ISCC\u2799 [Information Systems-Centric Curriculum]: Preparing Students to Work with Large Systems

This curriculum places special emphasis on preparing graduates to work on very large, complex systems. To achieve this there is a great deal of emphasis on developing an understanding of 1) a systems view and 2) information being at the center of the system

Collaborative ERP Curriculum Developing Using Industry Process Models

This paper presents and discusses the design of a problem based learning approach that seeks to embed industrial knowledge in the curriculum. It describes a project currently underway that is developing a business reference model using Process Engineering techniques. This reference model is being implemented in the leading Enterprise-wide System (also known as Enterprise Resource Planning System) SAP R/3. Teaching cases are being developed through collaboration between universities and industry. These teaching cases are to be available for use in the IS curriculum, irrespective of which faculty in which this curriculum is found. The teaching cases will also be available for wide distribution. This paper argues that this approach is in alignment with the recommendations of key curriculum documents and educational approaches. It also argues that the resultant teaching cases will be attractive to students, meet the current requirements of industry while maintaining the focus on education and the fundamentals of the IS Curriculum. This paper is the result of collaborative activity of two Australian Universities and one American University seeking to develop appropriate curriculum material and working collaboratively with other universities

Desirable ICT Graduate Attributes: Theory vs. Practice

The majority of ICT graduates must begin their careers by successfully fulfilling the requirements advertised within online recruitment sites. Although considerable research into employer requirements is commonly undertaken when preparing curricula, studies investigating how well the graduate attributes on which curricula are based match those required by employers have been limited in terms of the techniques used. This study employs an innovative approach of analyzing online ICT employment advertisements in Australia and the United States to determine the key attributes sought by ICT employers, together with the most commonly required skill groupings. A position-based wrapper system was developed to extract the advertisement data, which was then analyzed using a text mining package. The results are benchmarked against those from standard ICT curricula produced by academic and professional bodies. The findings suggest that employers place greatest emphasis upon experience and technological skills; although current curricula meet these requirements, their emphases warrant revision. There also appear to be differences between professional body curricula and the ISCC ’99 curriculum which was produced by industry and academia, with the latter appearing to match employment market demands more closely

E-SKILLS FOR THE IS PROFESSIONAL

A common theme that appears in the literature is that many large organisations around the world are positioning themselves to take advantage of the new internet economy. But what does this “positioning” entail? Is it the purchasing and implementation of the right technology? Is it the redesign of business processes? What skills are needed by these organizations? Recently there has been call in the Australian marketplace for information systems (IS) professionals to possess skills that can handle the move into E-business and Ecommerce. In accordance with this we sought the views of information systems professionals employed in the Australian and New Zealand marketplace about the skills mix necessary in the “E” world. The main results of this survey showed that the teamwork and deadlines dominated the business skills whilst knowledge of Ebusiness/ commerce models dominated the technical skills. The second phase of this research is to develop a more comprehensive list of business and technical skills