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DEGREE REGULATIONS & PROGRAMMES OF STUDY 2017/2018

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DRPS : Course Catalogue : School of Informatics : Informatics

Undergraduate Course: Professional Issues (Level 10) (INFR10022)

Course Outline
SchoolSchool of Informatics CollegeCollege of Science and Engineering
Credit level (Normal year taken)SCQF Level 10 (Year 3 Undergraduate) AvailabilityAvailable to all students
SCQF Credits10 ECTS Credits5
SummaryThere are many commercial, engineering and professional issues, complementary to the necessary scientific knowledge and technical skills, that impinge on the work of the computing professional. The Professional Issues course aims to provide a general awareness of these issues and to cover some of them in depth. The course will involve lectures from members of staff and visitors and directed reading.
Course description * Personal Attributes: study skills, personal development, interpersonal skills; employers' views and expectations of graduates; study skills, writing skills, presentation skills.
* The Computing Profession: professional bodies; codes of conduct and practice.
* Social and ethical issues: security, privacy, software ownership
* Legal Issues: legal and regulatory frameworks; software contracts and liability; intellectual property, copyright and patents; computer misuse, data protection; health and safety.
* Commercial Issues: organisational structures; finance, accounting, audit; resource management.
* Computing Projects: design, prototype and product; product development cycle; marketing and market research; project management and team working; change management.
* This course consolidates complements and assesses the students appreciation and understanding of Professional Issues introduced across our curriculum.

Relevant QAA Computing Curriculum Sections: Professionalism
Entry Requirements (not applicable to Visiting Students)
Pre-requisites Co-requisites
Prohibited Combinations Students MUST NOT also be taking Informatics Research Proposal (INFR11071) AND Informatics Research Proposal (INFR11137)
Other requirements This course is open to all undergraduate Informatics students including those on joint degrees. For external students where this course is not listed in your DPT, please seek special permission from the course organiser (lecturer).
Information for Visiting Students
Pre-requisitesVisiting students are required to have comparable background to that assumed by the course prerequisites listed in the Degree Regulations & Programmes of Study.
If in doubt, consult the course organiser (lecturer).
High Demand Course? Yes
Course Delivery Information
Academic year 2017/18, Available to all students (SV1) Quota:  None
Course Start Semester 1
Timetable Timetable
Learning and Teaching activities (Further Info) Total Hours: 100 ( Lecture Hours 20, Seminar/Tutorial Hours 20, Summative Assessment Hours 2, Programme Level Learning and Teaching Hours 2, Directed Learning and Independent Learning Hours 56 )
Assessment (Further Info) Written Exam 85 %, Coursework 15 %, Practical Exam 0 %
Additional Information (Assessment) The examination will involve essay-style questions. The assessed coursework will also be an essay to allow practice in essay writing. All essays will be assessed on their quality of English as well as content.

You should expect to spend approximately 15 hours on the coursework for this course.

If delivered in semester 1, this course will have an option for semester 1 only visiting undergraduate students, providing assessment prior to the end of the calendar year.
Feedback Not entered
Exam Information
Exam Diet Paper Name Hours & Minutes
Main Exam Diet S1 (December)2:00
Resit Exam Diet (August)2:00
Learning Outcomes
On completion of this course, the student will be able to:
  1. describe the desirable attributes of graduates in computing, and explain the importance of professionalism in computing
  2. identify how and where social, ethical and legal issues relate to computing
  3. describe the structure and operation of commercial computing organisations
  4. describe and explain the relationships between scientific, technical & engineering issues and real world issues in computing
  5. construct a well-written essay
Reading List
Professional Issues in Information Technology, 2nd Edition, Frank Bott, BCS Learning & Development Limited, 2014.
Additional Information
Course URL http://course.inf.ed.ac.uk/pi
Graduate Attributes and Skills Not entered
KeywordsNot entered
Contacts
Course organiserProf Mike Fourman
Tel: (0131 6)51 5615
Email:
Course secretaryMrs Victoria Swann
Tel: (0131 6)51 7607
Email:
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