Business Informatics
Cross-cultural differences between Germany and Australia
©2003
Diplomarbeit
173 Seiten
Zusammenfassung
Inhaltsangabe:Abstract:
This study gives an overview about the Business Informatics discipline in Australia with a strong focus on Business Informatics aspects at Australian universities.
Therefore the different terms Business Informatics and Information Systems (IS) are defined first in chapter 2.
The approach taken to exploring Business Informatics at Australian universities was to conduct intensive interviews with eleven Australian university IS academics within the following states and territories of the country: Queensland, New South Wales, The Australian National Capital and Victoria.
Questions were asked relating to the specific universitiy, the educational Business Informatics courses on offer, the organisational structure and cultural aspects within the Business Informatics discipline. The results of the interviews are then supported by a strong web and literature review and are shown summarized in chapter 3.
Additional information was obtained by the 13th Australasian Conference on Information Systems (ACIS) from 4th to 6th of December 2002 at the Victoria University Building in Melbourne. The conference gave an insight into topics as Online Learning, the IS discipline at universities and Approaches for Problem-Based Learning in Information Systems. These conference papers are summarized presented in chapter 4.
This detailed overview of IS in Australian universities can then be compared to the Business Informatics discipline in German universities. Several aspects are considered for this in chapter 5 like the educational offers within this discipline area, the organisational structure of Business Informatics/IS within universities and cultural aspects in dependence to the structure of the interview guideline.
Differences and similarities within the Business Informatics/IS discipline in higher education between Germany and Australia are explored, which is the aim of this study. Additional recommendations from the author should be seen as a thought-provoking-impulse and support further development in higher education.
Inhaltsverzeichnis:Table of Contents:
Abstracti
Declarationii
Acknowledgementsiii
List of Tablesiv
List of Figuresvi
Glossary of Acronymsviii
1INTRODUCTION1
1.1MOTIVATION5
1.2OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY10
1.3RESEARCH METHODOLOGY AND DELIMITATIONS11
1.4STRUCTURE OF THE THESIS13
2BUSINESS INFORMATICS IN AUSTRALIA: A DEFINITION FROM A GERMAN PERSPECTIVE15
3INFORMATION SYSTEMS AND RELATEDSTUDIES AT AUSTRALIAN […]
This study gives an overview about the Business Informatics discipline in Australia with a strong focus on Business Informatics aspects at Australian universities.
Therefore the different terms Business Informatics and Information Systems (IS) are defined first in chapter 2.
The approach taken to exploring Business Informatics at Australian universities was to conduct intensive interviews with eleven Australian university IS academics within the following states and territories of the country: Queensland, New South Wales, The Australian National Capital and Victoria.
Questions were asked relating to the specific universitiy, the educational Business Informatics courses on offer, the organisational structure and cultural aspects within the Business Informatics discipline. The results of the interviews are then supported by a strong web and literature review and are shown summarized in chapter 3.
Additional information was obtained by the 13th Australasian Conference on Information Systems (ACIS) from 4th to 6th of December 2002 at the Victoria University Building in Melbourne. The conference gave an insight into topics as Online Learning, the IS discipline at universities and Approaches for Problem-Based Learning in Information Systems. These conference papers are summarized presented in chapter 4.
This detailed overview of IS in Australian universities can then be compared to the Business Informatics discipline in German universities. Several aspects are considered for this in chapter 5 like the educational offers within this discipline area, the organisational structure of Business Informatics/IS within universities and cultural aspects in dependence to the structure of the interview guideline.
Differences and similarities within the Business Informatics/IS discipline in higher education between Germany and Australia are explored, which is the aim of this study. Additional recommendations from the author should be seen as a thought-provoking-impulse and support further development in higher education.
Inhaltsverzeichnis:Table of Contents:
Abstracti
Declarationii
Acknowledgementsiii
List of Tablesiv
List of Figuresvi
Glossary of Acronymsviii
1INTRODUCTION1
1.1MOTIVATION5
1.2OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY10
1.3RESEARCH METHODOLOGY AND DELIMITATIONS11
1.4STRUCTURE OF THE THESIS13
2BUSINESS INFORMATICS IN AUSTRALIA: A DEFINITION FROM A GERMAN PERSPECTIVE15
3INFORMATION SYSTEMS AND RELATEDSTUDIES AT AUSTRALIAN […]
Leseprobe
Inhaltsverzeichnis
ID 6820
Retzer, Silke: Business Informatics - Cross-cultural differences between Germany and
Australia
Hamburg: Diplomica GmbH, 2003
Zugl.: Regensburg, Universität, Diplomarbeit, 2003
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Diplomica GmbH
http://www.diplom.de, Hamburg 2003
Printed in Germany
a
a
People will never change completely -
But you are on the way to develop your self
- as everybody has the opportunity to ...
a
a
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Abstract
...
i
Declaration
...
ii
Acknowledgements
...
iii
List of Tables
...
iv
List of Figures
...
vi
Glossary of Acronyms
...
viii
1.INTRODUCTION... 1
1.1.
M
OTIVATION
... 5
1.2.
O
BJECTIVES OF THE
S
TUDY
...10
1.3.
R
ESEARCH
M
ETHODOLOGY AND
D
ELIMITATIONS
...11
1.4.
S
TRUCTURE OF THE THESIS
...13
2.BUSINESS INFORMATICS IN AUSTRALIA:
A DEFINITION FROM A GERMAN PERSPECTIVE ... 15
3.INFORMATION SYSTEM S AND RELATED STUDIES AT AUSTRALIAN
UNIVERSITIES ... 22
3.1.
IS
STRUCTURES AT
A
USTRALIAN UNIVERSITIES
...22
3.2.
S
TUDYING
I
NFORMATION
S
YSTEMS AT
A
USTRALIAN
U
NIVERSITIES
...29
3.2.1. IS Degrees... 29
3.2.2. Requirements for Studying IS... 33
3.2.3. Fees for Studying IS ... 36
3.2.4. Examples of two IS degree description ... 37
3.3.
T
EACHING METHODS AND QUALITY ASSURANCE IN THE
IS
DISCIPLINE
...41
3.3.1. Teaching Methods ... 41
3.3.2. Quality Assurance ... 43
3.4.
V
ISITED
U
NIVERSITIES
...46
3.4.1. Central Queensland University (CQU) ... 47
3.4.2. Deakin University (Deakin) ... 50
3.4.3. Queensland University of Technology (QUT) ... 53
3.4.4. University of Queensland (UQ) ... 56
3.4.5. University of New South Wales (UNSW) ... 58
3.4.6. University of Sydney (Sydney)... 60
3.4.7. University of Technology Sydney (UTS) ... 62
3.4.8. Australian National University (ANU) ... 65
3.4.9. University of Canberra (UC)... 67
3.4.10. Monash University (Monash) ... 70
3.4.11. University of Melbourne (UniMelb) ... 72
3.4.12. Summary and Conclusion ... 75
a
a
4.STATE-OF-THE-ART OF INFORMATION SYSTEM S AT AUSTRALIAN
UNIVERSITIES REFERED TO THE 13TH AUSTRALASIAN CONFERENCE
ON INFORMATION SYSTEMS, 2002, MELBOURNE... 83
4.1.
D
ISCUSSING THE
IS D
ISCIPLINE
...83
4.2.
A P
ROBLEM
-B
ASED
L
EARNING
A
PPROACH FOR
IS ...85
4.3.
T
EACHING
O
NLINE
...87
4.4.
C
ONCLUSION
...90
5.FINDINGS ... 91
5.1.
E
DUCATIONAL
B
USINESS
I
NFORMATICS
/IS O
FFERS
A
T
U
NIVERSITIES
...92
5.1.1. Business Informatics/IS Degrees ... 92
5.1.2. Business Informatics/IS Discipline Curriculum And Single Subjects... 95
5.1.3. Business Informatics/IS Teaching Methods And Quality Assurance ... 99
5.2.
O
RGANISATIONAL
S
TRUCTURE
O
F
B
USINESS
I
NFORMATICS
/IS I
N
U
NIVERSITIES
...102
5.2.1. Location Of Schools/Departments And Chairs Within Faculties ... 102
5.2.2. Organisational Structure Of Business Informatics/IS Departments/Schools
And Chairs ... 104
5.2.3. The Academic Career Path... 106
5.2.4. Financial Aspects And The Contribution Of Study Fees ... 109
5.3.
C
ULTURAL
A
SPECTS
...111
5.3.1. The Level Of Internationality And Its Influence On Higher Education ... 111
5.3.2. Women In Business Informatics/IS (Students And Academics) ... 113
5.3.3. Organisational Culture ... 115
5.3.4. Alumni tradition ... 116
5.3.5. The Relationship Between Student And Academic... 117
5.3.6. Study Fees ... 118
5.4.
C
ONCLUSION
...119
6.CONCLUSION ... 120
6.1.
R
ECAPITULATION
...120
6.2.
O
UTLOOK
...121
REFERENCES ... 122
APPENDIX A ... 129
APPENDIX B ... 131
APPENDIX C ... 133
APPENDIX D ... 136
APPENDIX E ... 139
APPENDIX F... 140
Business Informatics Cross-cultural differences between Germany and Australia
i
ABSTRACT
This study gives an overview about the Business Informatics discipline in
Australia with a strong focus on Business Informatics aspects at Australian
universities.
Therefore the different terms Business Informatics and Information Systems
(IS) are defined first in chapter 2.
The approach taken to exploring Business Informatics at Australian universities
was to conduct intensive interviews with eleven Australian university IS
academics within the following states and territories of the country:
Queensland, New South Wales, The Australian National Capital and Victoria.
Questions were asked relating to the specific universitiy, the educational
Business Informatics courses on offer, the organisational structure and cultural
aspects within the Business Informatics discipline. The results of the interviews
are then supported by a strong web and literature review and are shown
summarized in chapter 3 .
Additional information was obtained by the 13
th
Australasian Conference on
Information Systems (ACIS) from 4
th
to 6
th
of December 2002 at the Victoria
University Building in Melbourne. The conference gave an insight into topics as
Online Learning, the IS discipline at universities and Approaches for Problem-
Based Learning in Information Systems. These conference papers are
summarized presented in chapter 4.
This detailed overview of IS in Australian universities can then be compared to
the Business Informatics discipline in German universities. Several aspects are
considered for this in chapter 5 like the educational offers within this discipline
area, the organisational structure of Business Informatics/IS within universities
and cultural aspects in dependence to the structure of the interview guideline.
Differences and similarities within the Business Informatics/IS discipline in
higher education between Germany and Australia are explored, which is the
aim of this study. Additional recommendations from the author should be seen
as a thought-provoking-impulse and support further development in higher
education.
Business Informatics Cross-cultural differences between Germany and Australia
iii
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Special thanks are due to
The School of Information Systems, Deakin University, Geelong, Australia;
The Department of Business Informatics III, Prof. Dr. Franz Lehner, Regensburg,
Germany and
The International Office of the University of Regensburg
who made this project possible with their support and assistance.
Further thanks
for their interest, assistance and participation in the interviews for this study
are due to
Annemieke Craig, Deakin University, Geelonog, Australia.
Ross Smith, Deakin University, Geelong, Australia.
Brian Corbitt, Deakin University, Geelong, Australia.
David Mackay, Deakin University, Geelong, Australia.
Julie Fisher, Monash University, Melbourne, Australia.
Elizabeth Tansley, Central Queensland University, Rockhampton, Australia.
Michael Rosemann, Queensland University of Technology, Brisbane, Australia.
Colin Ferguson, University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia.
Geoffery Dick, University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia.
Joseph Davis, University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia.
David Wilson, University of Technology Sydney, Sydney, Australia.
Dennis Hart, Australian National University, Canberra, Australia.
Craig McDonald, University of Canberra, Canberra, Australia.
Graehme Shanks, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Australia.
Hans Lehmann, University of Wellington, New Zealand.
Shawn Alborz, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Australia.
Additional thanks are due to Annemieke Craig, Deakin University and Michael
Walz, University of Regensburg for taking the time to proofread this study.
Business Informatics Cross-cultural differences between Germany and Australia
iv
LIST OF TABLES
T
ABLE
1.1: C
OMPARISON OF GENERAL FIGURES BETWEEN
A
USTRALIA AND
G
ERMANY
...5
T
ABLE
1.2: P
ROPORTION OF OVERSEAS TO NON
-
OVERSEAS STUDENTS IN
IS
COURSES
...6
T
ABLE
2.1: 25 G
ERMAN UNIVERSITIES WITH AN INDEPENDENT
B
USINESS
I
NFORMATICS
STUDY COURSE
...20
T
ABLE
2.2: 16 A
USTRALIAN UNIVERSITIES WITH AN INDEPENDENT
I
NFORMATION
S
YSTEMS
STUDY COURSE
...21
T
ABLE
3.1: A
USTRALIAN
B
UREAU OF
S
TATISTICS
2003, IT
AS A
B
ROAD
F
IELD OF
EDUCATION
...24
T
ABLE
3.2: L
OCATION OF
I
NFORMATION
S
YSTEMS
S
CHOOLS
/D
EPARTMENTS
(
SOURCE
AUTC, 2002) ...27
T
ABLE
3.3: IS
DEPARTMENTS WITHIN
A
USTRALIAN UNIVERSITIES
, 2002 ...28
T
ABLE
3.4: 15
INDEPENDENT
IS
DEGREES AT
A
USTRALIAN UNIVERSITIES
...32
T
ABLE
3.5: U
NIVERSITY
E
NTRANCE
S
CORES FOR
ICT
COURSES IN
V
ICTORIA
2002 ...34
T
ABLE
3.6: CQU,
GENERAL INFORMATION
2002 ...47
T
ABLE
3.7: D
EAKIN
,
