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Information Systems with Internship

Course summary
This course builds upon typical computing courses available at undergraduate level and develops
new knowledge and skills in areas critical for the successful introduction of information systems into
business enterprises and organisations.
Information systems (IS) today are large, complex, varied in form and distributed, serving different
types of people who use a variety of devices to access information. Specialists who recognise diverse
business needs, and have a systematic approach to understanding the impact of technology on
organisations, are essential to the success of any IS/IT strategy.
Equal in importance to the architectures of systems and the supporting technologies, is the
management and delivery of content, whether in the form of data, documents, images and sound.
Increasingly, the fundamental systems comprise digital architectures and networks which then
embody and enable the distribution of digital content. Developed information systems are in reality
socio-technical systems incorporating people, technologies and content. The information systems
specialist becomes a more broadly based information professional as they extend their range and
scope of operations towards the end users and their environments. Providing services to users and
people at large and ensuring information resources deliver value is equally a part of the wider world
of information systems.
It helps you gain a full understanding of how information systems are designed and constructed, and
of the impact of technology and its integration into an organisation. It will also give you the skills
you need to work effectively in a business-consulting environment, and provide a solid basis for
research.
The Internship Course seeks to provide the same rigorous and challenging programme of
professional practice as the MSc Information Systems but has the added advantage of including a six
months internship incorporated into the period of study. This makes it ideal for students seeking to
add a practical dimension to their studies and understand the demands of workplace supervision and
management. Internship opportunities exist throughout the computing industry within the UK.

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Course detail
Teaching consists of lectures, seminars and laboratory work to provide a basis for the intensive
individual study you need to undertake to maximize your investment of time and potential outcomes
from taking the course. The internship will come at the end of the course following the successful
completion of all taught modules.
During the Internship you will work for 6 months with an employer. The internship allows you to
apply your theoretical knowledge to a practical work-based situation. It will allow you to improve
existing skills and acquire new ones, explore various career opportunities, network and be part of a
team. This will improve your understanding of the world of work and professional practice in the
workplace. It will also enhance your career prospects, allowing you to focus on your potential career
path.
This is an indicative listing of modules for the course:

Project Management
Consultancy and Technological Innovation
Enterprise Architecture
Knowledge Management
HCI for Information Systems (optional)
Advanced Rich Media (optional)
Data Architecture (optional)
Mobile Applications Development ( optional)
Data Architectures ( optional)
UML Component Modelling(optional)
Security Management ( optional)
Research Methods
Dissertation

Note: students select one option from the list offered

Project Management
Project management related to information systems is growing in importance within a wide range of
private and public sector environments, where the need for efficiency, budgetary control and timely
completion is increasing. This module will give you a comprehensive understanding of good project
management practice, the skills and professional techniques needed, and the interactions within, or
associated with, commercial project teams. The life cycle of any project needs to be appreciated by
all stakeholders, and you will learn how to support and encourage others to aim for successful
completion.
Consultancy and Technological Innovation
This module gives you the skills to understand, and work in, the complex multi-sourced environment
that supports business change, applying global technologies to a real-life case study using
programme management concepts. Focusing on the strategic management of leading-edge
technology, you will examine the organisational structure of IT, including systems integrators and
consultancy, and gain an overview of the IT consulting world, its principles and practice.
Enterprise Architecture
Successfully managing IT on the enterprise level is getting increasingly important, but due to the
size, complexity and sheer amount of information systems this can be challenging for organisations.

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Enterprise architecture is a discipline that provides for enterprise wide business and IT alignment.
This module focuses on recent paradigms that have impact on how organisations manage their
information systems in order to achieve business and IT alignment from an enterprise point of view.
The module will review some of the enterprise architecture principles, frameworks and methods.
Knowledge Management
In this module, you will explore the widely accepted theories and frameworks for knowledge
management - and their application in technologies and learning organisations. On completion, you
will understand the way knowledge from these diverse disciplines is used within the development of
Decision Support Systems (DSS).
HCI for Information Systems (optional)
With this module, you will gain a good understanding of user-centred design (UCD) principles and
frameworks. You will cover various requirement elicitation and evaluation techniques involving
users, including taking a socio-technical approach to designing interactive systems. This module
describes, critically analyses and exemplifies all phases of the process.
You will explore practical exposition UCD techniques through low-fidelity prototyping scenarios, and
will cover the integration of UCD with new software development methods, such as Agile. On
completion, you will understand the way UCD and prototyping techniques are used within the
general practice of software engineering.
Mobile Applications Development (optional)
This module has been developed in conjunction with industry to provide hands-on experience
developing software for mobile devices. An open source approach to software development will be
used throughout the module. Students will gain experience using relevant industry standard tools to
support their work.
Data Architectures (optional)
This module introduces the concepts and techniques required to support Component Based
Development. Modern distributed architectures rely increasingly on the use of software components
to construct and deploy applications. This module describes the conceptual framework underpinning
application assembly from components and outlines the supporting software processes. Students are
provided with practical experience in modelling component specifications as well as an indication of
future development in this area.
UML Component Modelling (optional)
This module introduces the concepts and techniques needed to support component-based
development. Modern distributed architectures rely increasingly on software components to
construct and deploy applications, and here you will cover the conceptual framework underpinning
application assembly from components, and the supporting software processes. You will gain
practical experience in modelling component specifications and consider future development in this
area.
Security Management (optional) * new module to be offered from September 2014
This module provides a general introduction to assuring the security of systems, networks, data and
user identities. New threats are emerging as digital technologies permeate into most aspects of
social life and in transactions between parties opening potential for fraud, deception and corruption.
Advanced Rich Media (optional)
This module provides you with essential theoretical and practical skills to develop a multimedia

