The JKU Internatinal Master s Prgram fr Infrmatics Specializatin Year Jhannes Kepler University (JKU) at Campus Sftwarepark Hagenberg, Austria Prfessr Brun Buchberger, Dr.phil. Dr.h.c.mult. Initiatr f the JKU Internatinal Master s Prgram in Infrmatics Member f Academia Eurpaea Prfessr f Cmputer Mathematics Funder f RISC (Research Institute fr Symblic Cmputatin) Funder and Directr f Sftwarepark Hagenberg Funder f the Jurnal f Symblic Cmputatin brun.buchberger@isi-hagenberg.at www.risc.uni-linz.ac.at/peple/buchberger RISC, Jhannes Kepler University Linz, A-4232 Hagenberg, Austria A warm welcme t students frm all ver the wrld t this very special prgram! 1
Executive Summary Starting frm Octber 2007, the Jhannes Kepler University (JKU) in Austria ffers a new and innvative master s prgram in infrmatics fr internatinal students. The prgram is briefly described in the appendix f this dcument. The main part f this dcument describes a pssibility fr students t cnsume nly the secnd year f this Master's prgram, which is a specializatin year. This pssibility is pen fr students wh have a bachelr degree in infrmatics r a related subject (e.g. cmputer science, business infrmatics, cmputer mathematics, applied math, infrmatin and cmmunicatin technlgy, electrical engineering) f apprximately 160 credit hurs (apprximately 240 ECTS pints) r an equivalent degree r wh have a bachelr degree in infrmatics r a related subject f 120 credit hurs (apprximately 180 ECTS pints) plus additinal curses f a graduate prgram (e.g. first year f a Master's prgram) f apprximately 40 credit hurs (apprximately 60 ECTS pints). The wrking language fr this prgram is English, i.e. all the curses are taught in English and the cmmunicatin language is English. Hence the students have t be fluent in English. The specializatin year f this prgram is unique in varius respects: Each individual student gets assigned an individual study plan fr this year that is exactly designed fr making him an expert in the specializatin tpic chsen fr him at the beginning f the year. Als, the student is assigned an individual advisr (a prfessr wh is an expert in the chsen specializatin tpic) right at the beginning f the specializatin year wh guides him thrugh the entire year and, finally, is als the advisr f his master's thesis. In additin, the specializatin year ffers varius unique blck curses fr develping the creative, intellectual, cmmunicatin, and als scial skills f the students. Amng these curses is a Thinking curse, that trains the prblem slving capability f students based n lgic training, and the s-called Entrepreneurship-Training curse that trains students t start their wn business and becme respnsible leaders in sciety. The tuitin fr the specializatin year is Eur 9500. Fr very gd r excellent students a variety f fellwships cvering tuitin and/r living csts is available, ffered by Austrian and internatinal industrial cmpanies and gvernmental and scientific institutins. 2
Detailed Descriptin f the Specializatin Year (fr the Academic Year 2010/11) Structure: At the time f admissin (between February and May 2010): Selectin f an individual specializatin tpic fr each student and assignment f an individual advisr. September 2010: Blck curses, altgether apprximately 6 credit hurs (9 ECTS pints) Wrking techniques (wrking with literature, ral presentatin, paper writing, team wrk etc.) Thinking (predicate lgic as a wrking language) Sftware Engineering Refresher Curse Octber, Nvember, December 2010, January 2011: Individual curriculum fr each student depending n the chsen specializatin tpic, cnsisting f individual curses and seminars, altgether 18-22 credit hurs (27-33 ECTS pints) Prject Presentatin Seminar, 2 credit hurs (3 ECTS pints) English Training (2 credit hurs, 3 ECTS pints) Advisr's Seminar, 2 credit hurs (3 ECTS pints) February 2011: Exams Preparatin f master's thesis Prject Management, 2 credit hurs (3 ECTS pints) Entrepreneurship-Training, 1 credit hur (1,5 ECTS pints) March, April, May, June 2011: Wrking n the master's thesis (30 ECTS pints) Entrepreneurship-Training, 1 credit hur (1,5 ECTS pints) Prject Presentatin Seminar, 2 credit hurs (3 ECTS pints) Advisr's Seminar, 2 credit hurs (3 ECTS pints) 3
