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The Information Technology (IT) degrees give you the skills you need for the practical application of computing to areas typically found in industry. These include e-commerce, information systems, and computer consultancy. The Business Information Technology degree incorporates much of the IT course, but also includes business-oriented modules.
Overview
Our IT course can be studied as the Information Technology general degree, where a subject focus is decided during the course of the study, or as the themed degree, Information Technology (Consultancy), where the specific focus is decided at the time of enrolment and named in the degree title.
Over half our students choose to do a Year in Industry. This gives you work experience, a salary and the possibility of a job with the same company after graduation. The Kent IT Clinic option offers the opportunity to learn how to become an IT Consultant by providing computing support to local businesses while earning credits towards your degree.
The School of Computing is an internationally recognised Centre of Excellence for programming education, with 95% of our research judged to be of international quality. The School is also home to two National Teaching Fellows, authors of widely used textbooks and award-winning Java teaching systems such as BlueJ and Greenfoot.
Independent rankings
Kent was ranked 5th in the UK for Computer Science & IT graduating students’ career prospects in The Guardian University Guide 2013.
Course structure
The course structure below gives a flavour of the modules that will be available to you and provides details of the content of this programme. This listing is based on the current curriculum and may change year to year in response to new curriculum developments and innovation. Most programmes will require you to study a combination of compulsory and optional modules, you may also have the option to take ‘wild’ modules from other programmes offered by the University in order that you may customise your programme and explore other subject areas of interest to you or that may further enhance your employability.
Year in industry
There are year in industry options on all of our programmes. The School of Computing’s dedicated Placement Team help you find a placement and support you during the year. Our students go to a wide range of companies, including IBM, Intel and Thomson Reuters, or overseas to employers in locations including Amsterdam, Hong Kong and the USA.
Find out more about the benefits of a Year in Industry.
Teaching and assessment
Most modules run for a single 12-week term, and usually include a combination of lectures, seminars, private study and practical sessions.
Teaching is based on lectures, with practical classes and seminars, but we are also introducing more innovative ways of teaching, such as virtual learning environments and work-based tuition. Work includes group projects, case studies and computer simulations, with a large-scale project of your own choice in the final year. Assessment is by a combination of coursework and end-of-year examination and details are shown in the module outlines on the web. Project modules are assessed wholly by coursework.
Programme aims
The programme aims to:
- attract and meet the needs of those contemplating a career involving a significant element of computing and those motivated primarily by intellectual interests in applied computing and business administration
- provide a sound knowledge and systematic understanding of the principles of business information technology
- provide generally applicable skills that will be of lasting value in a constantly changing field
- offer a range of modules covering the foundations of business IT
- offer a range of options to enable students to study in depth selected areas of applied computing and/or business administration
- provide teaching that is informed by current research and scholarship and which requires students to engage with aspects of work at the frontiers of knowledge
- develop general critical, analytical and problem-solving skills that can be applied in a wide range of different business, computing and other settings.
Learning outcomes
Knowledge and understanding
You gain knowledge and understanding of:
- hardware: the major functional components of a computer system
- software: programming languages and practice, tools and packages, computer applications, structuring of data and information
- communications and interaction: basic computer communication network concepts
- communication between computers and people, the control and operation of computers
- practice: problem identification and analysis, design development, testing and evaluation
- organisations, their environment and their management, including people, operations management, finance, marketing and organisational strategy
- social science concepts and theories and the ability to apply them to business and management contexts
- aspects of the core subject areas from the perspective of a commercial or industrial organisation.
Intellectual skills
You gain the following intellectual abilities:
- modelling: knowledge and understanding in the modelling and design of computer-based systems in a way that demonstrates comprehension of the trade-off involved in design choices
- reflection and communication: present succinctly to a range of audiences rational and reasoned arguments
- requirements: identify and analyse criteria and specifications appropriate to specific problems and plan strategies for their solution
- criteria evaluation and testing: analyse the extent to which a computer-based system meets the criteria defined for its current use and future development
- methods and tools: deploy theory practices and tools for the specification, design, implementation and evaluation of computer-based systems
- professional responsibility: recognise and be guided by the professional, economic, social, environmental, moral and ethical issues involved in the sustainable exploitation of computer technology
- computational thinking: demonstrate a basic analytical ability and its relevance to everyday life
- critically evaluate arguments and evidence
- analyse and draw reasoned conclusions concerning structured and, to a more limited extent, unstructured problems
- apply some of the intellectual skills specified for the programme from the perspective of a commercial or industrial organisation.
