Course Syllabus

CS 3011-001 INDUSTRY FORUM

Spring 2025

Instructor:  Jason Wiese (use Canvas messages only)

TA:  Asma Khan (use Canvas messages)

Class meets:  Fridays 10:45 - 11:35 AM in WEB L101

Grading:  85% attendance and lecture write-ups, 15% written reports

Course description:  Industry Forum is designed to expose students to topics that are not discussed in depth as part of the normal curriculum, but that are likely to be important after they graduate.  Each week one or more guest speakers, typically local and national business leaders, will give a talk and answer questions on a topic of interest to them.  Topics will run the gamut from the highly career oriented (e.g., how to decide if graduate school is right for you) to the highly technical (e.g., how software development organizations manage complex system development), but exact topics vary each semester.  The objective of the course is for students to understand what kinds of careers are available after graduation and how students should be preparing beyond their coursework.

Coursework

This is a one credit hour class, or about three hours of work a week on average.  Coursework is required for letter grades, but we'll try to keep it relevant to the professional/industrial experience.  Lectures and write-ups will be kept shorter (expect one hour of attendance and one hour a week of homework.)

Lectures:  The speaker presentations represent the essential material in this course.  In-person attendance at lectures is required and roll will be taken (ID may be required).  To show respect for the guest speakers (who are volunteering their time), lectures have a no-electronics/no-typing policy, except for tablets laid flat for notetaking. 

After each lecture students will submit a summary with key items they learned about the talk on Canvas.  Write-ups will be graded on the quality and accuracy of the writing. 

Students are expected to complete the work for all but one of the lectures.  You may miss exactly one, or you may complete all of them and we'll drop the lowest two scores.  Students may make up exactly one missed lecture by attending and writing up another departmental lecture (details will be posted on a make-up assignment).  Students that are not in attendance at lecture (all of it) will not be given credit for for the associated write-up, so don't be late and don't leave early.

Final Report:You’ll write a 5-page final paper and turn it in at the end of the semester. You should choose a topic based on your own interests industry career ambitions, learn some more about that topic and write it up. It can, but does not have to, be based on the topic presented by one or more of our speakers, but the writing must be different from the writing you did for the weekly assignments.

Policies and Resources

CS 3011 Plagiarism Policies 

Any academic misconduct in this class will result in a failing mark (E) for the semester.  The following is considered academic misconduct:

• Faking or manipulating attendance or rolls in any manner.
• Copying text, outlines, narrative order, or ideas for write-ups from any source.
• Having someone/something else write any portion of your work. 
• Deceiving course staff.

Attendance is important, and we make take roll before or after the lectures, or both.  We may require ID or sign-in, and we may take audience pictures if we suspect students are trying to cheat on attendance.

Prose text varies greatly from author to author (and we expect this).  Some similarities show up, but word choice and narrative order provide enough variation that every report is different.  One sentence of copied text, one paragraph with a nearly identical narrative to another student's work, or digital evidence of text generation or a file being shared between students is plagiarism.  (The only exception is that quoted materials may be identical.)  Students are encouraged to have their work proofread by others outside of the class, but students should not have others edit their work and must not allow other students in the class any access to their work (no shared accounts, keep files private).    

School of Computing Policies 

Please read through the SoC undergraduate handbook: https://handbook.cs.utah.edu 

Also please review the academic misconduct policy regarding :  https://www.cs.utah.edu/academic-misconduct/ Links to an external site. 

College of Engineering Policies 

Please read through the CoE policies on appeals, adds/drops, etc: 

https://www.coe.utah.edu/students/current/semester-guidelines/ Links to an external site.  

Behavior in the classroom All students are expected to maintain professional behavior, according to www.regulations.utah.edu/academics/guides/students/studentRights.html Links to an external site. (the University of Utah Student Code). Students should read the Code carefully and know that they are responsible for the content.  

Extended Illness or Quarantine: If you have a period of extended illness, you should work with the course instructor to make up work that you have missed. 

Additional Resources 

Student Success The University of Utah has a number of offices to help you be successful. Please look over this collection of resources: https://studentsuccess.utah.edu/resources/student-support/ (Links to an external site.) Links to an external site. 

Students with disabilities The University of Utah seeks to provide equal access to its programs, services and activities for people with disabilities. If you will need accommodations in the class, reasonable prior notice needs to be given to the Center for Disability and Access (http://disability.utah.edu Links to an external site.). CDA will work with you and the instructor to make arrangements for accommodations. Accommodations cannot be given without paperwork from this office. 

Addressing Sexual Misconduct. Title IX makes it clear that violence and harassment based on sex and gender (which includes sexual orientation and gender identity/expression) is a civil rights offense subject to the same kinds of accountability and the same kinds of support applied to offenses against other protected categories such as race, national origin, color, religion, age, status as a person with a disability, veteran’s status or genetic information. If you or someone you know has been harassed or assaulted, you are encouraged to report it to the Title IX Coordinator in the Office of Equal Opportunity and Affirmative Action, 135 Park Building, 801-581-8365, or the Office of the Dean of Students, 270 Union Building, 801-581-7066. For support and confidential consultation, contact the Center for Student Wellness, 426 SSB, 801-581-7776. To report to the police, contact the Department of Public Safety, 801-585-2677(COPS). 

Student Names & Personal Pronouns Class rosters are provided to the instructor with the student’s legal name as well as “Preferred first name” (if previously entered by you in the Student Profile section of your CIS account). Please advise me of any name or pronoun changes (and update CIS) so I can help create a learning environment in which you, your name, and your pronoun will be respected. If you need assistance getting your preferred name on your UIDcard, please see https://lgbt.utah.edu/ Links to an external site.for contact information.  The LGBT Resource Center hours are M-F 8am-5pm. 

Student Wellness Personal concerns such as stress, anxiety, relationship difficulties, depression, cross-cultural differences, etc., can interfere with a student’s ability to succeed and thrive at the University of Utah. For helpful resources contact the Center for Student Wellness at www.wellness.utah.edu Links to an external site. or 801-581-7776. 

Veterans Center If you are a student veteran, the U of Utah has a Veterans Support Center located in Room 161 in the Olpin Union Building. Hours: M-F 8-5pm. Please visit their website for more information about what support they offer, a list of ongoing events and links to outside resources: http://veteranscenter.utah.edu/ Links to an external site.. Please also let me know if you need any additional support in this class for any reason. 

Learners of English as an Additional/Second Language If you are an English language learner, please be aware of several resources on campus that will support you with your language and writing development. These resources include: the Writing Center (http://writingcenter.utah.edu/ Links to an external site.); the Writing Program (http://writing-program.utah.edu/ Links to an external site.); the English Language Institute (http://continue.utah.edu/eli/ Links to an external site.). Please let me know if there is any additional support you would like to discuss for this class.