UTM Faculty of Computing Conducts Dialogue with Industry Stakeholders in the Implementation of 2U2I

UTM Office of Sustainability | Hafizan

JOHOR BAHRU, 17 April 2016 – A meeting was held between the academic staff of the Faculty of Computing (FC), Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM) and FC’s industrial partners to deliberate on the implementation of a new course, namely the Bachelor of Computer Science (Database Systems) that will be implemented using the innovative 2U2I (two years at the university & two years at the Industry) work-based learning model.

The academicians (left) and Industrialists (right side) discussing about the introduction of new courses by Faculty of Computing UTM — UTM academicians (left) and Industrialists (right side) discussing courses to be offered by the UTM Faculty of Computing

Programme Coordinator, Dr. Afnizanfaizal Abdullah said the session involved seven industrial expert panelists comprising experts in various areas of computer science, like mobile applications, cloud computing, and IT talent recruiters.

“The industry stakeholders were from Malaysia Global of Innovation and Creative Centre (MaGIC), Caspian Technologies Sdn. Bhd., Xentral Method Sdn. Bhd., Kreydle Sdn. Bhd., AMR EduHub Sdn. Bhd., Destaca Sdn. Bhd. and Infinite Logix Sdn. Bhd.”
“The industry stakeholders also engaged FC students via small group discussions,” said Dr. Afnizan.
The new Bachelor Degree programme is designed based on the requirement by the Malaysian Ministry of Higher Education and also fits the demands of the current ICT market in employing high quality undergraduate students in the field of computer science.
“The session aimed at gathering information to match programming and other IT skills offered at UTM with the skills required by the current ICT market. This is to enable the new programme to be tailored accordingly.”
“In the session, the industry panellists highlighted a number of issues, including preferred professional certification as well as the participation of industry players in the teaching and learning of the programme,” he said.
The Bachelor of Computer Science (Database Systems) programme will be implemented using the 2U2I concept, with students taking the course for 2 years at the university, with industry placement taking place in year 3. In year 4, the courses offered will be integrated with the roles of the industry in providing case studies and customer requirements to design and develop high quality and deliverable IT products.
“The session provided insights and useful feedback from the industry,” said Dr. Afnizanfaizal.
The new programme is expected be launched on September 2017.