Major: Information Systems and Business Analysis
Award(s) to which this major is a Qualifying Major:
Macquarie University
| Overview and Aims of the Program | The Information Systems and Business Analysis (IS & BA) major is a cross-disciplinary major that aims to provide graduates with the necessary skills to pursue a career in business information systems. Such a career requires the graduate to understand a wide range of areas related to information systems, information management and information technology (IT) from both business and IT perspectives. Students develop skills and experience in information creation, storage, retrieval, quality and management in an organisational context. |
| Graduate Capabilities | The Graduate Capabilities Framework articulates the fundamentals that underpin all of Macquarie’s academic programs. It expresses these as follows: Interpersonal or social capabilities |
| Program Learning Outcomes | By the end of this program it is anticipated you should be able to: 1. identify and specify the informational needs of an organisation leading to the design, construction, verification, validation and evolution of quality and sustainable socio-technical systems (K, P, C, E, S, J) 2. demonstrate understanding of the role that data plays within an organisation and apply persistent storage concepts to design and implement data management systems (K, P) 3. apply principles, tools and techniques to elicit, analyse and model organisational problems and processes to derive a justified solution to deliver operational, tactical or strategic benefit to an organisation (K, P, C, S, J) 4. evaluate, recommend and justify alternative information technology solutions to assist organisational decision making according to a range of criteria including environmental sustainability (K, T, P, I, C, E, A, J) 5. identify and utilise relevant professional standards, bodies and good conduct and identify and resolve ethical issues (E, J) 6. demonstrate the capacity to work effectively and ethically in a team and manage a project to deliver a solution to a client (K, C, E, L) 7. demonstrate ability to read, write, analyse and understand written material (ranging from technical to descriptive writing) (C, T, J) 8. communicate specifications effectively to technical analysts or programmers, communications and networking specialists as well as to clients and customers of the wider organisation (in both written and oral form) (C, E, S). The emphasis within units is to focus on concepts, insights and skills that enable graduates to problem solve, think critically and acquire lifelong learning skills. Students will develop the ability to apply skills to both structured and unstructured problems. This is achieved through the application of concepts to real world problems, engagement with their peers, both individually and in groups. This gives our graduates a diverse and robust foundation to approach information systems development and management from a holistic setting. |
| Learning and Teaching Methods | The Bachelor of Information Technology is designed to prepare graduates as IT professionals for work in industry, research organisations and academia. The program is intended to meet the Australian Computer Society professional standards for ICT courses which includes the underlying core body of knowledge in IT and the professional and ethical responsibilities relevant to working in the IT industry. The learning activities in the degree are designed to foster these things in the students. The academics involved with this program are active researchers, which enables them to integrate cutting-edge research into the units that they teach. The majority of the units in this program have practical components supported by small-group teaching sessions in our computing laboratories. Some units utilise small groups where students work in a team to achieve a goal. Communication skills are developed through oral presentations. The theoretical components of units are presented in lectures and develop the underlying theory, and analytical and problem solving skills. All units have weekly face-to-face activities. Assignments are used for formative and summative purposes. As knowledge in IT is continually evolving, learning and teaching methods support the capacity for students to become independent learners. All BIT majors culminate with a Capstone unit that involves students being part of a small team assigned to an industry partner to carry out an industry relevant project. Students work autonomously under the guidance of academic staff and using industry staff as 'clients'. The project allows students to apply in an integrated manner the knowledge and skills they have developed in their studies on a substantial design, analysis or development problem. |
| Assessment | Units in the Bachelor of Information Technology all have at least three different types of assessment. These assessments are designed not just to test discipline-specific knowledge, but all aspects of professional competency include professional practice, project work, design and communication skills. In addition to formal assessments, students are provided with informal feedback from staff and their peers throughout the semester. Assessment types are very diverse and include: • Assignments – test the understanding of a learning outcome by means of small size problems. • Programming Assignments - allow students to demonstrate their competency in developing software of varying complexity. • Reports and documents – beside essay style questions to analyse and critique different topics they also assess relevant skills involving documentation such as requirements documentation and project plans. • Oral presentations - these test students ability to communicate the results of their work. • Group reports – are used when group projects or group laboratory work is conducted. • Final exams - The majority of the units will have a final examination where the ability to synthesize and apply knowledge is assessed. • Quizzes and in-class tests assess student learning part-way through the unit and provide feedback to students on learning progress. • Tutorial assessment – assess students work in formal tutorial sessions where students receive the support of tutors and other staff. |