GENERAL INFORMATION
2002...50
T
ABLE
3.8: QUT,
GENERAL INFORMATION
2002...53
T
ABLE
3.9: UQ,
GENERAL INFORMATION
2002 ...56
T
ABLE
3.10: UNSW,
GENERAL INFORMATION
2002 ...58
T
ABLE
3.11: S
YDNEY
,
GENERAL INFORMATION
2002...60
T
ABLE
3.12: UTS,
GENERAL INFORMATION
2002 ...62
T
ABLE
3.13: ANU,
GENERAL INFORMATION
2002...65
T
ABLE
3.14: UC,
GENERAL INFORMATION
2002 ...67
T
ABLE
3.15: M
ONASH
,
GENERAL INFORMATION
2002...70
T
ABLE
3.16: U
NI
M
ELB
,
GENERAL INFORMATION
2002 ...72
T
ABLE
3.17: C
OMPARISON OF
IS
FIGURES AND FACTS WITHIN THE VISITED
A
USTRALIAN
UNIVERSITIES IN
2002 ...77
Business Informatics Cross-cultural differences between Germany and Australia
v
T
ABLE
3.18: D
IRECTORY OF
5
OF THE VISITED
A
USTRALIAN UNIVERSITIES WITH MORE THAN
ONE
IS
DISCIPLINE IN ONE FACULTY
, 2002 ...78
T
ABLE
3.19: L
EVELS OF
D
ISTANCE
L
EARNING
M
ODE
...79
T
ABLE
3.20: L
EVELS OF
O
NLINE
L
EARNING
M
ODE
...79
T
ABLE
3.21 : L
EVELS OF
D
ISTANCE
L
EARNING AND
O
NLINE
L
EARNING OFFERS
2002...79
T
ABLE
3.22 : I
NTERNATIONAL COMPARISON OF THE STUDENT
/
STAFF RATIO
...80
T
ABLE
5.1: D
EGREE IN
G
ERMANY AND
A
USTRALIA
...92
T
ABLE
5.2: D
IFFERENT
B
USINESS
I
NFORMATICS
/IS
PROGRAM ASPECTS IN COMPARISON
..93
T
ABLE
5.3: D
IFFERENCES WITHIN SUBJECTS
/
MAIN TOPIC AREAS
...96
T
ABLE
5.4: Q
UALITY
A
SSURANCE IN
A
USTRALIAN AND
G
ERMAN HIGHER EDUCATION
...99
T
ABLE
5.5: O
FFER OF ONLINE
B
USINESS
I
NFORMATICS
/IS
SUBJECTS AND PROGRAMS
...101
T
ABLE
5.6: N
UMBER OF PROFESSORS IN
G
ERMANY
, US, A
USTRALIA
...106
T
ABLE
5.7: F
EMALES IN ACADEMIC
IS
POSITIONS IN
A
USTRALIA
...114
Business Informatics Cross-cultural differences between Germany and Australia
vi
LIST OF FIGURES
F
IGURE
1.1: A
USTRALIAN
Q
UALIFICATION
F
RAMEWORK
(AQF) ... 2
F
IGURE
1.2: A
USTRALIAN
M
ARKING
... 2
F
IGURE
1.3: G
ERMAN
M
ARKING
... 3
F
IGURE
1.4: C
OMMENCING
B
USINESS
I
NFORMATICS STUDENTS AT
G
ERMAN UNIVERSITIES
7
F
IGURE
1.5: V
ISITED
A
USTRALIAN UNIVERSITIES
... 12
F
IGURE
2.1: O
NE SEARCH ENGINE RESULT FOR
`W
IRTSCHAFTSINFORMATIK
'
IN
A
USTRALIA
FROM THE
G
ERMAN
A
CADEMIC
E
XCHANGE
S
ERVICE
... 16
F
IGURE
3.1: S
COPE OF THE
C
OMPUTING
S
TUDIES AND
I
NFORMATION
S
CIENCE DISCIPLINES
... 23
F
IGURE
3.2: I
NFORMATION
T
ECHNOLOGY
P
RINCIPAL
S
UBJECT
C
LUSTERS
(DEET
ET AL
1992: F
IGURE
2.1)... 25
F
IGURE
3.3:
THE
A
USTRALIAN AND
G
ERMAN SEMESTER TIMES
... 35
F
IGURE
3.4: O
RGANISATIONAL STRUCTURE OF THE
F
ACULTY OF
I
NFORMATICS AND
C
OMMUNICATION
, S
CHOOL OF
C
OMPUTING AND
IS, C
ENTRAL
Q
UEENSLAND
U
NIVERSITY
2002 ... 49
F
IGURE
3.5: O
RGANISATIONAL STRUCTURE OF THE
F
ACULTY OF
B
USINESS AND
L
AW
,
S
CHOOL OF
I
NFORMATION
S
YSTEMS
, D
EAKIN
U
NIVERSITY
2002... 52
F
IGURE
3.6: O
RGANISATIONAL STRUCTURE OF THE
F
ACULTY OF
I
NFORMATION
T
ECHNOLOGY
, S
CHOOL OF
I
NFORMATION
S
YSTEMS
, Q
UEENSLAND
U
NIVERSITY OF
T
ECHNOLOGY
2002 ... 55
F
IGURE
3.7: O
RGANISATIONAL STRUCTURE OF THE
F
ACULTY OF
B
USINESS
, E
CONOMICS
AND
L
AW
, S
CHOOL OF
B
USINESS
, U
NIVERSITY OF
Q
UEENSLAND
2002 ... 57
F
IGURE
3.8: O
RGANISATIONAL STRUCTURE OF THE
F
ACULTY OF
E
CONOMICS
&
C
OMMERCE
, S
CHOOL OF
I
NFORMATION
S
YSTEMS
, T
ECHNOLOGY
& M
ANAGEMENT
,
U
NIVERSITY OF
N
EW
S
OUTH
W
ALES
2002 ... 60
F
IGURE
3.9: O
RGANISATIONAL STRUCTURE OF THE
F
ACULTY OF
S
CIENCE
, S
CHOOL OF
I
NFORMATION
T
ECHNOLOGY
, U
NIVERSITY OF
S
YDNEY
2002 ... 62
F
IGURE
3.10: O
RGANISATIONAL STRUCTURE OF THE
F
ACULTY OF
I
NFORMATION
T
ECHNOLOGY
, D
EPARTMENT OF
I
NFORMATION
S
YSTEMS
, U
NIVERSITY OF
T
ECHNOLOGY
S
YDNEY
2002... 64
Business Informatics Cross-cultural differences between Germany and Australia
vii
F
IGURE
3.11: O
RGANISATIONAL STRUCTURE OF THE
F
ACULTY OF
E
CONOMICS
&
C
OMMERCE
, S
CHOOL OF
B
USINESS AND
I
NFORMATION
M
ANAGEMENT
, A
USTRALIAN
N
ATIONAL
U
NIVERSITY
2002... 67
F
IGURE
3.12: O
RGANISATIONAL STRUCTURE OF THE
F
ACULTY OF
B
USINESS
, L
AW
&
I
NFORMATION
S
CIENCES
, S
CHOOL OF
I
NFORMATION
S
CIENCES
& E
NGINEERING
,
U
NIVERSITY OF
C
ANBERRA
2002 ... 69
F
IGURE
3.13: O
RGANISATIONAL STRUCTURE OF THE
F
ACULTY OF
I
NFORMATION
T
ECHNOLOGY
, S
CHOOL OF
I
NFORMATION
M
ANAGEMENT AND
S
YSTEMS
, M
ONASH
U
NIVERSITY
2002 ... 72
F
IGURE
3.14: O
RGANISATIONAL STRUCTURE OF THE
F
ACULTY OF
S
CIENCE
, D
EPARTMENT
OF
I
NFORMATION
S
YSTEMS
, U
NIVERSITY OF
M
ELBOURNE
2002... 74
F
IGURE
5.1: T
YPICAL
A
USTRALIAN STRUCTURE OF
IS
WITHIN
D
EAKIN
U
NIVERSITY
... 104
F
IGURE
5.2: T
YPICAL
G
ERMAN STRUCTURE OF
B
USINESS
I
NFORMATICS WITHIN THE
U
NIVERSITY OF
R
EGENSBURG
... 105
F
IGURE
5.3: T
YPICAL
A
USTRALIAN
A
CADEMIC
C
AREER
P
ATH
... 107
F
IGURE
5.4: T
YPICAL
G
ERMAN
A
CADEMIC
C
AREER
P
ATH
... 107
F
IGURE
5.5: F
INANCIAL
S
OURCES OF HIGHER EDUCATION IN
A
USTRALIA
2001 ... 109
F
IGURE
5.6: F
INANCIAL
S
OURCES OF HIGHER EDUCATION IN
G
ERMANY
2000 ... 110
F
IGURE
5.7: P
ERCENTAGE OF ALL INTERNATIONAL STUDENTS AND
B
USINESS
I
NFORMATICS
/IS
STUDENTS
... 112
F
IGURE
5.8: F
EMALE
B
USINESS
I
NFORMATICS
/IS
STUDENTS IN
G
ERMANY AND
A
USTRALIA
... 114
Business Informatics Cross-cultural differences between Germany and Australia
viii
GLOSSARY OF ACRONYMS
ACS
Australian Computer Society
ACIS
Australasian Conference on Information Systems
ACER
Australian Council for Educational Research
AQF
Australian Qualification Framework
ASCED
Australian Standard Classification of Education
ASCPA
Australian Society of Certified Practicing Accountants
AUTC
Australian University Teaching Committee
BIS
Bachelor of Information Systems
BIT
Bachelor of Information Technology
CS
Computer Science
CSE
Computer Systems Engineering
DEAN
`Deutsch Australisches Netzwerk'
DEST
Department of Education, Science and Training
DEET
Department of Employment, Education and Training
DETYA
Department of Employment, Training and Youth Affaires
ERP
Enterprise Resource Planning
HECS
Higher Education Contribution Scheme
ICT
Information and Communication Technologies
IE(Aust)
Institution of Engineers (Australia)
IELTS
International English Language Test
IES
Institute for the International Education of Students
IS
Information Systems
IT
Information Technology
MBA
Master of Business Administration
MIS
Master of Information Systems
MIT
Master of Information Technology
n.e.c.
not elsewhere classified
Business Informatics Cross-cultural differences between Germany and Australia
ix
PBL
Problem-based Learning
PGradDip
Postgraduate Diploma
PGradCert
Postgraduate Diploma
PhD
Doctor of Philosophy
TAFE
Technical And Further Education
TOEFL
Test of English as a Foreign Language
UK
United Kingdom
US
United States
WWW
World Wide Web
Visited Australian Universities
1
ANU
The Australian National University
UC
University of Canberra
CQU
Central Queensland University
Deakin
Deakin University
UniMelb
The University of Melbourne
Monash
Monash University
UNSW
The University of New South Wales
UQ
The University of Queensland
QUT
Queensland University of Technology
Sydney
The University of Sydney
UTS
University of Technology Sydney
1
Abbreviations of Australian universities from the Australian Vice-Chancellors' Committee,
See http://www.avcc.edu.au
INTRODUCTION
page 1
1.
INTRODUCTION
Recent developments in the German higher education sector indicate,
that there is a step towards the introduction of international study
programs at German universities like the Bachelor and the Masters
Degree. Yet German universities do not want to disestablish their
traditional Diploma degrees.
There are already 665 Bachelor degrees and 803 Master degrees at
German universities in December 2002 (Goergen 2002).
In Australia, there are numerous international study programs
established: the Undergraduate program, to reach the Bachelor degree,
and the Postgraduate program, to reach a Masters degree. In addition to
a Bachelor degree, it is possible to do an Honours Year that includes
coursework and a research project. The requirement for commencing a
Bachelor degree is a high school pass or its equivalent. Usually,
Bachelor graduates need to be within the best 20 percent of all
graduates to be able to do an Honours Year (Keedy 1999).
For studying a Masters degree,
you first need to have a Bachelor
degree, a Graduate Diploma or a Graduate Certificate.
Studying the
Graduate Diploma or the Graduate Certificate
at a postgraduate level is
possible for people with industry experience or with a Bachelor or
equivalent degree.
These degrees provide graduate specialisation within
a systematic and coherent body of knowledge and develop or broaden
vocational knowledge, skills and practical experience in a new or existing
field of professional study (DEST 2002).
It is common in Australia that students with a Bachelor degree move
straight on to work in industry. All programs of study are designed to be
completed either full-time of part-time.
INTRODUCTION
page 2
F
IGURE
1.1: A
USTRALIAN
Q
UALIFICATION
F
RAMEWORK
(AQF)
2
In Germany the structure of the program of study is normally divided into
`Grundstudium' and `Hauptstudium'. German students are able to
transfer their Credit Points from the German university to an Australian
university if they wish to graduate there.
However, most Australian universities insist on doing at least half of a
study course at their university (Institute Ranke-Heinemann 2002).
With the recent introduction of the Credit Point System at several
universities in Germany, it is now possible to transfer Credit Points from
an exchange semester abroad at an Australian university to the German
university.
The Australian Marking is different to the German ones. Marks are given
there in the percentage of the fulfilment of assignments and/or exams.
The Australian and the German Marking are illustrated in the following
two figures.
F
IGURE
1.2: A
USTRALIAN
M
ARKING
2
See http://www.ranke-heinemann.de/australien/bildungssystem.php
INTRODUCTION
page 3
F
IGURE
1.3: G
ERMAN
M
ARKING
Study Abroad Programs are special study programs, which are designed
for international students. These programs are not for graduating with a
degree, but students can attend the same lectures as a full-time student
does and they have a kind of efficiency statement for the exchange part
of their study program.
There are two advantages within this Study Abroad Program. First, there
are slightly lower studying fees on the courses and second, inte rnational
students are free to choose any kind of subject in which they are
interested in.
Other current offerings to international students include Short Intensive
Study Abroad Programs. The demand is high and universities are
concerned about the fortified establishment of these programs, which
last only eight to twelve weeks with full-time study. The acceptance of
the Credit Points gained from these courses depends on the respective
German university (Australian Embassy 2003).
In Australia, out of a population of 19 million people, 588,204 people
were studying at a university in 2001
(DEST 2002). This is 3.1 per cent of
the whole population. Most students who were doing an undergraduate
degree were between 18 and 22 years of age. Most postgraduate
students were between 23 and 29 years old and there was a significant
number of people between 30 and 50 years, who were doing either a
postgraduate or an undergraduate study program. Some 60 percent of
higher education students in 2000 were less than 25 years old. (DEST
2002).
In comparison to Australia, Germany had a population of 82.4 million and
a student number of 1,868,666 in 2001 (Statistisches Bundesamt
INTRODUCTION
page 4
Deutschland 2003). This was only 2.27 per cent of the whole population.
On average, the age of German students is 26,3 years.
In Germany, it is possible to study at 355 Higher Education Institutes
3
.
Business Informatics courses are available at 67 universities, either as
an independent study program or as a major or a part of another study
program. At 25 German universities, there is an independent study
program for Business Informatics (Studienführer Wirtschaftsinformatik
2002). Other German Higher Education Institutes, especially
`Fachhochschulen' are neglected here in reference to independent study
courses to keep the data in a manageable size. Hence,
`Fachhochschulen' are constructed more like the Australian Technical
and Further Education Institutes (TAFES). But in contrast to TAFEs,
`Fachhochschulen' do offer degree level programs as well as
universities.
In Australia, there are 37 public universities and two private universities
that are accredited with a university status by government
.
This
accredited universities will soon get `.uni' as a new domain name for their
Internet addresses (e.g. www.deakin.edu.au will change into
www.deakin.uni.au) to differentiate them from non-accredited
universities.
The Federal Government has principal responsibility for public
funding of
the 37 public universities, but it is the government's intention to enforce a
public-private funding mix for the universities.
In the beginning of the year 2003, it was possible to study a study
program with a major in the IS area at 22 Australian universities, which is
related and very similar to the independent German Business Informatics
study program as it will be shown in chapter 2. In particular, there are 16
universities that offer an independent IS degree.
As shown in the Australian Higher Education Statistics, there were a total
of 19,602 students enrolled in Information Systems as a User Specific
Field of Study in the year 2001 (DEST 2002).
3
This includes universities (91), ,Gesamthochschulen' (7), ,Pädagogische Hochschulen' (6),
,Theologische Hochschulen' (16), ,Kunsthochschulen' (50), ,Fachhochschulen' (156) und
,Verwaltungshochschulen' (29).
INTRODUCTION
page 5
In Germany, there were 22,962 students studying Business Informatics
at an Higher Education Institute in 2001 (Statistisches Bundesamt
Deutschland 2003).
The following table summarizes the figures given of both countries:
Australia
Germany
Population (2001)
19 million
82.4 million
Student number (2001)
588,204
1,868,666
Students in % of population (2001)
3.1
2.27
Business Informatics/IS student number
(2001)
19,602
22,962
Business Informatics/IS students in % of
all students (2001)
3.33
1.23
Number of universities that offer IS or
Business Informatics in their study
programs (2002/2003)
22
67
Number of universities that offer
independent IS degrees (Australia) and
Business Informatics degrees(Germany),
within faculties in the Business or IT Area
(2002/2003)
15
25
Number of all public universities
(2002/2003)
37
91
Table 1.1: Comparison of general figures between Australia and Germany
1.1.Motivation
In 1998, a conference at the Australian Centre at the University of
Potsdam showed a significant demand on reforming the tertiary
educational sector in both countries. It was proposed that Germany could
learn from the Australian model and from the Australian Lessons
Learned, not only within the formal efforts but also within the Australian
way of thinking. Looking at the future is the key with the aim of doing
things better, not just criticising the current situation like the Germans
used to do (Sitzmann 1998).
INTRODUCTION
page 6
Apart from the desire to learn from others, there are several other
motivations for doing this study, especially within the Business
Informatics discipline.
At this time, there is a strong international exchange concerning
Business Informatics and an international conformance of study
programs should be reached (Lehner 1998).
There have also been rapidly rising student numbers in the field of
Business Informatics during the past years. In Australia, there were a
total of 44,537 students enrolled in the fields of study that contain
Information Systems in the year 2000. In 1995, there were only 23,240
students. Information Systems, as a User Specific Field of Study, had
8,251 students in 2000, up from only 3,836 in the year 1995 (DEST
2001).
This is a significant increase. Australia also has a rising number of
international students. In 2002, over thirteen percent of all students came
from overseas. Compared to the year 1995, the number of all
international students is now more than twice as large (DEST 2002).
In the IS area the proportion of overseas to non-overseas students had
increased from approximately 18 percent in 1997 to more than 30
percent in 2000 as shown in the following table from the DETYA Higher
Education Student Database (Fisher et al. 2002).
1997 1997
1998 1998
1999
1999
2000
2000
Field of Study
O/S
stud.
Non O/S
stud.
O/S
stud.
Non O/S
stud.
O/S
stud.
Non
O/S
stud.
O/S
stud.
Field of
Study
090201 Computer
Science, Information
Systems General
(not Business Data
Processing)
775 3664
1170 3895
2247
4450
2488
4864
090203 Information
Systems
345 1141
407 1284
378
1279
543
1326
090299 Computer
Science, Information
Systems Other
82
514
55
512
84
694
167
708
% of Student Cohort 18,4
22,3
29,7
32,4
Table 1.2: Proportion of overseas to non-overseas students in IS courses
INTRODUCTION
page 7
The high number of overseas students can be attributed to the high
quality of education offered at the universities and to the fact that it is a
slightly cheaper than studying in the United States (Schleicher 2001).
In Germany, there were 12,250 students studying Business Informatics
in 1998 (includes universities and `Fachhochschulen'). The Broad Field
of IT, which includes Information Technology, Business Informatics,
Medical Informatics and Engineering Information Technology, had a
number of 67,292 (Bayerisches Staatsministerium für Wissenschaft,
Forschung und Kunst 2000).
An overview about rising commencing Business Informatics student
numbers at German universities from 1995 to 1998 is shown in Figure 2.
0
500
1000
1500
2000
2500
3000
3500
4000
1995
1996
1997
1998
F
IGURE
1.4: C
OMMENCING
B
USINESS
I
NFORMATICS STUDENTS IN
G
ERMANY
Both, Business Informatics/IS and IT commencing student numbers have
declined in Australia and Germany since 2001/2002.
In Germany, the quality of the higher education is criticised in many
ways, especially in international comparisons and the discussion about
introducing studying fees is going on.
During the last few years more German students have been going to
study abroad in order to receive a more qualitative education
(Süddeutsche Zeitung Interview mit TU-Chef Wolfgang Hermann 2002).
However, only a small number of 539 German students was intending to
study at an Australian university in 2000 (Studieren in Australien 2001).
INTRODUCTION
page 8
In Germany, the percentage of international students was 11 percent in
2001/2002; in the year before it had only been 10.4 percent.
In the past, there were built up more exchange partnerships between
German universities and universities in the United States or in the United
Kingdom than between German and Australian universities.
According to the German `Studienführer Wirtschaftsinformatik' from
Mertens et al. in 1999, there are only four universities in Germany with
an independent Business Informatics study program that have an
exchange partnership with an Australian university. But there are named
14 partnerships named with universities in the United Kingdom and 15
exchange universities in the United States .
In this case, German students do not have to pay studying fees unlike
international students for their study abroad. This small number of
offered exchange programs from universities could be one reason for
German students not to go to an Australian university.
The conclusion is that there must be a lack of information about studying
and researching possibilities in Australia at German universities and their
students. Institutions that inform about this such as the Ranke-
Heinemann Institute
4
or the `Deutsch-Australisches Netzwerk e.V.'
5
(DEAN) have been just founded during the last years to show Germans
the advantages of studying in Australia.
This lack of information will be redressed in this study.
But what about studying Business Informatics in particular in Australia?
Is there enough information about possibilities to study this narrow field
of education, a field, which has grown so much during the last decade in
both countries?
As an example, the highly regarded international Internet journal ISWorld
Net
6
informed with a lot of more entries about possibilities to study an
undergraduate Information Systems program in the United States than in
Australia in 2002.
4
See http://www.ranke-heinemann.de
5
See http://www.dean-online.de
6
See http://www.isworld.org/isworld/isworldtext.html
INTRODUCTION
page 9
Or as another example, within the search engines of the German
information provider about studying in Australia Ranke-Heinemann, the
Australian government information for international students Which
course? Which university?
7
or within the search engine of the German
Academic Exchange Service
8
, there is nowhere a particular field listed as
Business Informatics, providing detailed information about the
possibilities to study, and the discipline Information Systems is only
specified in connection with Computer Science.
