Master of Science (MSc) in Information Technology (Digital Communication Leadership), 2018

1: Preface

Pursuant to Act 261 of March 18, 2015 on Universities (the University Act) with subsequent changes, the following curriculum for the Master's program in Digital Communication Leadership (DCLead) is stipulated. The program also follows the Joint Programme Regulations and the Examination Policies and Procedures.

2: Basis in Ministerial orders

The Master’s programme is organised in accordance with the Ministry of Higher Education and Science’s Order no. 1328 of November 15, 2016 on Bachelor’s and Master’s Programmes at Universities (the Ministerial Order of the Study Programmes) and Ministerial Order no. 1062 of June 30, 2016 on University Examinations (the Examination Order). Further reference is made to Ministerial Order no. 111 of January 30, 2017 (the Admission Order) and Ministerial Order no. 114 of February 3, 2015 (the Grading Scale Order) with subsequent changes.

3: Campus

The program is offered in Copenhagen.

4: Faculty affiliation

The Master’s programme falls under the Technical Faculty of IT and Design, Aalborg University (AAU).

5: Study board affiliation

The Master’s programme falls under the Board of Studies for Electronics and IT.

6: Affiliation to corps of external examiners

The Master’s programme is associated with the body of external examiners for engineering educations: electro (In Danish: censorkorps for Ingeniøruddannelsernes landssækkende censorkorps; elektro).

7: Admission requirements

Applicants with a legal right of admission (retskrav):

Aalborg University offers no bachelor’s programmes with a legal right of admission to this Master's program

Applicants without legal right of admission

Bachelor’s programmes qualifying students for admission:

• Bachelor of Science (BSc) in Information Technology, Aalborg University
• Bachelor of Science  in Informatics, Aalborg University

All students must document English language qualifications comparable to an 'English B level' in the Danish upper secondary school (minimum average grade 02).

DCLead is an Erasmus+ Master’s programme focusing primarily on students from non-EU countries.

Selection among the students who apply for admission will be made by a committee consisting of representatives from the three involved universities. Selection criteria include educational background, grades and other relevant activities, including work experience.

8: The programme title in Danish and English

In Danish:

• Cand.it. i ledelse af digital kommunikation

In English:

• Master of Science (MSc) in Information Technology (Digital Communication Leadership)

9: Programme specifications in ECTS credits

The Master’s programme is a 2-year, research-based, full-time study programme. The programme is set to 120 ECTS credits.

10: Rules concerning credit transfer (merit), including the possibility for choice of modules that are part of another programme at a university in Denmark or abroad

The Study Board can approve that passed programme elements from other educational programmes at the same level replaces programme elements within this programme (credit transfer).

Furthermore, the Study Board can, upon application, approve that parts of this programme is completed at another university or a further education institution in Denmark or abroad (pre-approval of credit transfer).

The Study Board’s decisions regarding credit transfer are based on an academic assessment.

11: Exemptions

The Study Board’s possibilities to grant exemption, including exemption to further examination attempts and special examination conditions, are stated in the Examination Policies and Procedures published at this website: https://www.studieservice.aau.dk/regler-vejledninger

12: Rules for examinations

The rules for examinations are stated in the Examination Policies and Procedures published at this website: https://www.studieservice.aau.dk/regler-vejledninger

13: Rules concerning written work, including the Master’s Thesis

In the assessment of all written work, regardless of the language it is written in, weight is also given to the student's formulation and spelling ability, in addition to the academic content. Orthographic and grammatical correctness as well as stylistic proficiency are taken as a basis for the evaluation of language performance. Language performance must always be included as an independent dimension of the total evaluation. However, no examination can be assessed as ‘Pass’ on the basis of good language performance alone; similarly, an examination normally cannot be assessed as ‘Fail’ on the basis of poor language performance alone.

The Study Board can grant exemption from this in special cases (e.g., dyslexia or a native language other than Danish).

The Master’s Thesis must include an English summary. If the project is written in English, the summary can be in Danish. The summary is included in the evaluation of the project as a whole.

14: Requirements regarding the reading of texts in a foreign language

It is assumed that the student can read academic texts in modern English and use reference works, etc.

15: Competence profile on the diploma

The following competence profile will appear on the diploma:

A Candidatus graduate has the following competency profile:

A Candidatus graduate has competencies that have been acquired via a course of study that has taken place in a research environment.

A Candidatus graduate is qualified for employment on the labour market based on his or her academic discipline as well as for further research (PhD programmes). A Candidatus graduate has, compared to a Bachelor, developed his or her academic knowledge and independence so as to be able to apply scientific theory and method on an independent basis within both an academic and a professional context.

