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CITY (NewsDakota.com) Valley City State University plans to offer a new major in Business Process Integration Management beginning Fall semester, 2012.

The major is designed to help students develop knowledge of current business processes, knowledge of advanced enterprise systems, and a combination of skills in communication, problem-solving, and collaboration. “These skills are essential to today’s knowledge workers but are not often emphasized as a whole in higher education,” said Gary Inman, president of the Information Technology Council of North Dakota. “To my knowledge, VCSU’s program is the first to offer this combination.”

According to Assistant Professor Susan Pfeifer, the need for this program was identified through employer focus groups, surveys, advisory board recommendations, internship results, and participation in professional organizations. “We keep our business and information technology programs rooted in the needs of business by staying active in the business community,” said Pfeifer. “This program was designed specifically in response to input from North Dakota businesses about their needs.”

To make the program easily accessible, the courses in the major will be available both on-campus, for traditional students, as well as fully online, for non-traditional students, students in remote locations, or students who are already employed.

The BPIM major will be offered as either a Bachelor of Science or Bachelor of Arts degree beginning Fall semester, 2012.