Diploma in Information and Communications Technology

Purpose

The purpose of the Diploma in Information and Communications Technology is to provide theoretical and professional skills to enable a graduate to conceptualise, design, implement and test software solutions to address industry and societal challenges.

Recent developments within the South African labour market inspire this qualification. With a huge deficit of Information Communication Technology (ICT) skills, the country faces a human resources crisis if the problem is not addressed. The qualification is listed in the Government Gazette as Occupation in Demand. These include Information Technology Managers, data scientists, software developers, network analysts, and cyber security specialists. The importance of software development skills in a developing economy such as South Africa cannot be underestimated. It is thus crucial to develop academic qualifications that address this pressing need.

The world is changing owing to the 4th Industrial Revolution (4IR), and the Information Technology (IT) profession is no exception. The 4IR puts a significant demand on highly specialised IT skills, And the qualification is designed to respond to these demands.

Qualifying learners will be able to

• Effectively analyze business processes and provide software solutions for specific problems.
• Communicate effectively (orally and in writing) at different relevant levels in an organisation.
• Apply knowledge in the analysis, design, implementation and testing of software solutions to solve business problems.
• Examine and apply various tools and techniques for working with different types of business data to provide business solutions.
• Apply management techniques and industry best practices in the execution, management and Governance of IT projects and processes.

Rationale

South Africa is currently experiencing a huge deficit of ICT-based skills. According to recent findings, the country needs at least 70,000 highly skilled ICT professionals. The report further notes that the declining number of graduates compounds this problem (State of The ICT Sector In South Africa - 2022 Report). In 2022, the government published the National List of Occupations in High Demand, a comprehensive list of critical skills in short supply. The Government Gazette highlights the need for ICT talent ranging from data scientists and software developers to network analysts and cyber security specialists. The qualification was designed to address the critical shortage.

The design of the qualification has considered the need for learners to have skills comparable with their peers worldwide. The qualification design process referenced the Association for Computing Machinery (ACM) curriculum. In addition, the qualification has also considered the joint reports of the ACM and the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers (IEEE Computer Society). Over the past decade, these institutions have become the 'de facto' standard for IT curriculum models and contain undergraduate curriculum design recommendations which were considered during the development of this IT qualification.

The World Economic Forum believes that building the right talent for the digital world of the future is a key component if the ICT skills shortage is to be overcome.

Every profession in the world is changing owing to 4IR, and the IT profession is no exception. The 4IR puts a significant demand on highly specialised IT skills.

The qualification also serves as a platform for entry into postgraduate studies, thereby contributing to the national development goals to increase the number of postgraduates in South Africa and access to postgraduate qualifications for the previously disadvantaged communities.

Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL)

The institution has an approved Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) policy applicable to equivalent qualifications for admission into the qualification. RPL will be applied to accommodate applicants who qualify. RPL thus provides alternative access and admission to qualifications, as well as advancement within qualifications.

RPL for access

• Learners who do not meet the minimum entrance requirements or the required qualification that is at the same NQF level as the qualification required for admission may be considered for admission through RPL.
• To be considered for admission in the qualification based on RPL, applicants should provide evidence in the form of a portfolio that demonstrates that they have acquired the relevant knowledge, skills, and competencies through formal, non-formal and/or informal learning to cope with the qualification expectations.

RPL for exemption of modules

• Learners may apply for RPL to be exempted from modules that form part of the qualification. For a learner to be exempted from a module, the learner needs to provide sufficient evidence in the form of a portfolio that demonstrates that competency was achieved for the learning outcomes that are equivalent to the learning outcomes of the module.

RPL for credit

• Learners may also apply for RPL for credit for or towards the qualification, in which they must provide evidence in the form of a portfolio that demonstrates prior learning through formal, non-formal and/or informal learning to obtain credits towards the qualification.
• Credit shall be appropriate to the context in which it is awarded and accepted.

Entry Requirements

The minimum entry requirement for this qualification is

• National Senior Certificate, NQF Level 4 granting access to Diploma studies.

Or

• National Certificate (Vocational), NQF Level 4 granting access to Diploma studies

Or

• Senior Certificate, NQF Level 4 without endorsement.

Or

• Higher Certificate in Information Technology, NQF Level 5.

This qualification consists of the following compulsory modules at NQF Level 5 and 6 totalling 360 Credits.

