University College Cork

Information Systems for Business Performance - Conversion Course

Course Outline
Awarded the Best Postgraduate Course in Ireland in 2018 (IT), 2017 (IT), 2016 (IT), 2015 (Business), 2014 (IT) & 2013 (IT).

This is a conversion course with an excellent employment record. It provides you with a coherent set of skills which are essential in building, managing and leveraging effective and efficient information systems (IS) for organisations. MSc ISBP graduates will acquire the skills necessary to manage and leverage IS for problem-solving, value-generation and cost savings.

This is a 12-month intensive course with industrially mentored collaborative projects. Students are taught from beginner level, and prepared to take up business analyst/programmer and management positions in IT departments in small, medium or large organisations, whether public or private, in the financial services, manufacturing or any sector.

Part I of this programme consists of taught modules to the value of 70 credits. Part II consists of a collaborative industry research project to the value of 20 credits.

Why Choose This Course
The MSc ISBP is currently the most popular IS course, business course, IT conversion course and UCC postgraduate course.

Key elements of course are:
hybrid business/IT orientation
focused on understanding how organisations operate
strong links with industry
curriculum based on leading-edge technologies
emphasis on developing students' ability to work as a team
develops technical skills from scratch
customised career and professional workshops
challenging and collaborative industrial projects
mentored by leading industrial entrepreneurs, Chief Executive Officers, IT managers, Chief Information Officers and business consultants
access to an IS and business alumni of over 2,000 professionals

Entry requirements

Requirements
To be eligible for the MSc in Information Systems for Business Performance candidates must hold at least 2.2 honours primary degree or equivalent, except graduates holding a degree in business information systems or equivalent.

Candidates who do not meet or achieve the 2.2 honours degree standard may be admitted to the programme on the basis of extensive practical or professional experience as deemed appropriate by the Professor of Business Information Systems and the School of Commerce.

If you are applying with Qualifications obtained outside Ireland and you wish to verify if you meet the minimum academic and English language requirements for this programme please view the grades comparison table site.

English Language Requirements
Applicants that are non-native speakers of the English language must meet the university approved English language requirements available here.

For applicants with qualifications completed outside of Ireland
Applicants must meet the required entry academic grade, equivalent to Irish requirements, please find our grades comparison by country here.

International/non-EU applicants
For full details of the non-EU application procedure please visit our how to apply pages for international students. In UCC, we use the term programme and course interchangeably to describe what a person has registered to study in UCC and its constituent colleges, schools, and departments.

Not all courses are open to international/non-EU applicants.

For more information please contact the International Office.

Duration

1 year full-time.

Number of credits

90 credits

Careers or further progression

Skills and Careers Information
MSc ISBP develops highly competitive and desired business and IT graduates. In fact, the 2016 and 2017 graduating classes have achieved virtually 100% employment. MSc ISBP graduates are employed nationally and internationally as business analysts, programmers, managers, web and database developers, project managers, auditors, researchers, business intelligence consultants, marketing managers and consultants in industry sectors reliant on IS.

Further enquiries

Mr. Bill Emerson
e: b.emerson@ucc.ie
t: +353 21 490 2631
https://www.cubsucc.com/programmes/postgraduate/msc-information-systems-...

Dr. Audrey Grace
e: A.Grace@ucc.ie
t: +353 21 490 3820

Subjects taught

PART I
IS6152 Business Analysis Requirements, Skills and Techniques
IS6137 IT Sourcing and Project
IS6155 Database Analysis and Design
IS6154 Storage Technology
IS6150 Electronic Business Models & Systems
IS6139 IS for Organisational Performance
IS6121 Leveraging IT Seminar Series
IS6153 Application Design
IS6138 IT Governance and Compliance
IS6156 Databases for Management Information Systems
IS6135 Optimising the Business Value of IT
IS6151 Business Models for Disruptive Technology
IS6140 Enterprise Business Intelligence
IS6136 Professional Practice Skills

PART II
IS6122 Collaborative Industry Research Project

Part II consists of a collaborative industry research project. This will give you a practical experience of a research project in a business context. This collaborative project will allow groups of students to specialise in an assigned industry sector (e.g. financial services, technological, pharmaceuticals, government, retail/distribution) in the context of a research project carried out under the supervision of an industry expert and an academic specialist. Groups will develop a proposal and carry out fieldwork in order to produce a report on their topic.

Further details on the content and modules are available on the Postgraduate College Calendar.

Modules
Further details on the modules listed above can be found in our book of modules. Any modules listed above are indicative of the current set of modules for this course but are subject to change from year to year.

University Calendar
You can find the full academic content for the current year of any given course in our University Calendar.

Comment

Course Practicalities
Consists of 7 taught modules in semester 1 followed by Christmas Examinations; 7 taught modules in Semester 2 followed by Summer Examinations, and then a collaborative industry research project during the summer months.

Who teaches this course
The MSc ISBP is taught by Business and IS lecturers and senior researchers with expertise in leading-edge technologies and enterprise solutions. Industrial mentors from organisations, banks and consultancies are heavily involved in the course through the industrial project and as course advisors to ensure ISBP's ongoing relevance to employers.

Assessment method

The assessment methods vary in order to facilitate group and individual applied learning. Report writing, presentations, development projects and in-class exams are examples of the types of assessments used.

Application date

Applications for academic year 2020/2021 are open.

EU Applicants: UCC operates a rounds closing date system for the majority of postgraduate taught courses, which means offers are made four times a year on a rolling basis. Some courses have one specific closing date, please check your course prospectus page for this information.

The UCC rounds closing dates for postgraduate taught courses are below. Applicants are advised to apply as soon as possible.

Deadline for receipt of full applications:
For all completed applications received by January 10th 2020
Offers will be made by January 24th 2020

For all completed applications received by March 2nd 2020
Offers will be made by March 16th 2020

For all completed applications received by May 1st 2020
Offers will be made by May 15th 2020

For all completed applications received by July 1st 2020
Offer will be made by July 15th 2020

Late applications may be accepted on a first-come, first-served basis for any courses that have remaining capacity.

Non-EU Closing Date: 15 June
Non-EU Applicants: Information for Non-EU applicants may be found on the International Office Website https://www.ucc.ie/en/international/