Future students

Bachelor of IT / Bachelor of Commerce (BIT/BCom)

In this combined degree students will be working towards two degrees. This normally takes seven years; by combining the degrees students will be able to complete the requirements for both in five years.

UAI

The UAI for the BIT/BCom in 2008 was 94.80.

Overview

Students will undertake one major from the Business faculty (for e.g., Accounting, Finance, Economics) and a stream from IT (Computer Science or Information Systems). Students will have the opportunity to not only learn skills and vocabulary from both disciplines but also imbibe their cultures. They will have the opportunity to practice their combined skills in project-based courses and through industry internships. The ratio of IT to Business content is 60:40.

Career opportunities

Graduates should move into careers in management and technical consulting, information services management, information architecture, web development and management. The aim is to produce graduates who are sought after by a diverse range of high-end employers, including management consulting firms; major financial institutions; and multinational IT companies.

Assumed knowledge

Mathematics or HSC Mathematics Extension 1 is assumed knowledge for this degree. Other assumed knowledge depends on first year subjects selected.

Professional recognition

The BIT is accredited by the Australian Computer Society. Students who complete a sequence of units in fields including accounting, commercial law and finance are recognised for professional qualifications by CPA Australia and the Institute of Chartered Accountants.

Sample table: BIT Honours (IS Stream) + BCom

Industry demand

The BIT/BCom has been developed to meet the strong demand from the industry for graduates who have exceptional skills in both IT (Computer Science & Information Systems) and Business (for e.g., Finance, Accounting, Economics, Marketing) and will become future captains and leaders of the industry.

There are some underlying trends in the Australian and the world economy which are partly driving this demand. For example, there is a surge in the demand for graduates with combined skills in IT and Accounting because of increasing compliance requirements by regulatory authorities in Australia and overseas. One of the implications of the strict compliance is the need for continuous reporting which can only be implemented when both the Finance and IT departments in companies work closely together.

There is also a high demand for students with combined skills in computer science and finance because of the proliferation of new investment instruments (as implemented by hedge funds and private equity firms) which require a strong background in finance, computer algorithms, econometrics and numerical computing.

Similarly the whole concept of marketing is undergoing a paradigm shift with the popularity of social computing as witnessed through web sites like Myspace and Facebook.

IT jobs in Australia are climbing up the value chain and are becoming more customer-centric. A corollary of this phenomenon is that both IT and Business professionals have to understand the vocabulary and appreciate each other's operating methods.