There’s only so much learning you can do in the classroom. Master of Professional Studies (MPS) in Information Science students understand that collaborating to develop real-world solutions for real companies builds skills that industries demand.
For the spring 2026 semester, seven student teams in the MPS Project Practicum (INFO 5900) – the MPS program’s linchpin project-based course – worked alongside companies like Google, EcoLab, and Assurant to build implementable solutions for real problems. The Practicum is led by Sharlane Cleare, senior lecturer of information science.
Here’s a sampling of some of the projects:
Assurant
Can GenAI improve automated interactive voice response (IVR) systems like the kind companies use to field customer calls? An MPS student team explored this for Assurant, a risk management company. Students analyzed the company’s current IVR flow, designed a framework for when and how GenAI should activate, and built and tested a prototype, among other deliverables.
BBright
Working with BBright, an edtech company based in Lithuania, students designed and validated a new communication experience for the company’s edtech platform that translates data into clear, actionable insights for teachers and parents. The team conducted user research, redesigned the teacher dashboard, created a new parent interface, and developed prototypes supported by usability testing and design recommendations for the platform.
eCornell
Students leveraged large language models and a chatbot to build a chat advisor for eCornell, the university’s professional education unit. Typically, eCornell learners find courses through keyword searches, but the student team’s AI-powered tool does more: it offers detailed learning plans with relevant courses based on the user’s professional role, goals, and constraints.
Roper Center of Public Opinion Research
A student team created a prototype search function for the Roper Center of Public Opinion Research at Cornell to help users explore the center’s vast polling data.
Louis DiPietro is a writer for the Cornell Ann S. Bowers College of Computing and Information Science.