A Value Focus Thinking Approach to the Academic Course Scheduling Problem

Abstract

Abstract : In 1997, the School of Engineering of the United States Air Force Institute of Technology began exploring ways of automating the academic course scheduling process. The administration desired an expedient approach for course scheduling which supports the institute's mission of providing scientific and technological education to officers from all branches of military service, as well as international military forces. The scheduling approach needed to be flexible, efficient, and represent the institute s values and principles. Decision Analysis (DA) and specifically, Value Focused Thinking (VFT), is used to decompose the complex problem of academic course scheduling and determine the factors that are important in a schedule. An MS Excel based Decision Support System generates a Mixed Integer Program (MIP). The MIP formulation combines the institute's goals with facility constraints, faculty preferences, student preferences, and administration guidance to develop an academic course schedule representative of the institute s values.