Undergraduate handbook 2004
Information Technology

Bachelor of Software Engineering

Course code: 2770 + Clayton + Course coordinator: Dr Sita Ramakrishnan, enquiries@csse.monash.edu.au, http://www.csse.monash.edu.au + Four years full-time (part-time only by special permission) + Approximately 24 hours of contact and 24 hours of self study per week is required

Introduction

The Bachelor of Software Engineering (BSE) is offered by the School of Computer Science and Software Engineering, with teaching involved from the School of Business Systems.
The course aims to prepare students for careers in software engineering, software project management, and software development and integration. Many economic sectors, including business and finance, tourism, manufacturing, and information and telecommunications technologies, critically depend on software engineering skills.
Software engineering comprises the core principles consistent in software construction and maintenance: fundamental software processes and life-cycles, mathematical foundations of software engineering, requirements analysis, software engineering methodologies and standard notations, principles of software architecture and reuse, software quality frameworks and validation, software development, and maintenance environments and tools.
Current industry-strength programming languages, technologies and systems feature highly in the practical components, electives and projects of the course, but are also taught with a view to understanding and applying principles underlying their more ephemeral character. Experts estimate that half of all current technologies become obsolete in approximately three years.
Graduates who can offer skills in these areas are in demand by business and government organisations concerned with software development on a large scale. Such skills are equally important to small projects and businesses, providing software engineering and integration services to government or large private organisations.

Objectives

Knowledge and understanding

On completion of a Bachelor of Software Engineering, students are expected to have acquired a basic knowledge and understanding of:

• analysis, synthesis and design of complex systems
• ethical standards and legal responsibilities
• principles of management of physical, human and financial resources
• mathematical foundations of software engineering and applying mathematics to software problems
• team and team management skills in moderate or large-scale teams
• software engineering process and life-cycle
• software systems interfaces and design
• software architecture and reuse
• software development methodologies and notations
• programming languages and operating systems
• quality frameworks, validation and reliability as it applies to software systems
• software and other applicable engineering standards including documentation
• development and maintenance environments for large-scale software systems
• software system measurements including evaluating system performance.

Professional skills

Students will be expected to develop professional skills, which enable them to:

• write and speak competently
• listen critically to the needs of clients
• relate to others, especially in working teams
• reason and argue convincingly
• critically evaluate assumptions and arguments
• identify and solve problems efficiently
• think creatively about approaches to problems
• perform independent research and analysis
• use time and resources efficiently and effectively
• continue to learn effectively throughout their careers
• cope with rapid changes in the discipline and related disciplines
• translate user requirements into a system specification
• use existing techniques effectively and be able to develop new techniques
• design, engineer and maintain software systems
• formulate models of information systems
• evaluate the usability and performance of computer systems and in particular software systems in terms of economics, safety and environmental impact.

Course structure

The course commences with the establishment of a sound foundation in introductory information technology and mathematics. All information technology units have approximately one-third laboratory-based programs.
In the later years, the introduction of major software engineering projects builds the students' self-reliance and planning capabilities in both individual and team-based environments. Project management units strengthen the formal basis of management skills. Elective units are provided to allow specialisation in some aspect of the field of study, with free electives to permit broadening of intellectual and personal horizons.

The course structure balances four major strands:
1. Synthesis: software systems construction and design, including methodologies and notations.
2. Analysis: software artifact analysis including mathematical foundations, evaluation and measurement.
3. Processes: software and team management including software lifecycle and software projects.

4. Systems: understanding, abstracting, reusing and maintaining systems and components, including exposure to the architecture and principles of large systems such as operating systems and distributed systems.
The first three strands correspond approximately to the units in columns one through three of the following course map. The fourth strand, systems, is scattered through the table. Some units fall clearly into only one of these strands. Others, particularly early units, may address several strands.
The four-year course is based upon the four-year engineering degree structure, from which it is derived. In particular, the honours program is integral with the four years of study and is undertaken in the fourth year, with enrolment in the honours program predicated upon students reaching a credit level of performance in the first three-year levels. This standard of performance is determined from a weighted average of results over the first three levels, with first level having a weight of one, second level a weight of two, and third level a weight of three. These results, together with results in the fourth and final level, are used to determine final grades, with final-level results having a weight of six and the overall result is graded according to the honours system (I, IIA, IIB, III).

Entry requirements

Entry to the course is normally through the Victorian Tertiary Admissions Centre (VTAC). The prerequisites are VCE units 3 and 4 with a study score of at least 20 in each of English (any) and Mathematical Methods.

Advanced standing and transition

Students who have done ENG1601 will be exempt from CSE1401. Similarly, CSE1305 will be credited as equivalent to CSE1402 for the purposes of the BSE. Failures in ENG1601 will be required to do CSE1401. ENG1601 and CSE1401 will be prohibited combinations.

Electives

A maximum of 60 credit points of level 1 units, and no more than 60 credit points of level 2 units are counted.

Degree requirements

To fulfil the degree regulations, students are required to complete the following core units, together with electives, to a total value of 192 credit points.

Honours program in software engineering - level 4

The honours program in software engineering is by invitation only. A weighted point-based average of credit grade for level 1, 2 and 3 core units is the minimum requirements for entry to the Bachelor of Software Engineering honours program.

CSE4402 is a 12-point honours research project, available only to students undertaking the honours version of the degree.

• CSE4002 Software engineering studio project
• CSE4333 Parallel systems
• CSE4431 System validation and verification, quality and standard
• CSE4402 Software engineering honours project
• CSE3/4xxx elective
• CSE3/4xxx elective

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