Subject-specific skills
You gain subject-specific skills in the following:
- design and implementation: specify, design and implement computer-based systems
- evaluation: evaluate systems in terms of general quality attributes and possible trade-offs resented within the given problem
- information management: apply the principles of effective information management, organisation, and information retrieval skills to information of various kinds
- tools: deploy effectively the tools used for the construction and documentation of software, with particular emphasis on understanding the whole process involved in using computers to solve practical problems
- identify, formulate and solve business/decision-making problems using appropriate qualitative and quantitative tools
- create, evaluate and assess options, in a range of business situations, applying concepts and knowledge appropriately
- communicate effectively, orally and in writing, about business issues
- apply the skills learnt from the perspective of a commercial or industrial organisation.
Transferable skills
You gain transferable skills in the following:
- communication: make succinct presentations to a range of audiences about technical problems and their solutions
- IT: effective information retrieval, including the use of browsers, search engines and catalogues, and effective use of general IT facilities
- numeracy: understanding and presenting cases involving a quantitative dimension
- self-management: managing your own learning and development, including time management and organisational skills.
Careers
Graduates who have both IT knowledge and business skills can expect excellent career prospects. Our recent graduates now work at Accenture, Barclays Capital, BT, GlaxoSmithKline, IBM, Intel, KCC, Kent Police, Lilly, Microsoft, Oracle, Thomson Reuters, T-Mobile and Thales.
For more information on the services Kent provides you to improve your career prospects visit www.kent.ac.uk/employability.
Entry requirements
Home/EU students
The University will consider applications from students offering a wide range of qualifications, typical requirements are listed below, students offering alternative qualifications should contact the Admissions Office for further advice. It is not possible to offer places to all students who meet this typical offer/minimum requirement.
| Qualification | Typical offer/minimum requirement |
|---|---|
| A level | ABB |
| Access to HE Diploma | The University of Kent will not necessarily make conditional offers to all access candidates but will continue to assess them on an individual basis. If an offer is made candidates will be required to obtain/pass the overall Access to Higher Education Diploma and may also be required to obtain a proportion of the total level 3 credits and/or credits in particular subjects at merit grade or above. |
| BTEC Level 3 Extended Diploma (formerly BTEC National Diploma) | The university will consider applicants holding BTEC National Diploma and Extended National Diploma Qualifications (QCF; NQF;OCR) on a case by case basis please contact us via the enquiries tab for further advice on your individual circumstances. |
| International Baccalaureate | 34 points overall or 16 points at HL including Mathematics 4 at HL or SL |
International students
The University receives applications from over 140 different nationalities and consequently will consider applications from prospective students offering a wide range of international qualifications. Our International Development Office will be happy to advise prospective students on entry requirements. See our International Student website for further information about our country-specific requirements.
Please note that if you need to increase your level of qualification ready for undergraduate study, we offer a number of International Foundation Programmes through Kent International Pathways.
English Language Requirements
General entry requirements
Please also see our general entry requirements.
Fees
As a guide only, the 2014/15 annual tuition fees for this programme are:
| UK/EU | Overseas | |
|---|---|---|
| Full-time |
For details of when and how to pay fees and charges, please see our Student Finance Guide.
Exceptions may apply. If you are uncertain about your fee status please contact information@kent.ac.uk
UK/EU/International students on an approved Year Abroad or Year in Industry for the full 2014/15 academic year pay an annual fee of £1,350 to Kent. Students studying abroad for less than one academic year will pay full fees according to their fee status.
Funding
Kent offers generous financial support schemes to support eligible undergraduate students during their studies. Our 2014 financial support package includes a £6,500 cash bursary. Find out more about the support package, eligibility and terms and conditions on our fees and funding pages.
General scholarships
Scholarships are available for excellence in academic performance, sport and music and are awarded on merit. For further information on the range of awards available and to make an application see our scholarships website.
The Kent Scholarship for Academic Excellence
At Kent we recognise, encourage and reward excellence. We have created a new scholarship, The Kent Scholarship for Academic Excellence, which will be awarded to any applicant who achieves a minimum of AAA over three A levels, or the equivalent qualifications as specified on our funding pages.