This course examines the design, development and management of information systems. You will study how information is used in organisations, who uses it, how it relates to decision making and contributes to organisational objectives.
You will be able recognise and accommodate change and instability in the business and information environment created by social, economic, political and technical developments.
Your studies may include lectures, practical lab work, group working, case studies and presentations. Through the project/dissertation you will gain valuable research skills.Information systems, when used effectively, can give a business or organisation the competitive edge. They can also transform businesses, restructure organisations and streamline business processes. This course seeks to address the shortage of people who can operate at the interface of business and IT, and offers the chance to study a spectrum of relevant business and technical subjects.
Mode | Duration | Attendance | Start date |
---|---|---|---|
Full time | 1 year | Delivered in 2 separate specific week blocks (Monday to Friday 9am – 5pm) | March and September 2021, January 2022 |
Full time | 2 years including professional placement | Delivered in 2 separate specific week blocks (Monday to Friday 9am – 5pm) | March and September 2021, January 2022 |
Part time | 2–3 years | Delivered in 2 separate specific week blocks (Monday to Friday 9am – 5pm) | March and September 2021, January 2022 |
Location | Penrhyn Road |
If you are planning to join this course in the academic year 2020/21 (i.e. between August 2020 and July 2021), please view the information about changes to courses for 2020/21 due to Covid-19.
Students who are continuing their studies with Kingston University in 2020/21 should refer to their Course Handbook for information about specific changes that have been, or may be, made to their course or modules being delivered in 2020/21. Course Handbooks are located within the Canvas Course page.
The British Computer Society (BCS) accredits this course. This means that you can gain some exemption against BCS professional examinations, leading to Chartered membership and CEng, IEng or CSci status. For full details of exemption and accreditation levels, please check the BCS course search.
The Faculty is a long-time member of BCS. For many years we have hosted meetings of the local BCS Kingston and Croydon Branch, contributing to members' continuing professional development programmes.
Please note: The programme delivered at our partner institution overseas is not currently accredited by the BCS.
You will study the design, development and management of information systems to enable you to recognise and accommodate the increased rate of change and instability in the business and information environment created by social, economic, political and technical changes. You will gain an understanding of how information is used within an organisation, who uses it, the nature of the information, how it relates to decision making and how it contributes to organisational goals and objectives.
The full MSc course consists of an induction programme, four taught modules, and project dissertation. Please note that this is an indicative list of modules and is not intended as a definitive list.
For a student to go on placement they are required to pass every module first time with no reassessments.
30 credits
The module focuses on various components of modelling an Enterprise Architecture. It deals with modelling the business and the underlying information and software system to support the business. It follows the object-oriented paradigm for the development lifecycle, and utilises UML as the modelling language. Indicative contents include aspects of enterprise architectures, business analysis, business modelling, business process reengineering, requirements engineering, object oriented concepts and principles and UML.
On successful completion of the module, you will be able to:
30 credits
This core module looks at ways organisations manage, store and secure data. Different approaches and methods will be explored to model data requirements into entity-relationship diagrams, logical diagrams and normalisation.
On successful completion of the module, you will be able to:
60 credits
This module constitutes the major individual piece of work of the Masters Programme where the student carries out a project involving independent critical research, design and implementation (where applicable).
On successful completion of the module, students will be able to:
30 credits
This core module introduces IS strategies and their importance to business organisations in the current competitive global economic environment. As IS affect the structure and operations of markets and organisations an introduction to integrated enterprise systems and their role in shaping the structure of current competitive organisations focusing on standards, technical delivery architectures, implementation and related issues.
On successful completion of the module, you will be able to:
30 credits
This core module focuses on various approaches to agile development and deals with agile project and risk management, techniques, documentation and testing.
On successful completion of the module, you will be able to:
The information above reflects the currently intended course structure and module details. Updates may be made on an annual basis and revised details will be published through Programme Specifications ahead of each academic year. The regulations governing this course are available on our website. If we have insufficient numbers of students interested in an optional module, this may not be offered.
Many postgraduate courses at Kingston University allow students to take the option of a 12-month work placement as part of their course. The responsibility for finding the work placement is with the student; we cannot guarantee the placement, just the opportunity to undertake it. As the work placement is an assessed part of the course, it is covered by a student's Tier 4 visa.
Find out more about the postgraduate work placement scheme.
This course is delivered by the School of Computing and Information Systems in the Faculty of Science, Engineering and Computing.
The Faculty's wide selection of undergraduate and postgraduate courses covers a diverse range of subject areas, from aerospace to geography; from maths and computing to biotechnology; and many more. Our collaborative set-up provides new opportunities for our students, and we design our courses with industry professionals to ensure you stay up to date with the latest developments.
The School of Computing and Information Systems offers high-quality undergraduate and postgraduate courses, designed to reflect the developing needs of business and industry. We deliver our teaching in an exciting and challenging learning environment, and make use of modern, well-equipped facilities.
Our courses cover the range of modern technologies in computer science, information systems and software engineering, with specialisations in games technology; network and wireless technologies; information security; electronic business; and embedded systems.
Postgraduate students may run or assist in lab sessions and may also contribute to the teaching of seminars under the supervision of the module leader.
There is a wide range of facilities at our Penrhyn Road campus, where this course is based. You will have access to a modern environment with the latest equipment, including:
Our dedicated team of IT technicians support the labs and are always on hand to provide assistance.
Kingston is just a 30-minute train journey from central London. Here you can access a wealth of additional libraries and archives, including the British Library and the Institute of Engineering and Technology.
The Faculty of Science, Engineering and Computing has a specialist employability team. It provides friendly and high-quality careers and recruitment guidance, including advice and sessions on job-seeking skills such as CV preparation, application forms and interview techniques. Specific advice is also available for international students about the UK job market and employers' expectations and requirements.
The team runs employer events throughout the year, including job fairs, key speakers from industry and interviews on campus. These events give you the opportunity to hear from, and network with, employers in an informal setting.
Examples of recent graduate destinations for this and similar courses include:
Informatics MSc student, Pete Stevens, talks about his experience at Kingston University:
To ensure your studies are kept up to date and answer the needs of business, our courses are created and reviewed in consultation with an advisory board of key industry experts and senior academics. The Board also provides input and advice on our research portfolio. With members from Google, Microsoft, Easyjet, games developer Colossal and Chief Information Officers from local government - our Advisory Board represents the diverse spectrum of industries and public sector organisations that make up the jobs market for our graduates.
The Faculty is also a long-time member of the British Computer Society (BCS). For many years we have hosted meetings of the local BCS Kingston and Croydon Branch, contributing to members' continuing professional development programmes.
Many of our staff in the Faculty of Science, Engineering and Computing are research active. This ensures they are in touch with the latest thinking and bring best practice to your studies.
Computing research activities are focused around the following main research centres:
The range of events and lectures in the Faculty of Science, Engineering and Computing enhances your studies and adds an extra perspective to your learning.
For example, the Digital Information Research Centre (DIRC) runs seminars which have recently covered: