Courses
The curriculum depends on the student’s background. Students with a business background follow the foundation courses on ICT (15 ECTS total). Students with an ICT background follow the foundation courses on Business (15 ECTS total). Students with a Bachelor degree ‘Informatica & Economie’ from Leiden University are exempted from the courses in the foundation modules. These students follow additional electives instead for 15 ECTS. Students who choose for the specialisation ICT in Business need to take all courses from the Module specialisation ICT in Business (24 ECTS in total), whereas students who choose for the specialisation ICT in the Public Sector take all courses from the Module specialisation ICT in the Public Sector (24 ECTS in total).
Students who have started the programme before September 2020 need to complete all main courses except for Capstone Cases (only if they have chosen for the specialization ICT in the Public Sector), System Development, and Advances in Data Mining, Marketing, Accounting, Business Intelligence, Process Modelling, and Foundations of Software Testing. Students who have chosen before 1 September 2020 for the specialisation ICT in Business need to take all courses from the Module specialisation ICT in Business except for Systems Optimisation. If completed before 1 September 2020, the courses Corporate Decision Making, and Corporate Entrepreneurship will be considered as electives of the Module specialisation ICT in Business. Students who have chosen before 1 September 2020 for the specialisation ICT in the Public Sector need to take all courses from the Module specialisation ICT in the Public Sector. Eventual extra courses needed to reach a total of 120 EC need to be discussed with the programme coordinator and may need the approval of the Board of Examiners if the selection include courses not in this programme.
As of September 2020 the course Capstone Cases is 4 EC worth (it was 3 EC). Students who have followed a previous version of this course before September 2020 but have not yet passed it, can still get 4 EC (instead of 3 EC) under the condition that they take the extra two Consultancy classes that will be organized in the new Capstone Case course. Arrangements for this needs to be made via the programme coordinator.
Students who started before 1 September 2021 and have already successfully completed the previously mandatory courses Managing Innovation or Managing the Digital Business, do not need to follow Managing Software Evolution or AI for Strategy.
Students with a bachelor degree ‘Informatica & Economie’ from Leiden University are exempted from the course: Strategic Financial Management, and follow within the module specialisation ICT in Business 3 extra EC as elective courses instead of 9 EC.
September starters are advised to take the following mandatory courses in their third semester: Leading and Managing People, Advances in Datamining, Applied Research Methodology and their electives.
February starters are advised to contact their study advisor in order to balance their studyload in the second, third and fourth semester.
As of 2019-2020, the Post Experience programme (for candidates with working experience) is no longer offered. Current PE students (starting September 2017 and earlier) will be enabled to finish their studies.
Career Orientation
During the Master program ICT in Business and the Public Sector (ICTiBPS) we want to provide you with the best possible preparation for the job market. In addition to knowledge, it is important that you develop skills, gain practical experience, orientate on positions & careers, and reflect on your own profile and development. In addition to substantive knowledge, it is also important to be aware of the so-called transferable skills that you develop outside and during your education. These are, for example, your cognitive skills such as critical thinking and communication. Altogether, this contributes to your development as a professional and offers good preparation for the labour market.
The career perspective for ICTiBPS is very promising. Most students find a job within 3 months after graduation. Students benefit from the department’s strong links to industry. There are well-developed in -company research thesis internships, often followed by excellent career opportunities. With a master’s degree in ICT in Business, job opportunities are excellent and diverse, ranging from consultancy to IT management and from entrepreneurship to PhD research.
Nevertheless, questions about this subject may arise during your studies, such as: How can you use the knowledge and skills you gain within and outside your study program in the labor market? Which direction do you choose within your study and why? What are you already able to do, and what skills do you still want to learn? How do you translate the courses you choose into something you would like to do later?
You may have already discussed this with the study advisor, mentor, tutor, the Science Career Service, fellow students or made use of the Leiden University Career Zone. All kinds of activities are organized where you get the chance to orientate yourself on the job market and gives opportunities to reflect on your own development, possibilities and (study) career profile as well. Central to this are the questions: "What are my capabilities?", "What do I want?" and "How do I achieve my goals?".
In the prospectus, learning objectives have been formulated for each subject, the purpose of which is to inform you which components are covered in the development of your (study) career profile and preparation for the labour market. Various activities are also organized that help you in making all kinds of career choices and to develop skills. An overview of activities is shown below.
Activities
First and/or second year
Company visits and presentations
Lunch & Learn lectures by companies
Introductory meeting with the study advisor
Mentorship and tutoring
Workshops and Career Colleges Science Career Service
De Leidsche Flesch meeting
Second year
Masterclass ICT in Business and the Public Sector
Alumni lectures
Company visits and presentations (Capstone Cases)
Master Career Orientation Day via De Leidsche Flesch
Science Career Event
Master's Open day (Leiden University)
Workshops and Career Colleges Science Career Service
Science Career Service
Science Career Service, one of the utilities of the Science faculty, offers information and advice on study (re)orientation, career planning and personal professional profile as well as preparation for the job market, such as job applications. Facilities provided to students include online information, walk-in consultations, workshops and individual counselling sessions. In addition, Science Career Service offers expertise and support to programmes that want to strengthen the connection between their curriculum and the job market. This can vary from providing specific guest lectures/workshops to advising on integrating career orientation programmes into the curriculum.
LU Career Zone
The Leiden University Career Zone is the website for students and alumni of Leiden University to support their (study) career planning. You will find advice, information, video recordings of webinars and tools such as professional tests to get an idea of your personal profile. You can also explore positions and sectors, you will find tips about CV, job application, LinkedIn and there is a vacancy platform that you can make use of.
Mentornetwerk
Leiden University likes to prepare students and young alumni well for the job market. For this we use the knowledge and experience of Leiden alumni. To bring students and young alumni with questions about their careers into contact with experienced alumni, Leiden University has established the Mentor Network. Students and young alumni can register for free.
Contact
Do you have questions about your (study) career choices and has the above information not been able to help you further? Please contact your study advisor via mastercs@liacs.leidenuniv.nl.