July 2011: Revisin and final versin f master's thesis Defense f master's thesis and master's exam. Admissin: Fr admissin t the specializatin year the student needs: A bachelr degree in infrmatics r a related subject (e.g. cmputer science, business infrmatics, cmputer mathematics, applied math, infrmatin and cmmunicatin technlgy, electrical engineering) f apprximately 160 credit hurs (apprximately 240 ECTS pints) r an equivalent degree r a bachelr degree in infrmatics r a related subject f 120 credit hurs (apprximately 180 ECTS pints) plus additinal curses f a graduate prgram (e.g. first year f a Master's prgram) f apprximately 40 credit hurs (apprximately 60 ECTS pints). A detailed transcript f all curses taken during the past academic study, including grades. If a student applies in spring fr ur specializatin year starting in fall, he als shuld list all his current and planned curses f the nging academic year. 2-3 recmmendatin letters by prfessrs. Fluency in English. The dcuments listed n the fllwing web-page fr registering at the Jhannes Kepler University, Linz: http://www.students.jku.edu/internatinal/cntent/e11/e877/index_eng.ht ml Austrian visa: We will help yu with btaining the necessary student s visa. See the web-page: http://www.students.jku.edu/internatinal/cntent/e15/e258/e263/index_ eng.html A persnal applicatin letter cntaining a CV and all dcuments shuld be sent t ur CAO, Ms. Betina Curtis Sftwarepark 26 A-4232 Hagenberg bcurtis@isi-hagenberg.at Any questins shuld be directed t bcurtis@isi-hagenberg.at r t brun.buchberger@isi-hagenberg.at. 4
Tuitin, Living Csts and Fellwships Tuitin fr the specializatin year is Eur 9500,--. The tuitin cvers: all lectures extensive tutring and guidance by the advisrs use f all study relevant facilities (internet, labratry, libraries etc.) exams issuance f degree diplma. Living csts fr a student in Austria, typically are between 550 and 700 Eur per mnth. They cnsist f: Drmitry rm: Single rm in Hagenberg csts 290 Eur per mnth plus 45 Eur insurance per year. Price includes furniture, bed sheets, twels, Internet, cleaning. (See als hmepage: www.studentenwerk.at) Meals, tiletries etc.: 250 300 Eur per mnth Text bks: Sme curses ffer lecture ntes that students can dwnladed frm the internet, while sme curses rely n textbks, mst f which are purchased by ur library. Remaining csts fr the student: apprx. 20 Eur per mnth. Fellwships: Fr very gd r excellent students a variety f fellwships cvering tuitin and/r (part f the) living csts is available, ffered by Austrian and internatinal industrial cmpanies and gvernmental and scientific institutins. Hwever, we assume that all students als make a serius effrt t raise their wn funds fr supprting their studies. Many f the fellwships are typically established by Austrian and Internatinal cmpanies. These fellwships cver tuitin r (part f the) living csts, r, in exceptinal cases, bth. In the case f cmpany-spnsred fellwships, the student shuld be prepared t chse as his specializatin tpic a subject prpsed by r determined in cperatin with the spnsring cmpany. Als, in this case, the master's thesis shuld cncentrate n the tpic specified in cperatin with the cmpany. 5
Examples f specializatin areas that reflect the areas f expertise f the current faculty f the JKU Internatinal Master s Prgram in Infrmatics and partly als the interests f the spnsring institutins: a. Specializatin areas in business applicatins: quality management e-cmmerce e-gvernment IT gvernance e-business supply chain management lgistics finance and asset management e-banking systems cmplexity management make r buy decisin management applicatin service prviding e-learning transprtatin systems gegraphical infrmatin systems weather frecasting systems b. Specializatin areas in the methdlgy f infrmatics: machine learning artificial intelligence symblic cmputatin numeric cmputatin discrete cmputatin algrithm design cryptgraphy and cding mathematical mdeling ptimizatin rbtics autmated reasning cmputatinal intelligence web engineering semantic web knwledge engineering data mining pervasive cmputing embedded systems cntext and lcal based services mbile cmputing 6