Last but not least, there is a lack of defining Information Systems for
university education within Australia itself. As recently as December
2002, Australian IS academics were discussing about a consistent use of
the term Information Systems in higher education at the 13
th
Australasian
Conference on Information Systems.
A-state-of-practice example for this is the School of Information Systems
at Deakin University, Geelong and the offered degree within that school,
the Bachelor of Information Systems. Both are sometimes also named
Management Information Systems. This is due to the recent terminology
change around Australia from the terms Business Information Systems
or Management Information Systems to the term Information Systems. In
addition, there is a possible computing degree with an IS major within the
Information Technology School, Faculty of Science and Technology at
Deakin University. And these numerous appearances of the IS discipline
in different faculties in one university, are very common all over Australia.
These motivation points show the importance of giving an overview
about Australian universities and their Information Systems discipline;
about how it is related to the German term Business Informatics, so that
it is possible to answer the questions arising about the differences to the
German Business Informatics in higher education.
7
See http://www.dest.gov.au/tenfields/
8
See http://www.daad.de
INTRODUCTION
page 10
1.2.Objectives of the Study
The aims of this study are firstly to list the possibilities for studying
Business Informatics at Australian universities and to give a general
overview of Business Informatics at universities in Australia. On the one
hand this will be an information source for international students as well
as for Australian commencing students. On the other hand, this will also
be an information source for German universities and Business
Informatics academics, who can take a look at the state -of-the-art of
Business Informatics at Australian universities, look at the cross-cultural
differences and the possibility of new exchange partnerships with
Australian universities. As a current example, the University of
Technology Sydney started an exchange program with the University of
Regensburg in February 2003. Possible Information System programs at
the University of Technology Sydney are listed in chapter 3.4.7.
Last but not least, this study will provide Australian academics with the
opportunity to reflect on their Information Systems discipline and
possibly to reach a consensus within this discipline at their universities.
One primary objective is to investigate on the main IS educational and
research topics at Australian universities and to compare these with the
main Business Informatics topics at German universities in order to
define Business Informatics in Australia from a German perspective.
This thesis also gives an overview about organisational structures and
the opportunities to study Information Systems at Australian universities
in general and at 11 selected universities in particular, as well as a state-
of-the-art view to IS issues at Australian universities, which were
presented during the ACIS 2002 in Melbourne, Australia.
These overviews lead to the following questions:
??
Are there any differences in Business Informatics between
Germany and Australia?
And if so, in which areas are these differences located?
??
Within the organisational structure?
INTRODUCTION
page 11
??
Within degrees and single subjects?
??
Within teaching methods and quality issues?
??
And are there any other cross cultural differences?
These questions will be addressed in the Findings chapter.
1.3.Research Methodology and Delimitations
The research methodology used in this study is based on structured
interviews with open-ended questions, which were posed to IS academic
participants from Australian universities. An interview guideline was
prepared before starting the interviews. The interview was structured into
four main areas. These main subject areas were firstly about general
questions about the university, then questions about the educational
offer of IS at the university and then questions about the organisational
structure of IS in the university. A last set of questions were posed about
cultural aspects in Australian universities. The interview questions were
guided by the responses of the participants. This allowed some flexibility
to change the direction of the interviews as the research progressed.
This method can be seen as a qualitative study approach. The
interpreting nature can be neglected because the questions are not
personal in their nature, but rather based on formal issues. A copy of the
interview guideline with sample questions can be found in Appendix A.
To focus the study on a manageable size, because the study time is
limited to half a year, the visited universities were mostly located in major
cities in Australia like Sydney, Melbourne, Canberra and Brisbane and
the number of participants was limited to eleven universities, which are
illustrated in figure 1.3.
At first, email enquiries were sent to selected academics within the
Business Informatics discipline at Australian universities. The guideline
for selecting these academics were as follows: the academic must be
either in an IS department or in another named department, where it is
INTRODUCTION
page 12
possible to study a program with IS subjects or at least a combination of
IT and business subjects. Preferably, the academic should be in a high
academic position as for example the Head of the school/department or
a Senior IS academic. The response rate was very positive with 11 from
12 enquiries. Six of the 11 visited universities belong to the Group of
Eight-Universities
9
, which are the leading uni versities in research in
Australia. These interview results combined with a web and literature
review are shown as summarized information sources in a series of
snapshot case studies in chapter 3.4.
F
IGURE
1.5: V
ISITED
A
USTRALIAN UNIVERSITIES
Moreover, several individual interviews were done with IS academics at
Deakin University, including an interview with Brian Corbitt, Professor of
Information Systems and Acting Pro-Vice-Chancellor
(KnowledgeManagement) at Deakin University about teaching methods
and quality assurance of IS education at Australian universities in
9
See http://www.go8.edu.au
INTRODUCTION
page 13
general and at Deakin University in particular. This information is
provided in chapter 3.3.
The proceedings of the 13
th
Australasian conference on Information
Systems, Melbourne, 2002 provide additional information about current
IS topics at Australian universities and support the interview results.
The findings of this study are indicated and often illustrated with tables
and figures. The main topics Business Informatics/IS offers in higher
education, the organisational structure and location of Business
Informatics/IS within universities and cultural aspects were extracted
from the structured interview guideline and addressed in the findings.
Main differences between Germany and Australia within this discipline
as well as similarities are shown and recommendations are given.
1.4.Structure of the thesis
At first, the Introduction Chapter (Chapter 1) informs about general
figures and facts about Australia and Germany, the higher education
system in both countries as well as about Business Informatics/IS study
courses and student numbers. A first comparison about these general
figures is illustrated in Table 1. The motivation to do this study,
objectives to explore, the used research methodology and delimitations
and the structure of this thesis are presented.
Chapter 2 gives a definition for Business Informatics in Australia from a
German perspective. This extended definition for Business Informatics in
Australia is necessary because different terms are used in this discipline
in Australia and explicitly not the European term Business Informatics.
From this definition on, the term Business Informatics is replaced with
the term Information Systems for Australia.
In Chapter 3 an overview of Information Systems at Australian
universities is shown. Therefore Information Systems structures,
possible degrees, requirements and fees in this discipline are indicated.
INTRODUCTION
page 14
Furthermore the quality assurance and teaching methods in Australian
higher education are presented in chapter 3.3.
As an additional approach an overview of the possibilities in Australia for
studying Business Informatics, summarised interviews with several
Australian IS academics are given in chapter 3.4. The conclusion of
chapter 3 presents a structured overview and a comparison of relevant
figures and facts about the 11 visited universities. This diploma thesis
focusses on this chapter in order to reach information in depth of
Australian Business Informatics in higher education and to be able to
compare this information with German Business Informatics at
universities within the findings chapter.
Three relevant papers for this study were chosen from the proceedings
of the 13
th
Conference on Information Systems in Chapter 4 and are
presented in short summaries to give a state-of-the-art overview of
Information Systems at Australian universities.
In Chapter 5 differences and similarities within Business Informatics/IS
offers in higher education, the organisational structure and location of
Business Informatics/IS within universities and cultural aspects are
shown and recommendations are given within the findings.
Chapter 6 summarizes this diploma thesis and presents possible
considerations for the future development of the Business Informatics/IS
discipline within higher education in Germany and Australia.
BUSINESS INFORMATICS IN AUSTRALIA: A DEFINITION FROM A GERMAN PERSPECTIVE
page 15
2.
