NCI Course Details

Career Prospects

Research shows that cloud computing will transform every aspect of business, from logistics to customer relationships to the way teams work together, and today’s organizations are preparing for this seismic shift. This Irish government has developed a comprehensive strategic approach to develop the sector in recognition of Ireland’s potential to become a world leader in Cloud Computing. This focus has already attracted world leaders, such as EMC, Citrix and Dropbox. (IDA, 2019). The skills in demand today are: Java, Linux, Amazon Web Services(AWS), Software Development, DevOps, Docker and Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS), included in roles such as: Cloud Architect, Cloud Software Engineer, Cloud Sales, Cloud Engineer, Cloud Systems Administrator, Cloud Consultant, Cloud Network Engineer, Cloud Product Manager.

Through the Cloud Competency Centre at NCI, this programme has been actively engaged with major cloud multinationals (AWS, IBM, and Microsoft). Additionally, we have received support from indigenous cloud-intensive companies. Recent graduates from this course have gone on to fill roles in Susquehanna International Group (Citrix Engineer), Paddy Power Betfair (Associate Java Developer), 888spectate.com (Frontend Developer), Hertz (Data Engineer), Tickets.ie (.NET Developer), Citi (Technology Analyst), SAP (Support Engineer), HP Enterprise (Network Engineer), Asavie (Site& Reliability Engineer), IBM (Operations Engineer), Workday (Operations Engineer).

Who is the course for?

This computing course will appeal to computer science or engineering graduates, ICT industry practitioners, system administrators, and those with an interest in gaining practical experience in cloud computing.

As a graduate of this course you will be able to:

• Create and deploy commercial multi-tier applications onto multiple (public/ hybrid) cloud platforms
• Plan and architect highly-scalable computing/data analytics solutions for business and scientific needs
• Design pattern-based application code to run efficiently in a cloud environment
• Evaluate security strategies associated with cloud computing and apply them to ensure the technical sustainability of an organisation
• Perform a migration from a traditional ICT environment to a cloud-based platform
• Manage the process of running an IT department from a cloud environment

Course Content

For information on the modules taught on this course view our module descriptors.

Award and Progression

Graduates of the Postgraduate Diploma in Cloud Computing are awarded an NFQ Level 9 qualification and can optionally complete the additional 30 credits required to upgrade their qualification to the MSc in Cloud Computing.(Not included under Springboard+, additional fee would apply).

Academic Entry Requirements

To be admitted as a student, an applicant must have earned an honours (NFQ Level 8) primary degree in Computing or a cognate area with a 2.2 award or higher. Candidates are expected to have programming ability. Cognate area means a STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) degree included a significant number of computer programming modules. An assessment and/or interview may be conducted to ascertain suitability if necessary for candidates who do not meet the normal academic requirements.

Non- English speaking applicants must demonstrate fluency in the English language as demonstrated by IELTS academic score of at least 6.0 or equivalent.

Technology Requirements

NCI is prepared to adhere to Government directives for course delivery in September 2021. Investments have been made in technology for online learning, as well as campus enhancements if face-to-face classes are permissible.

This programme has a BYOD (Bring Your Own Device) policy. Specifically, students are expected to successfully participate in lectures, laboratories and projects using a portable computer (laptop/notebook) with a substantial hardware configuration. Its minimal suitable configuration is 8GB of RAM (16GB are recommended); a modern 64-bit x86 multi-core processor (Intel i5 or superior); 250+ GB of available space in hard disk; WiFi card; and a recent version of Ubuntu, macOS, or Windows.

It is the responsibility of each student to ensure her/his computer is functioning correctly and that she/he has full administrator rights. NCI IT cannot provide support for these personal devices.

Course Assessment

The course will be assessed with a blend of project work and exams. This varies between modules but typically assessment is 50% continuous assessment and 50% exam. Please note that in some instances exams may take place in the daytime.

Indicative Schedule

Tuesday and Thursday 18.00 - 22.00 and a number of Saturdays 09.00 - 18.00.

Please note that exams can be scheduled during the morning, afternoon or evening Monday to Saturday.

Duration

1 Year, 3 semesters from September to December 2019, January to May 2020 and late May to August 2020.

Course Fee

This course is free to eligible applicants. The scheme does not cover any allowance for books or materials.