DNA cmputing biinfrmatics prtemic genmics cmputer graphics cmputatinal perceptin medical infrmatics sftware and hardware verificatin Appendix 1: Detailed Descriptin f the JKU Internatinal Master's Prgram in Infrmatics Missin Statement The JKU Internatinal Master s Prgram in Infrmatics is unique: It cmbines 40 years f experience in basic and applied research in infrmatics (and related subjects) internatinal PhD prgrams in infrmatics (and related areas) master s prgram in infrmatics (and related areas) bachelr s prgram in infrmatics (and related areas) technlgy transfer and cperatin with cmpanies building up technlgy centers (ntably the Sftwarepark Hagenberg) and cndenses this experience in a master s prgram, cmpletely taught in English, fr internatinal students frm all ver the wrld fr educating infrmatics experts wh can als act respnsibly as leaders in cmpanies, rganizatins and sciety. 7
Structure f the JKU Internatinal Master s Prgram in Infrmatics The JKU Internatinal Master s Prgram in Infrmatics has the fllwing structure: Fundatin f Infrmatics Engineering and Management Specializatin (Individual Curriculum and Masters s Thesis) Tw pssible entry pints: Each year ffers and requires 40 credit hurs (= apprximately 60 ECTS pints) f curse wrk (including the master s thesis). The First Year The first year f the JKU Internatinal Master s Prgram in Infrmatics aims at prviding deepened fundatin fr infrmatics engineering and management. It starts frm the assumptin that students were expsed t the practical cntents f infrmatics as prvided by a typical bachelr f infrmatics r a related field and fcuses n the aspect f fundatin and, at the same time, the aspect f management and leadership. The syllabus fr the 1 st year is identical fr all students and cnsists f the curses given belw. The Secnd Year The secnd year f the JKU Internatinal Master s Prgram in Infrmatics prvides a brad spectrum f pssible specializatins in tpical areas f 8
infrmatics. Fr each student, befre the beginning f the secnd year, after a detailed analysis and discussin, a specializatin area and pssible master s thesis subject is determined. An academic supervisr is assigned and an individual curriculum is cmpsed fr the student, which has t be apprved by the Master s Prgram Cmmittee. The individual supervisr is guiding the student thrugh the curse wrk and, mst imprtantly, is supervising the wrk n the master s thesis. Altgether, mre than 100 faculty (amng them mre than 30 full prfessrs) are available as academic supervisrs fr the JKU Internatinal Master s Prgram in Infrmatics. In additin, every year, internatinal visiting prfessrs may cntribute t supervising ur students. A list f specializatin areas reflecting sme f the research areas f the current JKU faculty is given in the descriptin f the specializatin year. Entry pints: Students can enter the JKU Internatinal Master s Prgram in Infrmatics at the beginning f the first year and stay in the prgram fr either ne r tw years. Students can als enter the prgram at the beginning f the secnd year ( the Specializatin Year ) and cnsume the specializatin year (secnd year) including writing f the master s thesis. In the academic year 2010/11 (September 2010 - July 2011) the fcus will be n rganizing the secnd year. Prerequisites fr Entering the Prgram Fr entering at the beginning f the first year: A bachelr degree in infrmatics r any related subject (e.g. cmputer science, business infrmatics, cmputer mathematics, infrmatin and cmmunicatin technlgy, electrical engineering) Fluency in English. Austrian visa: We will help in btaining the necessary student s visa. Fr entering at the beginning f the secnd year: See list f prerequisites at the beginning f this dcument. 9
