With more than 700 students declared in the major, information science is one of the largest fields of study at Cornell, according to Claire Cardy, associate dean for education in the Bowers College of Computer and Information Sciences.
Over the past 10 years, according to data from Cornell Institutional Research and Planning, the number of information science majors has grown 524 percent as more students flock to the interdisciplinary technology and information systems curriculum.
However, amid this growth, students are feeling the department’s growing pains, struggling to enroll in core courses and access help during crowded office hours.
While the major is housed at Bowers, students’ home colleges range from the College of Arts and Sciences to the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences to the College of Engineering.
Bowers was established in 2020 and does not currently accept students directly into its college. Instead, students apply to a host college and enter Bowers upon declaring a major while maintaining their affiliation with the host college.
Among the six core courses that can fulfill the five placement requirements, only three can currently be fulfilled in the spring, compared to all five in the fall semester, limiting students’ flexibility in determining their schedules. Although there remains a gap from fall to spring, offerings have seen a slight improvement. In the 2022-23 school year, only two core classes could be filled in the spring, compared to all five in the fall.
Information science major Reid Fleishman ’25 said having two core courses in the fall semester alone caused stress about his ability to meet his graduation requirements.
“All fall semesters so far I have not taken INFO 2040: [Networks] because there were other classes I wanted to take more than 2040 that conflicted,” Fleischman said. “My top fall is the only time left I can take that is risky.”
Sometimes there are also significant differences in courses between semesters. INFO 2950: Introduction to Data Science, a capstone class, is offered in both the fall and spring semesters, but is typically taught using Python in the fall and R in the spring.
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In addition to the core requirements, Information Science students see seven concentration options, of which CALS and Arts and Sciences students must complete at least one concentration, and College of Engineering students must complete at least two concentrations.
Although concentration requirements can usually be met through a variety of course options, only a few courses for each concentration are offered in a given semester, according to a Sun analysis.
In addition to limited course offerings, large class sizes and overcrowded office hours are some common problems among students in the information science department. 851 students are currently enrolled in INFO 1260: Choices and Consequences and Computer Technology, according to the Cornell Student Center.
Ameera Omar ’26, an information science and computer science double major, said she generally received adequate support during office hours in her information science classes. However, she said the work schedule often conflicts with her classes.
“I think some classes should be offered later hours rather than when people are in class,” Omar said. “I believe most working hours should be between 4 [to] 9 p.m. and a scaling option should be offered so that the assistant doesn’t stay out late.”
Omar also noted that the quality of help received during business hours can vary.
“I’ve been to a few office hours where the TAs are more closed off and you have to push them to get your questions answered,” Omar said. “But usually the TAs are very lively and walk around and answer questions.”
Students also described unfairness in the course registration process. In addition to receiving enrollment priority, information science majors are promoted from course waitlists ahead of non-majors, according to Cardi.
However, due to differences in joining requirements among the receiving colleges, not all intended information science majors receive priority for information science classes during pre-enrollment. While CALS students join the major at matriculation, Arts and Sciences and College of Engineering students declare membership during their sophomore year and as such do not receive registration priority until they do.
In addition to students, faculty and staff members have felt the strain of the department’s growth.
“[The growth of the major] is the thing we talk about the most in planning seminars,” said Prof. David Mimno, Chair of the Department of Information Sciences. “We all feel that large classes are a strain.”
Mimno, who began his tenure as department chair in January, noted that the department is hiring new faculty while prioritizing faculty retention. In addition, Mimno explained that the department is also expanding infrastructure to support students who plan to join the major and maintains sufficient support from TAs and other course staff.
There are also plans to reform some procedures around the specialty.
“One of the things the university is introducing is a better ability to enforce prerequisites, and hopefully that will make things a little more streamlined,” Mimno explained. “As of right now, we can say that you should take [CS] 1110: [Introduction to Computing: A Design and Development Perspective] before [INFO] 2950. But we know people don’t do that and have an unhappy experience and take a long time to get help.”
Other planned adjustments include reducing reliance on other departments for certain classes by adding additional classes under the information science banner and overhauling the concentration system by redefining concentrations and their requirements.
The department does not plan to limit the number of students who can join the information science major.
“At many other institutions, you have to win the lottery to get into a major. It was never something we wanted to do,” Mimno said. “And I think if we can avoid that, we definitely will.”
However, a limitation is not completely ruled out.
“If we decide there’s no way we can serve the students in a way that’s acceptable to us, then that might be something we would think about,” Minmo said.
Chris Walkowiak is a Sun contributor and can be found at [email protected].
