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A Technical History of the SEI

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Model Curriculum for Master <strong>of</strong> S<strong>of</strong>tware Engineering Degree<br />

The Challenge: The Need for a Standard S<strong>of</strong>tware Engineering Curriculum<br />

One <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> outcomes <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> NATO workshop [Naur 1969] that coined <strong>the</strong> term “s<strong>of</strong>tware engineering”<br />

was an interest in developing new educational programs, especially for working pr<strong>of</strong>essionals.<br />

However, new programs were slow to appear. One problem was <strong>the</strong> lack <strong>of</strong> a standard<br />

curriculum.<br />

In <strong>the</strong> late 1970s, <strong>the</strong> IEEE Computer Society formed a Subcommittee on Model Curricula in<br />

S<strong>of</strong>tware Engineering [Fairley 1978]. This effort was influenced by earlier work on s<strong>of</strong>tware engineering<br />

education that focused on <strong>the</strong> skills needed by practicing s<strong>of</strong>tware engineers [Freeman<br />

1976]. Unfortunately, <strong>the</strong> IEEE Computer Society never <strong>of</strong>ficially endorsed <strong>the</strong> proposed curriculum<br />

from this committee. However, committee members helped start Master <strong>of</strong> S<strong>of</strong>tware Engineering<br />

(MSE) programs at Seattle University and Wang Institute <strong>of</strong> Graduate Studies using <strong>the</strong><br />

material from <strong>the</strong> committee’s report [Ardis 1987].<br />

A Solution: Creation <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>SEI</strong> Master <strong>of</strong> S<strong>of</strong>tware Engineering Curriculum<br />

Guidelines<br />

In 1987, <strong>the</strong> <strong>SEI</strong> published some guidelines for graduate programs [Ford 1987] that specified important<br />

topics to include in an MSE curriculum. It also provided advice on educational objectives,<br />

prerequisites, electives, and needed resources. That report served as a specification for graduate<br />

s<strong>of</strong>tware engineering programs, but it did not propose any specific courses or suggest how <strong>the</strong>y<br />

might be taught.<br />

In <strong>the</strong> winter <strong>of</strong> 1988, <strong>the</strong> <strong>SEI</strong> held a workshop <strong>of</strong> leading s<strong>of</strong>tware engineering educators to design<br />

a recommended curriculum for an MSE degree. They assumed that such a program would<br />

consist <strong>of</strong> about 10 to 12 courses: six or seven required courses, ano<strong>the</strong>r three or four electives,<br />

with <strong>the</strong> remainder devoted to project work.<br />

The members <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> workshop first estimated <strong>the</strong> size <strong>of</strong> each <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> 20 topics from <strong>the</strong> specification,<br />

<strong>the</strong>n partitioned <strong>the</strong>m into six core courses:<br />

1. S<strong>of</strong>tware Systems Engineering<br />

2. Specification <strong>of</strong> S<strong>of</strong>tware Systems<br />

3. Principles and Applications <strong>of</strong> S<strong>of</strong>tware Design<br />

4. S<strong>of</strong>tware Generation and Maintenance<br />

5. S<strong>of</strong>tware Verification and Validation<br />

6. S<strong>of</strong>tware Project Management<br />

Preliminary descriptions <strong>of</strong> each <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> courses were written during <strong>the</strong> workshop. After <strong>the</strong> workshop,<br />

a subset <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> participants prepared detailed descriptions <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> core courses. For each<br />

course, <strong>the</strong>y created a catalog description, a statement <strong>of</strong> educational objectives, an outline <strong>of</strong> topics,<br />

and o<strong>the</strong>r supporting material. The student-expected outcomes and required classroom times<br />

were also provided for each major topic. All <strong>the</strong> core courses were independent, with none being a<br />

prerequisite for any <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> o<strong>the</strong>rs.<br />

CMU/<strong>SEI</strong>-2016-SR-027 | SOFTWARE ENGINEERING INSTITUTE | CARNEGIE MELLON UNIVERSITY 66<br />

Distribution Statement A: Approved for Public Release; Distribution is Unlimited

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