BUSINESS INFORMATICS IN AUSTRALIA:
A Definition from a German Perspective
The term Business Informatics, which is used in Europe for studying an
interdisciplinary program that deals currently with the tasks and the
opportunities of computer applications in industry and in the public
administration, is not a common international term for this discipline. In the
Anglo-American countries it is often named as Management Information
Systems (MIS) or just Information Systems (IS) (Lehner 1998). The term
Business Informatics is translated into German as `Wirtschaftsinformatik'.
As Annemieke Craig, IS Lecturer from the School of Information Systems at
Deakin University in Geelong, Australia, reported, the term Business
Computing, which was formerly used within Australia, has changed during the
last decade into the term Management Information Systems and has been
changed into Information Systems during recent years.
Ross Smith, Head of the School of IS at Deakin University, reported, that the
school changed its name and the title of the degree from MIS into IS in 2001,
after a major review of IS/IT in the whole university. Therefore the School of
Information Systems at Deakin University is sometimes still named
inadvertently the School of Management Information Systems.
Now, in Australia, the norm for degrees of this type is called IS rather than MIS,
because Australian industry understands the notion of an IS degree, but there
have been misunderstandings with the content of a MIS degree and the
attributes of MIS graduates.
An explanation for the misunderstandings of the terms IS and MIS can be seen
in the different definitions of these terms, because the y do not have the same
meaning. MIS is defined as a part of IS.
Management Information Systems are Information Systems, but only to
support the management of an organisation. Hansen defined MIS within
the book `Wirtschaftsinformatik I' in 1998 as follows:
Information Systems, which support management with relevant information for
decisions, are used to be called `Management Support Systems'. This relevant
BUSINESS INFORMATICS IN AUSTRALIA: A DEFINITION FROM A GERMAN PERSPECTIVE
page 16
information is task-specific content as well as user-friendly and an appropriate
presentation of information for the management. The name `Management
Support Systems' is used synonymously with `Management Information
Systems' (MIS).
Concluding, the term IS is more preferable for such a degree than MIS,
because Management Information Systems study courses do not only deal with
MIS, but generally with IS.
This change of terminology is actually very new within the Australian IS area,
and as such it has not already been realised abroad as the following example
shows.
The term Business Computing, which is shown within the results of the search
engine for international study courses at the German Academic Exchange
Service Website, can not be found in any one of the 36 listed Australian
universities in the year 2002.
F
IGURE
2.1: O
NE SEARCH ENGINE RESULT FOR
`W
IRTSCHAFTSINFORMATIK
'
IN
A
USTRALIA FROM THE
G
ERMAN
A
CADEMIC
E
XCHANGE
S
ERVICE
In Australia, Tatnall wrote as early as in 1993 about the curriculum of Business
Computing "Depending on how you define Business Computing (or Information
Systems as it is now often called) ...".
Now, there is no degree any more, which is called Business Computing or even
Business Informatics within Deakin University, Australia.
But you are able to study a Bachelor of Commerce with an Information Systems
major or a Bachelor of Information Systems, both also possible with an
BUSINESS INFORMATICS IN AUSTRALIA: A DEFINITION FROM A GERMAN PERSPECTIVE
page 17
Honours Year. At the postgraduate level, there is a Master by Research and a
PhD program offered in the IS discipline. It is also important to mention here,
that the term Informatics is not often found at Australian universities. The
Australian term for that is in general Computing or Information Technology.
Therefore it is very important to address the right terminology for Business
Informatics in Australia within this thesis to be able to show differences
between Germany and Australia.
To come to a conclusion in this case, first the definition for Business Informatics
in Germany and the definition of Information Systems in Australia are shown.
In Germany, typical interesting Business Informatics subjects are the Design of
Information Infrastructure, Information logistics, Information Management and
Controlling, Data Modelling and Data Organisation, Human Computer
Interaction, Networks and Communication in Companies, Development and
Operation (Maintenance) of Information Systems, CASE, Expert Systems and
Technical Understanding. Important areas are in the Analysis, Design and in
the Use of Information Systems during their entire curriculum. The Business
Informatics discipline shows Information Systems from multiple views and in an
integral way and is on the one hand interested in the Information Processing
through the Computer and on the other hand through Human Beings (Lehner
1998).
In Australia, the Information Systems discipline is defined by the Australian
Standard Classification of Education (ASCED), Field of Education Structure
and Definitions, as a subclass of the term Information Technology.
It says: "
INFORMATION SYSTEMS is the study of the Flow of Information,
Capturing Data, and the Design and Specification of Information Systems and
User Interfaces. The main purpose of this narrow field of education is to
develop an Understanding of the Information Management Needs of users, and
the ability to analyse, design and manage Information Systems."
Detailed fields of IS are Conceptual Modelling, Database Management,
Systems Analysis and Design, Decision Support Systems, Information
Systems, n.e.c.
BUSINESS INFORMATICS IN AUSTRALIA: A DEFINITION FROM A GERMAN PERSPECTIVE
page 18
These two definitions show strong similarities in their general statements and
main topics, which they address and in their educational aims to view
Information Systems from both sides on the one hand from a technical
perspective and on the other hand from the user perspective. Both try to define
and teach their subject from multiple views .
As an additional approach in this case, teaching and research subjects within
the Business Informatics departments at German universities were reviewed
and classified. Within the reviewed German departments it is possible to study
an independent Business Informatics study course. Twenty of the twenty-five of
these departments are located within Business Faculties, two other ones are
within IT Faculties, one is located in a Business Informatics Faculty, one is
partly located within a Business Faculty and partly within a Computing Faculty,
and another one within a faculty that includes Informatics, Business and several
other subject areas. This directory is shown in Table 2.1 at the end of this
chapter.
Then, the most common German Business Informatics subjects listed in the
German `Studienführer Wirtschaftsinformatik' from 2002 were summarised to
18 subject areas and were then compared with the subject areas found at the
Australian universities.
The 18 German main areas were: E-Business and E-Commerce, Application
Systems, Knowledge Management, E-Learning, Information Management and
Information Systems, Data Engineering and Data Modelling, Modelling
exclusive Data Modelling, (Business) Processes, Decision Support, Simulation,
Distributed Systems, Databases, Security, Standard (ERP) Software, Software
Development/Engineering, Project Management, Programming Languages and
E-Government.
These areas are shown with some exemplary German subject terms in
Appendix C.
In order to the comparison with Australian IS subjects, teaching and research
topics in IS departments at Australian universities were reviewed. Again, only
BUSINESS INFORMATICS IN AUSTRALIA: A DEFINITION FROM A GERMAN PERSPECTIVE
page 19
departments were considered where it is possible to study an independent IS
study course, not only a major.
The Australian topics are relating to a website review of the universities,
because there was no detailed and structured information source for Australian
teaching and research subjects found as it is in the German `Studienführer
Wirtschaftsinformatik' in 2002 from Mertens et al.. For that, first the main areas
within selected departments were searched. If there were no results found for
that, single teaching and research subjects of IS staff of the departments were
considered.
In Australia, 12 of the 19 departments where it is possible to study an
independent Information Systems degree are located within Business or
Commerce Faculties and three independent study courses are in IT Faculties.
This is almost the same case as it is in Germany. The Department of
Communication and Informatics in a Communication and Informatics Faculty
was also reviewed.