The Master s Degree Students wh cnsume the entire JKU Internatinal Master s Prgram in Infrmatics (1 st and 2 nd year including master s thesis and master s exam) as well as students wh were accepted fr the secnd year and cnsume the secnd year (including master s thesis and master s exam) will btain the degree f Master f Science in Infrmatics cnferred by the accredited Jhannes Kepler University. Pssible Careers Graduates f the f the JKU Internatinal Master s Prgram in Infrmatics have varius alternatives: Either return t the their hme cuntries and shuld be well prepared fr taking a respnsible jb in the IT industry, in the many applicatin areas f IT r in gvernmental rganizatins. Or stay in Austria r ther EU cuntries fr a respnsible jb in their area f specializatin. In particular, students can jin cmpanies in the Sftwarepark Hagenberg r in Upper Austria, r they can start their wn cmpany in the frame f the Internatinal Incubatr - Hagenberg. Or cntinue their studies in the frame f a PhD prgram either at JKU r any ther university that ffers PhD prgrams. A special dctral prgram, centered arund the wrld-famus RISC PhD prgram, is ffered by the JKU institutes in the Sftwarepark Hagenberg. This is a particularly natural pssibility fr graduates f the JKU Internatinal Master's Prgram in Infrmatics t cntinue their studies. 10
Csts f the Study, Applicatin, Questins The tuitin fr ne year f the JKU Internatinal Master s Prgram in Infrmatics is 9500 Eur. Living csts in Austria fr a student are apprximately 550-700 Eurs per mnth depending n the living standard. Fellwships fr tuitin and/r living csts are available fr very gd r excellent students. Hwever, typically, students are suppsed t make als their wn effrt fr being able t cver tuitin and/r living csts. Applicatins fr the academic year 2010/11 shuld be sent as sn as pssible, but n later than May 31 st, 2010, t Ms. Betina Curtis, Chief Administrative Officer bcurtis@isi-hagenberg.at Sftwarepark 26 A-4232 Hagenberg Austria Any questins shuld be directed t brun.buchberger@jku.at. bcurtis@isi-hagenberg.at r t The Unique Features f the JKU Internatinal Master s Prgram in Infrmatics The JKU Internatinal Master s Prgram in Infrmatics is unique in a number f ways and prvides elite educatin fr its students: The Jhannes Kepler University (JKU) www.jku.at has 40 years f experience in basic research, applied research, internatinal PhD prgram, master s and bachelr prgram, and technlgy transfer (cperatin with the industry) in the area f infrmatics and related areas (cmputer science, business infrmatics, cmputer mathematics, etc.). There are ver 4000 students f infrmatics and related subjects at JKU. Sme f the JKU departments are wrld-famus in research and PhD training (e.g. the Research Institute fr Symblic Cmputatin 11
www.risc.uni-linz.ac.at f which a recent US Natinal Science Fundatin reprt says: There is n cmparable institute in the United States. ) The JKU Internatinal Master s Prgram in Infrmatics is perated in clse cperatin with the University f Applied Sciences in Hagenberg, which is a spin-ff f the JKU specializing in Applied Infrmatics. This brings additinal faculty with particular experience in applied subjects int the internatinal master s prgram. Over 100 faculty (amng them ver 30 full prfessrs) f the JKU and the University f Applied Sciences are available fr teaching curses and supervising master students in the frame f the JKU Internatinal Master s Prgram in Infrmatics. Als, visiting prfessrs frm universities arund the wrld are available as supervisrs fr ur Internatinal Master's students. The JKU Internatinal Master s Prgram in Infrmatics is integrated int the Sftwarepark Hagenberg www.sftwarepark.at, anther