheusheva Why use $ signs in Excel formulas — absolute and relative references. Read article →

Supplementary materials (lecture slides, datasets, handouts, assignment instructions) are posted on Canvas. Check Canvas announcements daily.

Course Schedule

Tentative schedule — subject to change. Because this is an accelerated summer session, each meeting combines multiple regular-semester class sessions. Changes in assignment due dates, quiz dates, and exam logistics will be posted on Canvas announcements.

Meeting Date Topics & Activities Readings & Assignments
1
Classes 1–2
Mon 7/6 Course Introduction & Database Basics
  • Data vs. information vs. knowledge
  • Database tables vs. spreadsheets
  • MySQL Workbench installation & basics
  • Single-table databases
  • MySQL datatypes
ES pp. 7–8 B §§1,2,4 MySQL datatypes handout (Canvas)
Installation videos by Prof. Ordille
2
Classes 3–5
Wed 7/8 Data Management & Multi-Table Design
  • Why more than one table is needed
  • Multi-table databases & database theory
  • Entity-Relationship (ER) diagrams
  • Dependency bubble diagrams
  • One-to-many design examples
ES Ch. 3–4
3
Classes 6–8
Mon 7/13 Many-to-Many Relationships & SQL Workbench
  • Multiple tables in MySQL Workbench
  • Many-to-many relationships and examples
  • Many-to-many implementation in SQL Workbench
B §3 ES Ch. 7
HW1 Window Opens — Database Design/MySQL
4
Classes 9–10
Wed 7/15 Midterm 1 Review & SQL Foundations
  • Review for Midterm 1
  • SQL foundations: SELECT, WHERE, and INNER JOIN
ES Ch. 10
5 ★
Midterm 1 + Class 11
Mon 7/20 Midterm Exam 1 + SQL Aggregation
  • In-class Midterm 1 examination
  • SQL aggregation and grouping
  • HAVING, DISTINCT, and additional SQL examples
ES Ch. 10
HW2 Window Opens — SQL
6
Classes 12–13
Wed 7/22 SQL Capstone & Data Analysis Pipeline
  • SQL capstone using a new dataset
  • Data analysis/science pipeline
  • Holloway three-step system: Prepare, Analyze, Consider
  • Extracting data from MySQL into a spreadsheet
H pp. 17–53
7
Classes 14–16
Mon 7/27 Excel Basics & Hotel Business Analysis
  • Excel basics and hotel-business analysis project
  • Absolute/relative references
  • Preparing data with transposition, lookup, and nested conditionals
  • Describing the business with aggregates and conditional aggregates
H pp. 55–143 (before Ex. 10) C (absolute & relative refs)
8
Classes 17–19
Wed 7/29 Midterm 2 Review & Excel Analysis
  • Review for Midterm 2
  • Excel KPIs, market segmentation, percentages
  • Pivot tables, charts, strategy evaluation
  • Moving from data → information → insight
  • Excel capstone with a new dataset
H pp. 143–200
HW3 Window Opens — Excel Analysis
9 ★
Midterm 2 + Class 21
Mon 8/3 Midterm Exam 2 + AI/ML Introduction
  • In-class Midterm 2 examination
  • AI/ML concepts: basic definitions
  • Supervised vs. unsupervised machine learning
G: intro-to-ml
10
Classes 22–24
Wed 8/5 AI/ML Models & Data Preparation
  • Linear regression, logistic regression
  • Classification, neural networks, and generative AI
  • Normalizing, binning, cleaning data
  • Ordinal vs. magnitude data; categorical data
  • Training/testing sets, generalization, overfitting
G: crash-course modules
linear-regression, logistic-regression, classification, neural-networks, llm, numerical-data, categorical-data, overfitting
11
Classes 25–26
Mon 8/10 Hands-On AI/ML Capstone & Final Review
  • Classification and regression with MLConsole.com
  • Review for final exam
HW4 Window Opens — AI/ML Concepts & Capstone
12 ★
Final Exam
Wed 8/12 Final Exam — Cumulative
  • In-class cumulative final examination
  • Covers all course material
  • Exact logistics confirmed on Canvas
Check Canvas for final exam logistics and any updates.

Grading Breakdown

30%
Midterm Exams
Two in-class midterms (15% each)
30%
Final Exam
Cumulative, in-class
30%
Homework (4 assignments)
HW1: DB Design · HW2: SQL · HW3: Excel · HW4: AI/ML
10%
Participation & Attendance
Sign-in sheet every class. Unexcused absences = zero for in-class deliverables.

No Rounding / No Curve: Grades are calculated to the hundredth place and used as-is for midterm and final grade assignments. Submit any regrading requests in writing within one week of receiving the graded item.

Key Policies

Attendance

A sign-in sheet is used every class. Absences are unexcused unless covered under official Rutgers policies (religious observance, varsity activities, illness, family emergency). Contact Dean of Students: (848) 932‑2300.

Academic Integrity

Cheating is not tolerated. All deliverables require the RU Honor Pledge. Written work may be screened through plagiarism detection. See academicintegrity.rutgers.edu and business.rutgers.edu/ai.

Submissions

All assignments submitted on Canvas. Accepted formats: Word, PDF, Excel, or Access — depending on the assignment. No pictures or scanned images. Presentations must be well-organized and easy to follow.

Grade Inquiries

No grade information via email — in-person appointments only. Regrade requests must be submitted in writing within one week of item return. Final grades are not negotiable.

Support Services

Disability Services
Obtain a Letter of Accommodation from ODS before requesting accommodations.
Title IX / Pregnancy
Office of Title IX & ADA Compliance.
Dean of Students (Religious / Emergency)
Contact for accommodations, absences, and hardship support.
Student Health
For health concerns affecting attendance or participation.
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