The Student Experience

This is a four year program that focuses on computer technologies. The Information Systems Technology degree program aims at educating students in all program levels in order to provide them with the knowledge, interest, and ethics to become productive members of the information systems profession. The IST Program is designed as per the requirements of the two accrediting bodies, the Commission for University Education (CUE) and the Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC).

Resources

The Bachelor of Information Systems Technology program at USIU, offers students the opportunity to earn their degree through both theoretical and practical-based courses. Students benefit from state-of-the-art software lab, hardware lab and five teaching labs containing over 200 PCs, 5 servers 3 routers, 10 Switches, 2 Autonomous Wireless Access Points, and WLAN Controllers for stand-alone and controller-based WI-FI technologies. These facilities also boast a 20 PC Workstation lab which supports all Linux, Certified Ethical Hacker and Microsoft Academy courses, including MCSE, LPI and CEH certifications. All classes in this program are offered in a laboratory environment and all material delivered by faculty is supported by an online learning platform.

Student Clubs

Students are involved in information technology club activities which amongst other things expose students to IT solutions as used in the business environment. The club also invites alumni and distinguished speakers from industry to deliver guest lectures on topical issues affecting the IT industry. Academic faculty alongside the Centre of Information research and informatics (CIRI) provide students with support and mentorship towards software development both within and outside the university.

Certifications

The school recognizes the importance of supporting the students towards gaining a competitive edge in fast changing IT job market. It has therefore integrated certifications into the IST curriculum by offering certification courses in Linux, Certified Ethical hacker and Microsoft. Besides, USIU prides in being a Microsoft academy and a Linux partner.

Learn More about certifications.

Curriculum

The mission of the Bachelor of Science in IST is to prepare students for jobs in the marketplace which demand IT systems and skills. Today’s Industry technology interfaces with business tasks in every function and department. As such this course aims at preparing students for dynamic jobs in the information systems and technology industry.

When you put all the pieces of an IST education together, you will gain a formidable array of skills and knowledge, including:-

• Understanding information technology as a solution
  • Bridging technology and the user
  • Expressing and defending ideas
  • Being a team player and a team leader
  • Experience in dealing with the real problems of the digital economy
  • Developing a skill set for the International marketplace

The program is supposed to produce IST specialists who are capable of solving IT oriented business problems. The students are grounded in technical specialties and also core business concepts. The specialties are in systems development, networking and security. The program delivers a blend of soft skills alongside technical abilities which are increasingly useful in today’s modern economy.

Financing Your IST program

The university offers Campus based work opportunities through initiatives like the work study program which will partly finance your program apart from giving students the skills and experience required later in life while in the workplace. For more details, see the Financial aid section.

Careers

Upon successful completion of their degree, students who take this program me join careers as described below:-

Networking: - students who take up specializations in networking can expect to perform tasks such as network administration, network design and deployment, web application development, network maintenance, network troubleshooting, network configuration, network security design and network management.

Applications: - students who take up specializations in applications can expect to perform tasks such as systems analysis and design, systems development and deployment, systems maintenance, platforms and architectural design, system security design, mobile application development, web application development, backend systems design and development, systems integration, systems migration and portability.

Security: - students who take up specializations in security can expect to perform tasks such as systems security design, systems security analysis and appraisal, systems security audit, cryptography and network security, information security forensics and incidence response, backend systems security design, ethical hacking.

Internships

Students get a chance to be attached to industry through internships where they spend a semester under the mentorship of a supervisor in industry and receive support from a member of faculty. Students get exposed to real-world work environments in a variety of industries and some internships convert into job opportunities.