Hi there, everyone. My name is Daan le Roux from the Department of Information Science at
Stellenbosch University and I want to tell you a bit more today about studying informatics.
Informatics is an emerging discipline with a lot of really exciting career opportunities.
A good starting point is maybe the question, what exactly do we mean when we say informatics?
I like to normally explain this by positioning informatics in relation to two types of systems.
On the one hand we have technical systems.
These systems are typically composed of various forms of hardware and software.
Then on the other hand we have social systems.
This might include things like business operations, society, cities, families, friendship groups.
The technical systems has traditionally been the domain of computer or electronic engineers
or computer scientists and their goal is to build these systems to be as efficient and as effective as possible.
On the other hand, management and the social sciences is the space where
we study social systems, we study businesses, we study people and societies and human behaviour.
But we know now, particularly since the digital revolution which started in around the 1980s,
that a lot of our social systems are very reliant on technological systems so that we
utilise the capacity of technologies and technical systems support the operations of social systems.
Students of informatics sit at the intersection of these two system types and they aim to align
the technology with the requirements of their user community.
We often think of them as acting as liaisons between the technical providers and the social clients on the other side.
What programmes can you study to become an expert in informatics at Stellenbosch University?
Essentially there are two undergraduate options. The one option is to study the BA Humanities,
which is presented in the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences,
and to have as major subject the subject called Socio-Informatics.
This will enable you to combine informatics with a wide range of subjects from the arts
and social sciences, including human thought, language, culture, art, and people and society.
Alternatively you can study the BCom programme in Management Sciences and select the focal area Information Systems Management.
This will enable you to combine informatics with subjects from the economic and management sciences,
including business analytics, entrepreneurship, marketing, and financial management.
Both these programmes, after you’ve completed them in your first three years,
lead to a fourth-year programme called the Bachelor of Informatics Honours programme.
This is an intensive one-year capstone programme where the two undergraduate streams combine for a fourth year.
What will you learn in Informatics, the subject that you combine with these other fields?
Essentially in your first year you’ll learn a bit about the history of knowledge and technology and the principles of computational thinking.
In your second year we build on this and we study the principles of information systems,
we introduce you to computer programming and web technologies, as well as information and cybersecurity.
Then in your third year you learn about database systems, information systems analysis and design,
knowledge management, and you conduct a software development project.
A very wide range of career options are available to students of informatics.
Unlike traditional disciplines that lead to very particular career options, our graduates perform a wide range of professional roles.
These will include things like information systems analyst, software developer,
user experience designer, business integration architects, data analysts and cybersecurity managers.
Depending on your interests and the areas of informatics that you feel you are strong in,
you can select a career option that fits your specific profile.
If you want some more information about our programme options, please visit suinformatics.com.
On our website you will find all sorts of useful information and detailed outlines of the undergraduate options
and the requirements that you have to satisfy to be eligible for these programmes.
Great, so with me I have a student, Emma Raaff, who recently graduated from our fourth year in the informatics programme.
Emma, thanks for joining me. Congratulations on graduating with your degree programme.
I want to know from you why you decided to study informatics as an option.
What was it that drew you to that area?
I have always been interested in people and society, as well as in business and technology.
When I came into university in first year I didn’t know that a subject like informatics existed
and I actually just took it on a whim in first year.
Then as I went through first year and second year, I was a little bit interested in it, but still had my doubts.
Then third year, being exposed to the modules that we did then, that integrated everything that I’d done
the previous two years and I realised that I was interested to be at the intersection of social science,
business, and technology and that was the best field for being there.
So, you weren’t necessarily a computer enthusiast or a techie?
No.
Weren’t you a bit scared to go into an area that has a technical foundation?
Yes, it was a little bit daunting, especially in second year when you do your first introduction to programming.
It was a little bit overwhelming going in, but I think
as soon as I got started I realised that you don’t need to be very technically inclined or
you don’t need to have a background in any kind of technical field because it’s aimed
at people who want to understand the technical stuff, but not necessarily be focused on that.
What did you enjoy most of your four years at Stellenbosch University?
I think at a high-level overview, just studying the informatics field and being able to see the
different components of it and being able to experience those.
It was a lot to get through in three years and then obviously this year as well,
but I really enjoyed being able to see all of the different things that you could do.
Because I think my conception coming into university was that you choose one thing and you stay in that.
Being able to be flexible through the different focal areas was definitely my favourite part.
Excellent. In addition to these technical skills that you picked up, looking back, what was the most important thing that you learned?
I think learning how to learn actually. That sounds a bit funny, but being able to
be confronted with something that you know nothing about and then going along the process of figuring
it out, navigating that area and then actually learning it, that’s for me been the most valuable skill.
It’s taught me that even though I don’t see myself as a very technical person, I can learn
that and I think that’s been something that’s definitely grown as I’ve gone through university.
If you think of students sitting in Grade 11 or Grade 12, thinking of careers,
coming to university, what sort of student would you recommend informatics for?
I think anybody who has interests that are not limited to one thing. If I think of myself,
like I said, I’d always been interested in a couple of different things and
I’d never really known that there was something that catered to that.
And so, I think it’s really great to take a subject like Socio-Informatics or Information Systems
if you’re not really sure exactly where you fit yet because you do get a lot of exposure to so
many different things and it opened my mind to knowing that I don’t have to choose one things.
Excellent. Thank so much, Emma, really appreciate it. All right, everyone,
I really hope to see you in class in the near future for an exciting career in informatics.