| Recognition of Prior Learning | Macquarie University may recognise prior formal, informal and non-formal learning for the purpose of granting credit towards, or admission into, a program. The recognition of these forms of learning is enabled by the University’s Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) Policy (see www.mq.edu.au/policy) and its associated Procedures and Guidelines. The RPL pages contain information on how to apply, links to registers, and the approval processes for recognising prior learning for entry or credit. Information can be found at: https://mq.edu.au/rpl |
| Support for Learning | Macquarie University aspires to be an inclusive and supportive community of learners where all students are given the opportunity to meet their academic and personal goals. The University offers a comprehensive range of free and accessible student support services which include academic advice, counselling and psychological services, advocacy services and welfare advice, careers and employment, disability services and academic skills workshops amongst others. There is also a bulk billing medical service located on campus. |
| Program Standards and Quality | The program is subject to an ongoing comprehensive process of quality review in accordance with a pre-determined schedule that complies with the Higher Education Standards Framework. The review is overseen by Macquarie University's peak academic governance body, the Academic Senate and takes into account feedback received from students, staff and external stakeholders. |
| Graduate Destinations and Employability | The program aims to produce graduates who are: • business professionals with sufficient knowledge in business information systems to give graduates a wide variety of career options • able to apply their knowledge and a good grounding in information systems concepts and issues to be able to fully participate in the increasingly globalised business community. Due to the current unmet industry demand and importance of the Business Analyst (BA) role, the Information System (IS) and BA major has been designed particularly with the role of BA in mind. The BA (also called Business Systems Analyst, Business Systems Planner, Solutions Architect) plays a key role in ICT decision making, requirements gathering and design. With sustainability high on the agenda in many nations, graduates who will act as communication channels between technology specialists and businesses will play a vital and leading role in ensuring a sustainable future for our planet. IS and BA graduates are likely to be involved in assisting the organisation in making sustainable choices by providing direction and influencing demand for specific technologies. The program is focused on the development of work-ready graduates and has teamwork, communication skills, professional and ethical conduct built in as a thread starting from year one, culminating in the capstone unit which involves working with an industry partner and a team comprised of students across the BIT majors, in order to mimic the workplace environment. |
| Assessment Regulations | This program is subject to Macquarie University regulations, including but not limited to those specified in the Assessment Policy, Academic Honesty Policy, the Final Examination Policy and relevant University Rules. For all approved University policies, procedures, guidelines and schedules visit www.mq.edu.au/policy. |
| Accreditation | The BIT is accredited by the Australian Computer Society. The current version of this major was submitted as part of the most recent round of accreditation in December 2013. We expect that this renewed version will be accredited in future. |
Inherent requirements are the essential components of a course or program necessary for a student to successfully achieve the core learning outcomes of a course or program. Students must meet the inherent requirements to complete their Macquarie University course or program.
Inherent requirements for Macquarie University programs fall under the following categories:
Physical: The physical inherent requirement is to have the physical capabilities to safely and effectively perform the activities necessary to undertake the learning activities and achieve the learning outcomes of an award.
Cognition: The inherent requirement for cognition is possessing the intellectual, conceptual, integrative and quantitative capabilities to undertake the learning activities and achieve the learning outcomes of an award.
Communication: The inherent requirement for communication is the capacity to communicate information, thoughts and ideas through a variety of mediums and with a range of audiences.
Behavioural: The behavioural inherent requirement is the capacity to sustain appropriate behaviour over the duration of units of study to engage in activities necessary to undertake the learning activities and achieve the learning outcomes of an award.
For more information see https://students.mq.edu.au/study/my-study-program/inherent-requirements
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