The word “informatics” is not in all the dictionaries yet, and it is a mystery to many people on the street. Yet it is a perfect answer to finding a field of study for many students at IU South Bend.

Travis Rose explored many avenues for his education but didn’t find his answer. “I studied one year at Purdue, and that wasn’t what I wanted. I checked into computer science but that wasn’t what I was interested in either. This degree combines multimedia and computers. This popped up just in time for me.”

IU South Bend now offers a minor and a major in informatics along with a post-baccalaureate certificate in informatics. This is the second semester for the major.

A number of students discussed their career search and how informatics became the right educational path for them:

Teresa Fulbright said she was “not hip to programming” but wanted to be in the field. Now she is learning software and problem solving. “When someone said ‘informatics,’ I didn’t have a clue. Now I can walk in and be the computer expert.”

Matt Foley also was attracted to the “good fit of the informatics major. I can mesh the world of biology, computer science and informatics.”

The program also serves both businesses and the State of Indiana’s initiative to move forward in the technological realm. The impetus for establishing the program is the need in Michiana for businesses that base their work on technology, according to Ruth Schwartz, associate professor of computer science and interim director of the informatics program.

Informatics specialists can analyze purchasing trends, hospital stays or similar research in health care. They will work on Web design, technical writing and management teams. “Often businesses are faced with the dilemma of hiring someone and training them in technology. We provide them the road map.”

Students enter informatics when there is a “love of technology, more in application than theory,” Schwartz said. “The minor allows students to be generalists in information technology and still major in the field of their choosing. Those in the major have a greater interest in a career path, analyzing the data.”