16: Competence profile of the programme

Knowledge:

• has knowledge on information and communication technologies (ICT) that, in selected areas, is based on the highest international research
• understands the relevance of the needs of the end users, their use of ICT, and the mechanisms that influence the user experience and the acceptance of new technologies
• understands the importance of innovation, creativity and entrepreneurship for ICT solutions and services
• understands and can reflect, on a scientific basis, on the technical, organizational and market-related drivers in the convergence of ICT, as well as the interplay between technology, market and user issues
• has a holistic understanding of the environment of ICT services and solutions: Scenarios of use, target users, stakeholders, business aspects, and societal implications at large
• has knowledge about different cost concepts and different methods for investment analysis
• has in-depth knowledge and understanding of ICT-related business plan and business models
• has in-depth knowledge on economic concepts and tools relevant for preparing a market analysis

Skills:

• can identify scientific problems within the field of ICT
• can evaluate and select among scientific theories, methods, tools and general skills and – on a scientific basis – advance new analyses and solutions within applied ICT
• can efficiently communicate research-based knowledge and discuss professional and scientific problems with both peers and non-specialists
• can produce scientific writing: Articles, reports, documentation, etc.
• can apply scientific methods, tools and general skills related to employment within the field of ICT
• can identify and select among relevant standards, technologies and methods for development of ICT solutions and services
• can assess the market, ethical and regulatory framework for application of the technologies
• can develop innovative services, applications and solutions at a conceptual level, which are relevant in a user perspective
• can assess the implications and business potential of new ICT solutions and services and develop viable business models and strategies
• can prepare a business plan with a detailed financial analysis for introducing an ICT solution or service
• can assess the role of existing and emerging ICT solutions and services in relation to sustainable development and evaluate the feasibility of sustainable technologies and solutions

Competences:

• can manage work and development situations that are complex, unpredictable and require new solutions
• can independently initiate and implement discipline-specific and interdisciplinary cooperation and assume professional responsibility
• can independently take responsibility for own professional development and specialisation
• has competencies in project work and problem based learning in a global/multicultural environment
• can mediate collaboration and exchange between development- and business-related functions in organizations
• has competencies in business development with a holistic perspective, based on a thorough understanding of the interplay between technology, market and users in ICT and media
• can contribute creatively and innovatively to propose  and develop new services/solutions respecting and challenging established legal rules and design principles
• has  an in-depth understanding of ICT technologies enabling creative and innovative solutions and development of these
• has competencies in innovation and entrepreneurship that can be used to transform the potentials of new ICT and media technologies into new solutions and services with an engineering approach

17: Structure and Contents of the programme

The programme is structured in modules and organized as a problem-based study. A module is a programme element or a group of programme elements, which aims to give students a set of professional skills within a fixed time frame specified in ECTS credits, and concluding with one or more examinations within specific exam periods. Examinations are defined in the curriculum.

The programme is based on a combination of academic, problem-oriented and interdisciplinary approaches and organized based on the following work and evaluation methods that combine skills and reflection: a) lectures, b) classroom instruction, c) project work, d) workshops, e) exercises (individually and in groups), f) teacher feedback, g) reflection, h) portfolio work

18: Overview of the programme

All students admitted to the program, start at Salzburg (PLUS) and take the first semester in Salzburg. With respect to the second and third semester, the students, who follow the specialisation in ‘Digital Technology and Management’, go to AAU..

As for the last semester where the students are doing their master’s thesis and complete their education, students of the specialization in Digital Communication and Management can choose to go to Salzburg or stay at AAU. Alternatively, students can undertake their last semester at one of the associate partner universities. However, it is a requirement, that the  master’s thesis is supervised and examined by supervisors from PLUS and AAU in collaboration with a supervisor from the associated partner university.

The structure of the whole education is depicted in the following figure 1:

The curriculum contains the following number of elective courses:

1. 1^st semester:   1 course, 2ECTS
2. 2^nd semester: 1 course, 5 ECTS
3. 3^rd semester:   1 course, 5 ECTS

Elective courses may be chosen amongst the following courses from the Master’s program in Innovative Communication Technologies and Entrepreneurship (ICTE):

2^nd semester:

• Development of ICT and Media Services
• Identity and Access Management
• Interaction design

3^rd semester

• Communication and Broadcast networks
• Internet Technologies and Service Architectures
• Content and Media Management
• Entrepreneurship, Innovation and Business Models
• Standardization
• Cyber Security and Trust
• Smart Sensor Data Processing

As the DClead education is based on POPBL, the teaching on POPBL takes place within the introductory course in the first semester. The teachers from AAU participating in the introductory course will give an introduction to the POPBL learning/teaching method. Furthermore, when the students come to Aalborg in the beginning of the second semester there will be common project meetings/seminars with all DCLead students where different aspects of POPBL will be discussed in more details.

In the following we only provide details about courses and projects offered at AAU. For courses and projects offered at PLUS please refer to the PLUS’s study plan.

19: Additional information

The current version of the curriculum is published on the Board of Studies’ website, including more detailed information about the programme, including exams

20: Commencement and transitional rules

The current version of the curriculum is published on the Board of Studies’ website, including more   detailed information about the program, including exams.

The curriculum is approved by the Dean of the Technical Faculty of IT and Design and enters into force as of September 2018.

Students who wish to complete their studies under the previous curriculum from 2017 must conclude their education by the summer examination period 2019 at the latest, since examinations under the previous curriculum are not offered after this time.

21: Amendments to the curriculum and regulations

Minor editorial changes have made in connection with the digitisation of the study curriculum.