Compulsory Modules, Level 5, 120 Credits

• Fundamentals of Computer Programming, 15 Credits.
• Introduction to Computer Networks, 15 Credits.
• Business Communication, 15 Credits.
• Emerging technologies for the 4th Industrial Revolution, 15 Credits.
• Object-Oriented Programming, 15 Credits.
• Scaling Networks, 15 Credits.
• Discrete Mathematics, 15 Credits.
• Web Technologies, 15 Credits.

Compulsory Modules, Level 6, 240 Credits

• IT Project Management, 15 Credits.
• Principles of Databases 201, 15 Credits.
• Principles of Databases 202, 15 Credits.
• Applications Development 201, 15 Credits.
• Applications Development 202, 15 Credits.
• Computer and information security, 15 Credits.
• Business Analysis, 15 Credits.
• Fundamentals of Cloud Computing, 15 Credits.
• Applications of Data Science, 15 Credits.
• Cloud Computing 300, 15 Credits.
• Software Development Project, 15 Credits.
• Design thinking, 15 Credits.
• Machine Learning, 15 Credits.
• IT Governance and compliance, 15 Credits.
• Work-integrated Learning, 15 Credits.
• Software Testing, 15 Credits.

1. Demonstrate the ability to effectively analyse business processes and provide software solutions for specific problems.
2. Demonstrate the ability to communicate effectively orally and in writing at different relevant levels in an organisation.
3. Demonstrate knowledge in the analysis, design, implementation, and testing of software solutions to solve business problems.
4. Demonstrate knowledge of various tools and techniques for working with different types of business data to provide business solutions.
5. Demonstrate the ability to apply management techniques and industry best practices in the execution, management and governance of IT projects and processes.
6. Demonstrate knowledge of the development, implementation, administration and management of distributed IT resources and services.
7. Demonstrate the ability to apply problem-solving, critical thinking, and analytical techniques to plan and identify the structure for documenting a business case.
8. Demonstrate a practical understanding of the concepts of Modelling and Categorising and apply them in documenting system requirements.

Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 1

• Effectively analyse business processes and provide software solutions for specific problems.
• Develop tailor-made software solutions to address specific business requirements.
• Analyse software development methodologies and apply them in development.

Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 2

• Discuss communication processes including communication models, intercultural communications, and the levels of communication in the organisation to enhance the importance of effective communication in an organisational context.
• Explain formal and informal communication structures relevant to a business environment.
• Discuss the concept of groups and conflict in groups from a communication perspective to assess the impact of group dynamics on the effective functioning of business.
• Examine the role of technology in ethical business communication to maintain ethical business practices.

Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 3

• Integrate different IT technologies to solve business and societal challenges.
• Apply programming techniques and algorithms to solve complex problems.
• Apply software testing techniques to ensure software quality.
• Analyse and apply user interface design principles in the development of computer applications.

Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 4

• Analyse current trends in big data handling.
• Explore and apply data science to business applications.
• Design, develop and implement database solutions for business applications.
• Develop applications that integrate the techniques and practices from application development and database technologies.

Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 5

• Evaluate information security concepts.
• Analyse concepts of information systems security, policies, principles, and security models.
• Discuss best practices in the management and governance of computer systems and processes.

Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 6

• Design, implement, and manage computer networks.
• Apply knowledge on the storage, processing and management of data and other resources on cloud platforms in solving software development problems.

Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 7

• Discuss the information systems requirements, specifications, and strategy information flow models to plan and document the business case.
• Develop a business case by applying problem-solving, critical thinking, and analytical techniques to generate effective reports.

Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 8

• Apply concepts of modelling to enhance documentation of system requirements.
• Recognise and examine modelling types and techniques to gain an understanding of the applicability of each technique to the project being worked on.
• Categorise fundamentals of various schemes and associated roles and responsibilities involved with different categories to determine the effective application in documenting system requirements.
• Identify the need for categorising the requirement to determine the level of detail a requirement gathering to be adopted.
• Review different categorisation schemes to understand the situation where each scheme of categorisation may work.

INTEGRATED ASSESSMENT

This qualification uses the following assessment strategies namely summative and formative strategies. Several assessment techniques and instruments are used to ensure appropriate learning and evaluation. The qualifications require continuous assessment, practical assessment, and external written examinations by relevant accreditation authorities.

Formative Assessment

• Mid-semester assessment.
• One assignment or project.
• One class written test.
• Constructive classroom activities.
• Attendance.

Summative Assessment

• One final written examination
• Class Test
• Written Assignment/ Projects
• Mid-Year Written Examination
• Final Mark:
• 40% of the formative assessment mark and 60% of the written examination are combined to produce the final total.