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database application. Your application will be based on theoretical and practical underpinnings of
advanced user interface design. The module recognises the importance of framing the problem of
human-computer interaction broadly enough so as to help students (and practitioners) avoid the
classic pitfall of design divorced from the context of the problem.
Data Architecture (optional)
Data Architecture describes how data is processed, stored, and utilised in an information system.
There has been an explosion in the quantity and variety of data generated by organisations,
programs and sensors. Much of this data is not fully structured but contains valuable information to
uncover, like emerging opinions in social networks, search trends from search engines, consumer
purchase behaviour, and patterns that emerge from these huge data sources.
These developments mean traditional stand-alone applications are no longer suitable to process and
analyse the amount of information available. The aim of this module is to cover some of the
developments in the broad range of 'Big Data' problems. The module will give you hands on
experience with various types of large-scale data and information handling, and start by providing a
solid understanding of the underlying technologies.
Research Methods
This module gives you the skills to acquire and distil knowledge, preparing you to carry out applied
research in the area of information systems, and in computing in general. You will learn to use
appropriate data collection and statistical methods and tools to support your research ideas.
Dissertation
With this module, you have the opportunity to carry out an original piece of research, adding to
existing knowledge and demonstrating an ability to select, define and focus on an issue at an
appropriate level. You will also develop and apply relevant methodologies to analyse your topic areas,
and to develop recommendations and logical conclusions in the context of existing work in the area.
Your dissertation can be the design and implementation of a complex software application, a
literature-focused study, or a research-focused empirical study.

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Entry requirements
A degree (at least 2:1) in a computing subject, business or an engineering degree with a significant
level of computing.
Applicants with equivalent professional qualifications, or a relevant Higher National Diploma (HND)
will be considered, provided they can demonstrate significant, relevant work experience and the
ability to benefit fully from the course. Such applicants will be considered on an individual basis by
interview. Some optional modules may not be available to students without a first degree in
computing.
International students need to meet our English language requirement at either IELTS at 6.5 or
above, and a minimum of 5.5 for each of the 4 individual components (Reading, Writing, Speaking
and Listening). In some countries where teaching is in English, we may accept local qualifications.
Please visit http://www.uwl.ac.uk/international/your-country to check for local equivalencies. We
offer pre-sessional English language courses, an International Foundation Programme and a
Pre-Masters Programme if you do not meet these requirements. You can read more about these
courses here - http://www.uwl.ac.uk/international/english-language-programmes

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Fees
UK fees
Main fee
GBP8,500

International (non-UK/EU) fees

Main fee
GBP12,950
Find out if you are a home or overseas student.

Funding
Find out more about funding, scholarships and bursaries

Please note that fees given are per academic year unless otherwise stated, and may be subject to
change. Costs can increase each year.

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How to apply
Tips on applying
When you submit your application for this course it is very helpful to make a positive statement as to
why we should consider your application. It is helpful to show that you have an information systems
/ information professional career or intention in mind. This means aspiring generally to work in
public or private sector/ organizations in a strategic, service orientated, managerial and professional
role in the broad areas of information systems, information management, information services /
information support. You might also wish to develop yourself towards self-employment and small
enterprise: all areas where IT/IS experience and good information management competences are
valuable.
For Information Systems the information professional role is significant. This signals that you
aspire to be involved at both the strategic and operational levels of information systems, information
delivery and service. You would see yourself as being a member of the British Computer Society
(BCS) , the Chartered Institute for Library and Information Professionals (Cilip), or a similar
professional body.
Apply for this course
Apply now

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During the course

Notable aspects
The School of Computing and Engineering has a growing research and enterprise culture and with
some 30 PhD students as well as a diversity of research groups. Students can take advantage of a
London base: London is one of the major information capitals of the world as well as being a global
business hub and with a good representation of IS /IT firms and consultancies. These may provide
subjects for investigation and dissertation work as well as access to contacts and potential
employment. The Thames Valley region to the west is a location for many global IT firms (in
Bracknell, Reading, New bury and Basingstoke).

Special resources
Laboratories and dedicated ICT suites with access to specialist networks and software are available
with good resources for study space and meetings. Many staff have specialist research expertise,
publishing record and experience which they are glad to sh

Teaching methods
Diverse methods are used to explore all aspects of the field. A strong supportive culture exists
amongst the course tutors which enables students to achieve their potential.

Learning materials
Good levels of access to IS and computer facilities. The academic and professional elements are well
supported by the university library and a good range of digital resources.

Assessment
Coursework
Course assessed work is a significant part of the total assessment. There is practical work, report
writing, critical academic writing and the skills and knowledge gained in these contribute to a
capacity to deliver a high quality dissertation.

Exams
There are a number of end of module exams. Course tutors provide appropriate support throughout
the module to ensure candidates are well prepared.

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Student support
The school and course team is well experienced and qualified. The university also offers central
support for learning skills. A strong student role is actively encouraged.

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Teaching staff

Dr Jos Abdelnour Nocera

Wei Jie

Professor Peter Komisarczuk

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Bruce Laurie

Dr Nasser Matoorian

Dr Samia Oussena

Malte Ressin

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Stephen Andrew Roberts

Professor Thomas Roth-Berghofer

Christian Severin Sauer

Liz Sokolowski

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What our students say

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Case studies

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Jobs and placements

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Career and study progression

The course aims to provide routes into a number of careers; information officers, librarians,
information service staff, content and intelligence gatherers, analysts, researchers,editors,data
managers, multimedia content workers,
marketing research.

Study progression
Outstanding graduates have gone on to further study at the level of MPhil and PhD at UWL and at
other institutions.
We actively encourage students with potential for research to make their interest known early on in
their course.

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