Cross-disciplinary skills: Which capability is a core requirement shared by both a system programmer and an EDP/IS auditor?

Introduction / Context:
IT roles differ in focus: system programmers build and maintain low-level software and platforms, while EDP/IS auditors evaluate controls, risks, and compliance across systems. Despite different missions, they share foundational understanding of how information systems are structured and operate.

Given Data / Assumptions:

• System programmers require deep technical skills in operating systems, compilers, and performance.
• EDP/IS auditors require process, control, and risk knowledge spanning applications and infrastructure.
• Both must understand system architectures, data flows, and control points.

Concept / Approach:
“Knowledge in information systems” encompasses architectures, data management, networking, security principles, and systems life cycle. While programmers specialize in computer science internals and auditors in accounting controls, their shared baseline is information systems knowledge—how components integrate and how changes propagate across platforms and data stores.

Step-by-Step Solution:

Verification / Alternative check:
Job profiles for both roles reference system architecture, interfaces, and security concepts, confirming the shared requirement.

Why Other Options Are Wrong:

• Computer science: essential for programmers; not universally required for auditors.
• Accounting applications: key for auditors; not typically required for system programmers.
• Two of the above: ambiguous and unnecessary; the precise overlap is information systems.

Common Pitfalls:
Assuming identical skill sets; overlap exists, but depth and emphasis differ by role.

Final Answer:
knowledge in information systems