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Learn new concepts from industry experts
Gain a foundational understanding of a subject or tool
Develop job-relevant skills with hands-on projects
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There are 6 modules in this course
Demonstrate your job-ready skills in this portfolio-worthy capstone course, where you’ll apply your systems analysis, data management, and project management skills to design and evaluate real-world business systems.
During this project, you’ll apply systems analysis methodologies to streamline business processes, data management, and system integration. Through hands-on labs, you’ll use requirements gathering techniques, create process models using UML diagrams, design relational databases, and build interactive dashboards using Tableau or Cognos.
As you work, you’ll demonstrate your end-to-end systems analysis skills in stakeholder management, data security, and meeting compliance requirements. Plus, you’ll apply your knowledge to business requirements documentation, process modelling, and deployment using CI/CD pipelines.
By the end of the course, you'll have a comprehensive capstone project that demonstrates your systems analyst expertise in addressing real organizational challenges in business process improvement.
Enroll today to complete a capstone project that gives you valuable practical experience you can talk about in interviews!
In this module, you will initiate the capstone project by creating key foundational documents such as the project charter, stakeholder register, and stakeholder engagement plan tailored to a healthcare setting. You will identify and engage stakeholders across patient, clinical, administrative, and IT roles using structured interviews and engagement strategies. You’ll gather, document, and validate both functional and nonfunctional requirements using tools such as BRD, SRS, and use case diagrams. You will also create a requirements traceability matrix to ensure alignment with business goals, and model processes to identify inefficiencies in areas such as patient records, scheduling, and billing.
What's included
2 videos2 readings3 assignments5 plugins
Show info about module content
2 videos•Total 9 minutes
Course Introduction•3 minutes
Project Overview•6 minutes
2 readings•Total 7 minutes
Course Overview•5 minutes
Summary and Highlights: Project Initiation and Requirements Gathering•2 minutes
3 assignments•Total 55 minutes
Checklist: Project Initiation and Stakeholder Engagement•18 minutes
Checklist: Requirements Gathering•16 minutes
Graded Quiz: Project Initiation and Requirements Gathering•21 minutes
5 plugins•Total 103 minutes
Reading: Helpful Tips for Course Completion•3 minutes
Reading: Assignment Overview: Project Initiation and Stakeholder Engagement•5 minutes
Lab: Project Charter, Stakeholder Register, and Stakeholder Engagement Plan•45 minutes
This module focuses on planning and process modeling for the unified IT solution. You will create key project management artifacts such as a Work Breakdown Structure (WBS), a traceability matrix, and a risk register tailored to healthcare scenarios such as data breaches and system downtime. You will also develop SWOT analyses and visualize core patient workflows, such as appointment scheduling and billing using flowcharts and UML-based diagrams. These models will be validated using real data trends and stakeholder feedback to ensure alignment with project goals and user needs.
What's included
1 reading3 assignments4 plugins
Show info about module content
1 reading•Total 2 minutes
Summary and Highlights: Project Planning and Process Modeling•2 minutes
3 assignments•Total 55 minutes
Checklist: Project Planning and Risk Analysis•16 minutes
Checklist: Process Modeling•18 minutes
Graded Quiz: Project Planning and Process Modeling•21 minutes
4 plugins•Total 82 minutes
Reading: Assignment Overview: Project Planning and Risk Analysis•4 minutes
Lab: Create Project Management and Risk Artifacts•45 minutes
Reading: Assignment Overview: Process Modeling and Visualization•3 minutes
Lab: Create Process Models and Visualization•30 minutes
Module 3: Data Preparation and Visualization
Module 3•3 hours to complete
Module details
In this module, you will work with real-world healthcare datasets to prepare, clean, and visualize patient and operational data. You’ll identify key fields in patient, appointment, and billing records, clean and format data in Excel, and verify its quality using a structured checklist. You’ll then create basic bar and line charts to highlight appointment volumes and billing trends. Finally, you’ll use an analytics platform to build interactive dashboards with filters and visualizations that help stakeholders explore patterns in patient satisfaction and wait times.
What's included
1 reading4 assignments6 plugins
Show info about module content
1 reading•Total 2 minutes
Summary and Highlights: Data Preparation and Visualization•2 minutes
4 assignments•Total 75 minutes
Checklist: Data Preparation and Cleaning•20 minutes
Lab: Building Visualizations for Appointment and Billing Data•40 minutes
Reading: Assignment Overview: Advanced Dashboard Development •4 minutes
Lab: Build Interactive Dashboards •30 minutes
Module 4: System and Database Design
Module 4•3 hours to complete
Module details
This module focuses on designing the system architecture and database schema for XYZ Health Solutions’ IT solution. You will model key system interactions using UML diagrams, such as use case and sequence diagrams, to represent patient management workflows. In parallel, you will analyze business requirements to identify core data entities, create conceptual and logical ERDs, and apply normalization through 3NF. You’ll then translate these designs and compile a detailed data dictionary to support implementation and documentation.