Some other independent degrees are located within an Engineering and IT
Faculty or within Arts, Arts and Sciences, Science or Science Technology and
Engineering. But, these faculties are deemed to be outside the scope of this
study, because their view on IS is more technical, more creative and scientific
or more with an engineering emphasis, not with a focus on business as it is in
the majority of the cases in Germany. An overview about the reviewed
Australian universities and departments is also given at the end of this chapter
in Table 2.2. Some exemplary Australian teaching and research subject terms
within the chosen main areas are shown in Appendix D.
The result of the compared main topics in Business Informatics in Germany and
Information Systems in Australia shows strong similarities in their main subject
areas. Some differences in names and the frequency of occurrence are
discussed later in the Findings Chapter.
The conclusion here is, that you can equate Business Informatics in Germany
with Information Systems in Australia, if it is a discipline within the selected
faculties, which are mostly Business or Commerce and IT Faculties.
BUSINESS INFORMATICS IN AUSTRALIA: A DEFINITION FROM A GERMAN PERSPECTIVE
page 20
More detailed information about different IS structures, IS degrees, teaching
methods and quality assurance in IS education in Australia are given in the
following chapter.
University
Degree
Faculty
Otto Friedrich Universität Bamberg
Diplom
Business Informatics
Technische Universität Berlin
Diplom
Computing
Technische Universität Carolo
Wilhelmina zu Braunschweig
Diplom
Business
Technische Universität Chemnitz
Diplom
Business
Technische Universität Darmstadt
Diplom
Business
Technische Universität Dresden
Diplom
Business
Friedrich Alexander Universität
Erlangen Nürnberg
Diplom
Business
Universität GH Essen
Diplom
Business
Georg August Universität Göttingen
Diplom
Business
Martin Luther Universität Halle
Wittenberg
Diplom
Business
Universität Hamburg
Diplom
Business
Technische Universität Ilmenau
Diplom
Business
Friedrich-Schiller-Universität Jena
Diplom
Business
Universität zu Köln
Diplom
Business
Universität Leipzig
Diplom
Business
Otto von Guericke Universität
Magdeburg
Bachelor, Diplom
Computing, School of
Computer Science,
Department of Techn.
And Business
Information Systems
Universität Mannheim
Diplom
Business
Westfälische Wilhelms Universität
Münster
Diplom
Business
Universität Osnabrück
Bachelor in IS, Master
in IS
Business
Universität GH Paderborn
Diplom
Business
Universität Regensburg
Diplom
Business
Universität Rostock
Bachelor and Master
of Science in Business
Informatics, Diplom
Business
Universität Siegen
Diplom
Business
Universität Stuttgart
Bachelor
Business, Computing
Universität Trier
Diplom
Comprising: Business,
Computing, Business
Informatics, Economics,
Sociology, Mathematics,
Ethnology
Table 2.1: 25 German universities with an independent Business Informatics
study course
BUSINESS INFORMATICS IN AUSTRALIA: A DEFINITION FROM A GERMAN PERSPECTIVE
page 21
Table 2.2: 16 Australian universities with an independent Information Systems
study course
INFORMATION SYSTEMS AND RELATED STUDIES AT AUSTRALIAN UNIVERSITIES
page 22
3.
INFORMATION SYSTEMS AND RELATED
STUDIES AT AUSTRALIAN UNIVERSITIES
3.1.IS structures at Australian universities
The teaching of university computing courses initially occurred in the faculties
of Engineering, Science or Business in the 1950s (Tatnall 1993, p.4).
Since then, the computing courses have dispersed into faculties with titles as
Commerce, Mathematics and Computing, Information Technology, or
Informatics. " Computing was disguised under a range of names and curriculum
areas." (Craig 1996, p.10)
Then in 1992, a report of the discipline review of the Computing Studies and
Information Sciences Education was released by the Australian Department of
Employment, Education and Training (DEET 1992).
Figure 3.1, extracted from the Australian Computer Society's submission to this
review shows the scope of various computing disciplines. Here, the Information
Systems discipline overlaps with elements of Computer Science and Computer
Science Engineering courses.
Tatnall (1993) comments "it is immediately clear that there is a good deal of
overlap between the various curriculum areas, and also the interests of the
three professional societies potentially involved in computing: the Australian
Computer Society [ACS], the Institution of Engineers (Australia) [IE(Aust)], and
the Australian Society of Certified Practicing Accountants [ASCPA]."
INFORMATION SYSTEMS AND RELATED STUDIES AT AUSTRALIAN UNIVERSITIES
page 23
F
IGURE
3.1: S
COPE OF THE
C
OMPUTING
S
TUDIES AND
I
NFORMATION
S
CIENCE DISCIPLINES
But there are important differences in the nature of the work. "Information
Systems is a discipline which is oriented towards business or commerce; it
involves matching information systems requirements to an organisation's
objectives. In contrast: Computer Science concentrates o n algorithmic
processes and system software. Software Engineering incorporates the
principles of large-scale software systems whereas Information Systems
usually deals with smaller organisations" (Craig 1996, p.13).
A conclusion of that must be, that Information Systems should be best placed in
an overall Commerce or Business structure.
But, from the statistical view of the Australian Standard Classification of
Education of the Australian Bureau of Statistics, the IS field is defined as a part
of Information Technology and is not mentioned in the field of Commerce and
Management at all.
The Australian Standard Classification of Education was introduced in the year
2001 to assist in the interpretation of data about Australian higher education
courses.
INFORMATION SYSTEMS AND RELATED STUDIES AT AUSTRALIAN UNIVERSITIES
page 24
It lists twelve broad fields of study including Management and Commerce, IT
and Engineering. There are several narrow fields defined below each broad
field of study. The structure of IT is shown with its narrow fields Computer
Science, Information Systems and Other Information Technology in the
following table.
INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY
COMPUTER SCIENCE
020101 Formal Language Theory
020103 Programming
020105 Computational Theory
020107 Compiler Construction
020109 Algorithms
020111 Data Structures
020113 Networks and Communications
020115 Computer Graphics
020117 Operating Systems
020119 Artificial Intelligence
020199 Computer Science, n.e.c.
INFORMATION SYSTEMS
020301 Conceptual Modelling
020303 Database Management
020305 Systems Analysis and Design
020307 Decision Support Systems
020399 Information Systems, n.e.c.
OTHER INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY
029901 Security Science
029999 Information Technology, n.e.c.
Table 3.1: Australian Bureau of Statistics 2003, IT as a Broad Field of education10
Figure 3.2 assists in contrasting these three narrow fields of the broad field of
Information Technology.
The horizontal axis (`hard' to `soft') represents a shift from hardware-oriented to
more human involvement in the development of applications.
10
See Australian Bureau of Statistics:
http://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs%40.nsf/66f306f503e529a5ca25697e0017661f/e7779a9fd5c8d846ca256aaf0
01fca5c!OpenDocument
Details
- Seiten
- Erscheinungsform
- Originalausgabe
- Jahr
- 2003
- ISBN (eBook)
- 9783832468200
- ISBN (Paperback)
- 9783838668208
- DOI
- 10.3239/9783832468200
- Dateigröße
- 3.5 MB
- Sprache
- Englisch
- Institution / Hochschule
- Universität Regensburg – Philosophische Fakultät III
- Erscheinungsdatum
- 2003 (Mai)
- Note
- 1,0
- Schlagworte
- studieren australien informationssysteme studiengang universitäten
