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Open University in Ireland

Technology Management

Technology has the capability to transform products and processes and can make a significant contribution to organisational performance, economic growth and social wellbeing. This postgraduate diploma is designed to help you manage technology and innovation more effectively and realise its potential benefits making a real difference to your organisation and your own professional development. You'll begin by focusing on the operational aspects of managing technological innovation and change, before engaging with a range of capabilities that are key to the development and delivery of technological innovation applying your learning to your own context as you study. A wide range of optional modules enables you to choose a study pathway that suits your particular interests, including computing and ICT, business and management, development management and environmental management.

Key features of the course
• Provides an analytical view of strategic issues in technology management
• Equips you for senior technology management roles
• The opportunity to top up to our MSc in Technology Management in just one more year.

The learning outcomes of this qualification are described in four areas:
• Knowledge and understanding
• Cognitive skills
• Practical and professional skills
• Key skills

Entry requirements

To start this qualification, you should normally hold a UK bachelors degree (or equivalent) or have management experience in a field relevant to technology management. If you do not hold a bachelors degree, irrespective of your management experience, you will need to study a module from the Postgraduate Certificate in Technology Management (C49) to demonstrate your ability to study successfully at postgraduate level.

Your spoken and written English must be of an adequate standard for postgraduate study. If English is not your first language, we recommend that you will need a minimum overall score of 6 and minimum score of 5.5 in each of the four components: reading, writing, speaking and listening under the International English Language Testing System (IELTS). Please see the IELTS website for details.

Our badged open course, Succeeding in postgraduate study, will introduce you to the nature of Master's level study. It offers essential preparation for pursuing your learning at this level and is free.

Duration

Minimum - 2 years.

Most students study this qualification over a period of between two and four years depending on how many 30-credit modules they study in a year. The minimum time to complete is two years. Because of the demands of study that the diploma will make on you, we recommend that you study no more than 60 credits at a time. There is no maximum time to complete but we cannot guarantee that the same selection of modules will continue to be available. Modules can count towards the diploma for a maximum of eight years after we have stopped presenting them.

Number of credits

120 credits

Careers or further progression

Career relevance
The technology management programme develops analytical skills and provides practically relevant knowledge that will equip you well for a variety of management and leadership roles. The competent technology manager is a highly valued professional, capable of ensuring that the organisation reaps all the potential rewards from its investment in technology of whatever type. You will develop a range of job-related and transferable skills such as critical thinking, creative problem solving, and the ability to cope with rapid technological change. The capabilities in research and problem-solving developed can be exploited in all professional situations at all management levels. Employers are also impressed by the commitment and determination it takes to succeed with the OU while keeping up family and work commitments. These benefits, together with the opportunities to add value by applying your learning to the workplace as you study, make technology management programmes very attractive vehicles towards success in senior management roles.

Careers and Employability Services have more information on how OU study can improve your employability.

Further enquiries

Tel: (01) 678 5399
Fax: (01) 678 5442
Email: ireland@open.ac.uk

Subjects taught

Modules
To gain this qualification, you need 120 credits as follows:
60 credits from the following two compulsory modules:
Title
Managing technological innovation (T848)
Strategic capabilities for technological innovation (T849)

or, subject to the rules about excluded combinations, the discontinued modules T840 and T846
Plus 60 credits from the following option modules:

Title
Advanced routing - CCNP 1 (T824)
Capacities for managing development (T878)
Conflict and development (T879)
Continuing professional development in education (U810)
Data management (M816)
Digital forensics (M812)
Entrepreneurship: experience and perspective (BB846)
Information security (M811)
Leadership and management in intercultural contexts (BB848)
Management beyond the mainstream (BB847)
Managing for sustainability (T867)
Managing systemic change:inquiry, action and interaction (TU812)
Manufacture materials design (T805)
Marketing in the 21st century (BB844)
Multilayer switching - CCNP3 (T826)
Network security (T828)
Optimising networks - CCNP4 (T827)
Project management (M815)
Software development (M813)
Software engineering (M814)
Strategic human resource management (BB845)
Sustainable creative management (BB842)
Thinking strategically: systems tools for managing change (TU811)

or, subject to the rules about excluded combinations, the discontinued modules B821, B822, B823, B824, BZX821, BZX822, BZX823, BZX824, H807, M865, M873, M876, M877, M878, M879, M881, M882, M883, M885, M886, M887, M888, M889, M891, T822, T823, T825, T834, T835, T837, T839, T850, T851, T852, T853, T862, T881, T882, T883, T889 and T890

The University's unique study rule applies to this qualification. This means that you must include at least 40 credits from OU modules that have not been counted in any other OU qualification that we've previously awarded to you.

The modules quoted in this description are currently available for study. However, as we review the curriculum on a regular basis, the exact selection may change over time.

Comment

On completion
On successful completion of the required modules, you can be awarded a Postgraduate Diploma in Technology Management entitling you to use the letters PGD (Tech Mgmt) (Open) after your name.

You may continue your studies and add a further 60 credits to your postgraduate diploma to gain an MSc in Technology Management (F36).

Recognition in your country
If you intend to use your Open University qualifications to seek work or undertake further study outside the UK, we recommend checking whether your intended qualification will meet local requirements for your chosen career. Read recognition in my country.

Credit transfer
If you have already completed some successful study at postgraduate level at another institution you may be able to transfer credit for this study and count it towards this Open University qualification. If you wish to apply to transfer credit you must do so as soon as possible as it may affect your choice of OU modules. If you are awarded credit for study completed elsewhere, you may find that you need to study fewer OU modules to complete your qualification with us.

Visit our Credit Transfer site for more information and details of how to apply for credit transfer.