Powering up proficiencies

As technology continues to drive change in ways that could hardly have been imagined even a decade ago, Hong Kong universities are tailoring their full- and part-time master's programmes to reflect both local and international emerging trends.

Professor Jogesh Muppala, programme director for the MSc in Information Technology (IT) offered by the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST), says these days, simply getting an undergraduate degree is no longer sufficient to move up the career ladder.

Like many other professionals dealing with technology, Muppala says IT will remain a major industry in the long term and requires workers with the highest level of technical skills.

"IT as an industry has become the backbone for many traditional sectors such as manufacturing, logistics, banking and financial services, transportation, and medicine, as well as emerging industries such as entertainment, multimedia and mobile services," he says.

He believes the higher technical expertise, coupled with the ability to become a team leader, that HKUST provides is essential for future success. "Advanced training provided by our MSc in IT programme is relevant in keeping Hong Kong's IT workforce up to date with the latest technologies, and providing them with the skills to become leaders," he says.

He points out, though, that IT as a field continues to rapidly change and skill sets acquired just a few years ago can quickly be rendered obsolete. IT workers should be geared towards acquiring new skills on a continuous basis in order to avoid falling behind. "People already in the IT industry will find our programme a major stepping stone towards upward mobility in their career," he says.