Major study areas for Master of Information Technology

DATA MANAGEMENT

The capacity for enterprise data assets to provide true business value hinges on effective and efficient data management practices. Data management is also the key driver of a large sector of the information technology software market, second only to operating systems in market value. A specialisation in data management provides the knowledge and skills to become a highly valued practitioner and/or researcher in this vital area. Important emerging areas such as multimedia retrieval models, search engine algorithms, web personalisation and semi-structured data management are covered in addition to distributed databases and advanced programming for database applications.

DISTRIBUTED AND MOBILE SYSTEMS

Distributed and mobile computing systems have evolved into a solid and widely recognised platform for building applications which are in high demand by industry, government and commerce. Skill sets that include knowledge of this area will be in even more demand in the future, given the growth in internet and web-based systems. The distributed and mobile systems specialisation covers areas in enabling technologies such as wireless and mobile networks, parallel computing infrastructure, computational grids, software agent technology as well as the developmental areas of fault tolerant systems, distributed programming paradigms and related technologies.

INTELLIGENT SYSTEMS

Intelligent systems are integral to the smart use of information technology. Intelligent systems technologies include: expert systems, agent architectures, distributed artificial intelligent systems, knowledge discovery and data mining, machine learning, simulation, natural models of computation and optimisation and problem solving. This specialisation provides the knowledge and skills to work as an AI programmer, knowledge engineer, senior designer or consultant. In addition to learning detailed techniques, a foundational understanding of intelligent systems methodologies, their limits and their contrasting capabilities is acquired.

INTERNET AND WEB APPLICATION DEVELOPMENT

The World Wide Web has come a long way from being a static store of HTML pages, to now supporting millions of users across the world who rely on web applications and services for a range of activities. From simple weather lookup services to booking holidays, buying and selling goods, social networking and dynamic and agile enterprise interactions. Given the ubiquity of the web, a key area of expertise for IT professionals is in developing and delivering innovative and scalable web applications and services. The internet and web application development specialisation includes units covering enterprise level web application development, service oriented computing and web services, mobile internet application development and component based technologies for internet services.

NETWORK COMPUTING

This specialisation aims to provide students with the necessary knowledge, understanding, skills and attitudes to enable them to analyse a wide variety of information processing and network architecture problems and to develop solutions to these using computer networks. The units in this specialisation cover topics that range from in-depth coverage of the protocols used to operate the Internet and intranets, through to the management, design and administration of modern computer networks. Upon completing this specialisation you will have a well-developed conceptual framework, enabling you to keep pace with developments in the rapidly changing field of network computing.

SECURITY

Security is one of the major areas of concern for any organisation which uses information and database systems. Both universities and industry are engaged in highly active research into the development of techniques that can enhance security in computer systems. There is strong demand for professionals who have a sound understanding in the theory and practice of IT security. By specialising in security, students develop their expertise in this crucial area. The units in the specialisation capture the foundational principles of information and network security through to more advanced areas of secure software development, virtual private networking and information forensics.

SOFTWARE ENGINEERING

Software engineering is a core discipline transforming the results of the basic science of computing into large-scale working software systems. Its components include:

software analysis and design, software project management, quality assurance, validation and verification, advanced object-oriented programming, approaches for real-world systems and design patterns. This specialisation equips students with knowledge of the processes, techniques and theory of software engineering. In addition to the foundational core of knowledge required for professional work in the area, they will also be exposed to advanced topics including web services and service oriented computing, grid computing and parallel computing.