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Web Development Services

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Web Applications

McCormick IT provides custom web application development services to support the evolving needs of McCormick. Our applications are designed to collect and process user data, streamline workflows, and integrate with institutional systems to improve efficiency and data integrity. Solutions typically include user-facing interfaces, reporting tools, and process automation to help McCormick and administrative units achieve their goals more effectively. 

We develop and support applications in key functional areas such as: 

  • Academic & Student Support – advising, enrollment, and student engagement tools 
  • Faculty & Research Support – faculty activity reporting, research administration, and collaboration systems 
  • Administrative & Operations – platforms to improve day-to-day processes and operational oversight 
  • Data & Reporting – solutions for data collection, analysis, and decision support 
  • Communications & Engagement – tools to connect and inform the McCormick community 

Our projects are primarily developed using the Laravel PHP framework and PostgreSQL databases, though we also have experience supporting systems built on Ruby on Rails. In addition to application development, we assist with system integrations and process improvements to create efficiencies, streamline workflows, and ensure high-quality data across university systems. 

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Project Request & Scheduling

To ensure projects meet McCormick’s needs and align with school priorities, each initiative follows a structured cycle:

  1. Project request – Submit a project request or email mccit@northwestern.edu with your project idea
  2. Intake meeting – Our team meets briefly with you to understand your goals, scope, and timeline.
  3. Initial review – The development team does a preliminary check of your request to see how it fits with existing systems and resources. This step helps us determine if additional research will be needed before development begins.
  4. Leadership prioritization – At the start of each quarter, McCormick senior leadership reviews requests and sets priorities to ensure alignment with school goals.
  5. Scheduling & development – Approved projects are scheduled into the quarterly development cycle. Many projects begin with a discovery phase, which serves as a research step to clarify requirements and explore options. Discovery may lead to moving ahead with development, adapting an existing tool, or recommending a vendor solution. Projects developed in-house then move through development, testing, and launch. Active participation from requesters during testing is an important part of project planning and helps ensure a successful rollout.

Plan ahead: Because projects are scheduled by academic quarter, new requests may not begin until the following term or a later academic quarter depending on priorities and resource availability. Submitting early gives your project the best chance of moving forward smoothly and on time.

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Browser Support Policy

Our web applications are tested and supported on the latest versions of the following browsers: 

  • Safari (macOS) 
  • Google Chrome 
  • Microsoft Edge 
  • Mozilla Firefox 

We recommend keeping browsers and operating systems updated to ensure security and full functionality. Using outdated browsers may limit features and create security risks.