spinff f RISC, the Research Institute fr Symblic Cmputatin f the JKU). The Sftwarepark Hagenberg embraces 8 research institutes, the Upper Austria University f Applied Sciences, and ver 40 cmpanies with altgether 1000 researchers and develpers. This allws ur students t build up a unique prfessinal netwrk already during their studies. The curriculum f JKU Internatinal Master s Prgram in Infrmatics cntains a cuple f unique curses, amng them: a special creativity training based n predicate lgic (the thinking curse ), practical training in management, a new apprach t the practice f mathematical mdeling and prblem slving based n interactive mathematical systems, a unique cndensed tp-dwn presentatin f the fundatin f infrmatics engineering and management. In additin t deepened training in infrmatics, the JKU Internatinal Master s Prgram in Infrmatics ffers special facets that aim at preparing ur students fr leadership: the curse Entrepreneurship-Training pens the awareness f the students fr starting their wn business as well as fr their rle and respnsibility in tday s reginal scieties and the glbal sciety; by studying in the cntext f the Sftwarepark Hagenberg, ur students can study hw mdern technlgy centers are rganized and hw innvatin is brught abut; 12
ur students can enjy a truly internatinal cmmunity with their fellw students which is an imprtant basis fr future leadership in a glbal wrld. The first year f the JKU Internatinal Master s Prgram in Infrmatics is taught in a blck system: The individual curses are taught as cnsecutive units ranging frm a cuple f days t a cuple f weeks. One curse is finished (including study and exam) befre the next ne starts. This allws students t cncentrate n ne subjects matter at a time and als facilitates prceeding t higher and higher levels f understanding. Als, it allws t integrate faculty frm utside mre easily int the prgram. Appendix 2: Details f the Curriculum (fr students entering in the first year) Curses in the First Year f the JKU Internatinal Master s Prgram in Infrmatics English as Wrking Language (taught be a Native English Speaker) (practical training: 1 credit hur, 1,5 ECTS pints) Prfessinal Wrking Skills: (practical training: 4 credit hurs, 6 ECTS pints) Training f Frmal Thinking and Prblem Slving Wrking with the Literature Oral and Written Presentatin Management f Prject, Cmpanies, and Organizatins (lecture: 2 credit hurs, 3 ECTS pints; assignments: 3 credit hurs, 4,5 ECTS pints.) Entrepreneurship-Training (lecture: 1 credit hurs; seminar: 1 credit hur; practical training: 3 credit hurs, 4,5 ECTS pints.) 13
Starting yur wn business Internatinal Organizatin Persnality and Sciety Lgic-Mathematical Fundatin f Infrmatics (lecture: 2 credit hurs, 3 ECTS pints; practical training: 3 credit hurs, 4,5 ECTS pints.) Mathematical Mdeling Using Mathematical Sftware Systems Limitatins t Cmputability and Efficiency Fundatin f Infrmatics Engineering and Management (lecture: 12 credit hurs; assignments: 6 credit hurs, 9 ECTS pints; seminars: 2 credit hurs, 3 ECTS pints.) Data Engineering and Management Sftware Engineering and Management Cmmunicatin Engineering and Management Infrmatin Engineering and Management Knwledge Engineering and Management Service Engineering and Management Curses in the Secnd Year f the JKU Internatinal Master s Prgram in Infrmatics See the descriptin at the beginning f this dcument. Of curse, students wh tk part in the first year f ur Internatinal Master's Prgram need nt take part in the blck curses in September, listed at the beginning f this dcument. 14
Appendix 3: Infrmatin n the JKU, Austria, Eurpe Fr JKU, see www.jku.at/ Fr Austria, see http://en.wikipedia.rg/wiki/austria Fr Eurpe, see http://en.wikipedia.rg/wiki/eurpe Appendix 4: Phts f the Sftwarepark Hagenberg, the JKU Campus, and Linz View f Hagenberg (drmitries t the left, castle in frnt) Lecture Halls at Hagenberg Lecture Halls at J.K. University, Linz 15