Dr Morgan (left) and Dr Halpin are here to train experts in business information technology

Training for the job begins right here at INTI University College (INTI-UC) where a career-focused tertiary education is not just an option but a way of life. Its Masters in Business Information Technology programme (MBT), developed by internationally-renowned educators and industry specialists with over 70 years of experience between them, Dr. Terry Halpin and Dr. Tony Morgan, was designed with that specific objective – to train experts in business information technology, so that companies who hire them don’t have to. 

The MBT is a unique combination of a business and information technology degree, developed to meet the requirements of the workplace in the real world. It is a new approach to doing business in an environment where effective problem-solving and implementation of information modelling technology are key to building successful businesses and partnerships. For this to take place, companies need experts who understand business in the natural language and at the same time are able to effectively and formally communicate its needs to the actual programmers who code the information systems. “Bridging the gap” between the two has never been more important as it is today.

“Companies around the world spend millions of dollars each year and a lot of time training their staff who are not properly prepared after graduation,” says Dr. Terry Halpin, through his observations over the last few decades as an instructor of Computer Science at the University of Queensland, Australia and at Neumont University, Utah, and who has worked with major international companies such as Microsoft, Boeing and BHP Pty. Ltd. His experience working in and consulting for the industry challenged the way he taught as he came to realize what was needed in the workplace was very different from what he was teaching.

Dr. Tony Morgan who hails from the UK and was a professor of Computer Science at Neumont with over 30 years of experience in the industry and in academia, has witnessed software development in the real world and has been disappointed by the results. “If you applied all that you consider to the best practice at the moment, there is no guarantee you will have a successful software development project,” he reveals, “There is something about the way we develop software that is highly error-prone, where some strongly-held ideas clearly do not work, so this has been a long-running interest of ours to find a better way of doing things to increase the likelihood of success.” So why does software development go wrong? Dr. Morgan puts it simply, “The technical people don’t understand business and the business people don’t understand the technology.”

The MBT programme does not train software developers, but someone who understands the capabilities of business information systems and is able to use them effectively in the business environment. In addition to its distinctive academic curriculum, students develop necessary skill sets through “problem-based learning” where they work in teams to create and implement solutions for real-world enterprise problems in the classroom, supported by regular presentations to industry professionals. IBM is currently the programme’s industry partner.

The value of Dr. Halpin and Dr. Morgan’s industry experience and expertise is immeasurable in terms of the knowledge and skills that they are able to impart to their students, who will not only learn to use existing tools and technologies, but also what they will use in the future, as their professors continue to contribute to the industry. Inadvertently, their students are placed at the leading edge of these technologies themselves.

Dr. Halpin is the conceptual designer of NORMA (Natural ORM Architect), an open-source modelling tool of Microsoft Visual Studio, and has written over 160 technical publications and six books. The award-winning Distinguished Professor, who is originally from Australia, continues to work and consult for the European Space Agency and computer systems designer, LogicBlox. He also chairs conferences and conducts workshops and seminars around the world as a member of the International Federations for Information Processing (IFIP) and Data Management International (DAMA International). Dr. Morgan is a researcher, consultant and industry expert who continues to develop information modelling technologies for software companies and has worked for the UK Department of Trade and Industry, Unisys and EDS.

The MBT programme is a one-year, fulltime course in INTI-UC, Nilai, with two intakes per year – January and July.

INTI-UC is a member of the INTI Education Group, which in turn is a part of Laureate International Universities – the world’s largest private education network with a presence in over 23 countries, with more than 43 accredited universities and 130 campuses, serving over 600,000 students globally.

For more information on INTI-UC and the MBT programme, call 1300-88-4684 or visit www.newinti.edu.my.