Des Moines Area Community College.
Students completing the degree program in Telecommunications Technologywill receive an Associates o f Applied Science Degree. This degree applies to day or night program students. The night program will be offered in Spring term of 2003 tentatively. The DMACC West Telecommunications program also offers certifications in Telecommunications through ACE programs (accelerated career education) and continuing education non-credit courses. These courses are in development and will be released soon. Check our web page again for status updates on these course offerings.

All four terms of instruction will consist of a combination of instructor led discussions and lectures with an equal amount of time spent in the lab, working on the technology being learned in the classroom. During the first term of instruction, you will learn the evolution of telecommunication, understand the scope of the industry, and become familiar with the many different technologies that comprise the telephony network. You will also be exposed to the many different products and features that are offered by companies in this industry.

At this same time you will learn the basics of cabling and termination necessary to connect network devices. Telephone system installation, fault isolation and repair will be the first introduction to equipment.

During this first term students will also begin learning the basics of Nortel DMS-10 operations. The DMS-10 is one of the most widely used telephone switches in North America. Part of our lab environment consists of a fully functional DMS-10. The learning of products and features in the classroom is reinforced through the actual programming of those products in the lab.

During the second term of instruction the student will begin to be exposed to what goes on behind the scenes in the modern telephone network. How do calls get to their destination? How does the modern telephone switch actually work? The nuts and bolts of the telephone network and long distance transport (how do you get a call from New York to California?) will all be covered.

The lab during this term consists of continued work with electronic phones systems and the DMS-10. Emphasis is placed on signal flow, routing, and advanced test equipment.

Over the summer, the student will complete an internship with one of our corporate partners.

During the third term of instruction emphasis is placed on modern telecommunications protocols and internetworking standards. High capacity fiber optic transmission systems will be used to transport voice and data traffic, while the student will not only further learn the technology, but will learn the concepts of network management and traffic analysis ensuring data and voice traffic are delivered as intended with the quality desired.

More advanced data technologies are introduced at this point with hands-on lab instruction including broadband data switches, high-speed fiber optic systems (SONET), and experiments combining voice and data technologies.

During the fourth term advanced topics such as LAN/WAN (local area networking/wide area networking) and continued instruction in data protocols and optics are provided. Emphasis is placed on the student's ability to demonstrate a working knowledge of all technologies covered to this point by designing circuits and systems for various applications and integrating various technologies.