This programme combines the best elements of the previous BEng(SE) and BSc(CSIS) programmes to form a curriculum that is timely, practical, and essential for aspiring students and future IT professionals. From the BSc(CSIS) programme, the BEng(CompSc) programme preserves all the fundamental concepts and theories of computer science which continue to serve as a strong foundation for many new technologies and advances in computing. The BEng(CompSc) programme has also adopted the best elements from the BEng(SE) programme, which are the various techniques and methodologies for an engineering approach to developing high-quality software.

Besides lecture-based courses, students have to go through practical training 'workshop training' and 'industrial training' in order to learn to put theories into practice and to obtain experience useful for their future careers. The industrial training may be carried out locally in Hong Kong, in Mainland China, or in a foreign country. In addition to the final year project, students are required to complete an integrated project in the second year, aimed at giving them an overall, integrated view of the various subjects they have learned. Students interested in research may also opt for a credit-bearing research internship which provides the opportunity to work under the supervision of a teacher in a research project. The design of the curriculum stresses flexibility. Students will be able to select from a large variety of courses to fulfil the requirement on elective courses, and these elective courses may be used as credits for a minor study offered by another department or faculty, such as Business, Finance, Music etc. In addition, students may opt for a second major in Risk Management, Mathematics or Statistics offered by the Faculty of Science. Students will also find it easy to enrol in an exchange programme to spend one or more semesters in an overseas institution.

PROFESSIONAL RECOGNITION

Accreditation for the programme from the Hong Kong Institution of Engineers will be sought.

CAREER PROSPECTS

Information technology permeates every sector of society, be it banking & finance, building & construction, the government, education, IT & telecom, property, and manufacturing. IT is without dispute the chief enabler of better operations in any of these industries. Therefore, IT needs are everywhere, and they call for solutions to be provided by the best trained IT personnel. As enterprises become more aware of the benefits of adopting IT, the need for more and better IT professionals is constantly on the increase. The HKSAR Government in a recent manpower report has projected a substantial shortage of IT manpower in Hong Kong in a few years' time, when Hong Kong will become a major logistic hub for Asia. A degree in IT from a reputable university such as HKU will be a valuable asset in the career market. Over 90% of the programme's past graduates have obtained IT posts as analyst programmers, system engineers, web administrators, web designers, sales executives, customer service executives, system specialists and systems/software developers. Those with several years of experience are able to move up to senior posts such as systems analysts, system architects and project managers.

Alternatively, a graduate could choose to pursue further studies. Given the reputation and standing of HKU, many of its past graduates have secured places in leading schools in the US or elsewhere to study a masters or doctoral degree. The Department of Computer Science also offers several postgraduate degree programmes in the IT area that are of international standard and highly popular. It is also possible to switch field to obtain a non-IT qualification such as an MBA, for which IT knowledge is a definite advantage.