Professional Development

Learning Outcomes

Knowledge and Understanding

Having successfully completed this module, you will be able to demonstrate knowledge and understanding of:

• The deeper issues associate with one or more selected topics identified from within the identified themes
• The specific topic areas which are associated with the main legal issues typically encountered by an IT professional
• The threshold concepts underpinning the range of key, legal and ethical, and commercial and managerial issues typically encountered by an IT professional

Transferable and Generic Skills

Having successfully completed this module you will be able to:

• Communicate ideas in written and oral forms in appropriate styles for different audiences
• Work with others
• In written communications, make appropriate and effective use of layout and referencing conventions
• Develop an understanding of individual approaches to independent learning, incorporating personal preferences, strengths and weaknesses

Subject Specific Intellectual and Research Skills

Having successfully completed this module you will be able to:

• Identify, access and critically review appropriate and relevant literature drawn from academic, technical, legal, professional business sources
• Assess and respond to the needs of different audiences
• Evaluate and critically reflect upon self-presentation, particularly those aspects that relate to career development
• Audit, evaluate and critically reflect upon strengths and weaknesses in knowledge, skills and abilities

Personal development

• Independent learning
• Time management
• Digital literacy and information skills
• Presentation skills, including CVs, public talks, online personal brands
• Academic integrity
• Writing technical reports
• Groupwork
• Diversity

Management issues in IT

• Project management
• Entrepreneurship
• Contractual restraints
• Compromises in systems planning
• Constraints of a legal nature

Professional issues in IT

• Professional societies
• Career structures
• Ethics
• Codes of conduct and practice
• Licensing and open source

Legal issues in IT

• Copyright and patent
• Trade secrets and registered design
• Computer generated evidence
• Obscene publications

The module consists of

• Lectures, including invited talks by senior ECS academics and relevant University services (e.g. Career Destinations, ECS Business Development)
• Written technical report
• Group presentations accompanied by a slide deck and an abstract

The module will be assessed via coursework as primary form of feedback. Coursework will be marked by the lecturers. Students will receive summative feedback, in writing (for the technical report) or orally (group coursework). A draft of the latter will also be assessed formatively. The marking schemes for the courseworks will be made public at the start of the semester.

Summative

This is how we’ll formally assess what you have learned in this module.

Referral

This is how we’ll assess you if you don’t meet the criteria to pass this module.

Repeat

An internal repeat is where you take all of your modules again, including any you passed. An external repeat is where you only re-take the modules you failed.