What's included
1 reading3 assignments4 plugins
Show info about module content
1 reading•Total 2 minutes
Summary and Highlights: System and Database Design•2 minutes
3 assignments•Total 57 minutes
Checklist: System Design•20 minutes
Checklist: Database Design•16 minutes
Graded Quiz: System and Database Design•21 minutes
4 plugins•Total 94 minutes
Reading: Assignment Overview: System Design with Use Case and Sequence Diagrams•4 minutes
Lab: Create System Models and UML Diagrams •45 minutes
Module 5: System Testing and Deployment Strategies
Module 5•3 hours to complete
Module details
You will begin by reviewing and annotating test plans for completeness and alignment, using traceability matrices to ensure full requirement coverage. You’ll then design and write test cases using test-driven development (TDD) to validate system logic and behavior-driven development (BDD) scenarios using Gherkin syntax to capture realistic user interactions. Building on this, you will define a CI/CD pipeline by outlining deployment stages, stakeholder responsibilities, and coordination checkpoints with QA. You will also develop a monitoring plan by identifying system KPIs, setting alert triggers, and defining response strategies for incidents and post-mortems. These activities are designed to enhance system reliability, streamline collaboration across teams, and ensure readiness for deployment in production environments.
What's included
1 reading3 assignments4 plugins
Show info about module content
1 reading•Total 2 minutes
Reading: Summary and Highlights: System Testing and Deployment Strategies•2 minutes
3 assignments•Total 59 minutes
Checklist: Test Planning and Case Design using TDD and BDD•20 minutes
Checklist: CI/CD Deployment and Monitoring Plan•18 minutes
Graded Quiz: System Testing and Deployment Strategies•21 minutes
4 plugins•Total 93 minutes
Reading: Assignment Overview: Test Planning and Case Design using TDD and BDD•4 minutes
Lab: Reviewing Test Plans and Creating TDD/BDD Test Cases•45 minutes
Reading: Assignment Overview: CI/CD Deployment and Monitoring Plan•4 minutes
Lab: Create a CI/CD Pipeline and Monitoring Strategy•40 minutes
Module 6: Final Submission, Evaluation, and Career Guidance
Module 6•3 hours to complete
Module details
In this module, you will compile all project deliverables into a final presentation that outlines the complete IT solution for XYZ Health Solutions. You’ll develop a PowerPoint presentation showcasing key outputs, such as diagrams, dashboards, and reports, and submit it for peer review. This module also contains bonus lessons where you’ll shift your focus from project execution to career readiness. You’ll begin by creating your resume, cover letter, and personal portfolio to showcase your project work, including the IT solution for XYZ Health Solutions. Then, you’ll explore career paths, refine your job search strategies, and practice common interview questions.
What's included
4 videos2 readings1 peer review6 plugins
Show info about module content
4 videos•Total 29 minutes
Guide to Resume Writing•8 minutes
Guide to Developing a Personal Portfolio•7 minutes
Guide to Freelancing and Job Search •7 minutes
Common Interview Questions and Tips•7 minutes
2 readings•Total 4 minutes
Congratulations and Next Steps •2 minutes
Team and Acknowledgements•2 minutes
1 peer review•Total 30 minutes
Project: Final Submission and Evaluation•30 minutes
6 plugins•Total 140 minutes
Reading: Assignment Overview: How to Present Your Findings •4 minutes
Lab: Unified IT Solution for XYZ Health Solutions•60 minutes
Lab: Drafting System Analyst Resume•20 minutes
Lab: Developing a Personal Portfolio•20 minutes
Lab: Planning a Job Search and Freelance Strategy•30 minutes
Activity: Practice Mock Interview•6 minutes
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What are the prerequisites for taking this course?
This advanced course is recommended for learners with basic IT knowledge, understanding of business processes, and familiarity with system analysis concepts or project management principles. Previous experience with data management tools is helpful but not required. To ensure you have the skills you need to successfully complete this project, we recommend that you have completed all the prior courses in the IBM Systems Analysis Professional Certificate.
What software and tools will I need?
You will need a laptop or desktop computer with a modern web browser and a reliable internet connection. The course provides access to Excel, MySQL, Lucidchart, and analytics platforms like Tableau or Cognos through the learning environment.
Who should take this capstone course?
This course is ideal for:
• Aspiring systems analysts seeking to demonstrate their business analysis expertise
• IT professionals transitioning to business analysis roles
• Business professionals wanting to show their understanding of system design
• Business analysts keen on having a project that demonstrates their technical skills
• Project managers looking to demonstrate their systems analysis capabilities
• Professionals preparing for IT consulting roles
What makes this different from other systems analysis courses?
This capstone gives you the opportunity to apply your skills and knowledge of systems analysis. You’ll work on an end-to-end project addressing real operational inefficiencies in business processes, data management, and system integration, creating a portfolio-ready demonstration of your expertise.
When will I have access to the lectures and assignments?
To access the course materials, assignments and to earn a Certificate, you will need to purchase the Certificate experience when you enroll in a course. You can try a Free Trial instead, or apply for Financial Aid. The course may offer 'Full Course, No Certificate' instead. This option lets you see all course materials, submit required assessments, and get a final grade. This also means that you will not be able to purchase a Certificate experience.
What will I get if I subscribe to this Certificate?
When you enroll in the course, you get access to all of the courses in the Certificate, and you earn a certificate when you complete the work. Your electronic Certificate will be added to your Accomplishments page - from there, you can print your Certificate or add it to your LinkedIn profile.