ANNA UNIVERSITY
CHENNAI
Announces
M.Sc.
(CS-FOSS)
Two
Year Online Program -- A unique way to earn a Computer Science Degree through
Free/Open Source Software (FOSS) Education.
offered by
The Centre for
Distance Education
Anna University
Chennai
or
The Background
The
manner in which the science of computing is being utilized by the Software and
IT industry has been seeing dramatic changes in recent years .
The
Net, the Web , Mobility etc are the very life breath of the new information
industry, and the manner in which new technologies, products and applications
are being developed and deployed depend heavily on the processes of
collaboration, distributed team work, sharing, reuse, openness, scalability,
community-driven processes, user-feedback, etc.
The
Free/Open Source Software (FOSS) Movement that has altered the field of
computing in many fundamental ways is a key driver of these changes being
witnessed in today’s information industry, as embodied in Web 2.0, Mobile
Computing, Cloud Computing, Embedded/ Real-time Computing, Geospatial Computing
,etc. In addition to contributing Products, Technologies and Solutions that are
at the very cutting edge of today’s information industry, FOSS has also impacted
strongly on the approaches, processes and methods of developing and delivering
SW/IT products and services of ever increasing sophistication and
affordability.
Unfortunately,
this ongoing revolution in the world of practical computing does not find much
reflection in the curricula, syllabi, methods and processes of Computer and IT
Education in our country -- one of the eventual consequences of this being that
our SW/IT graduates are far from being ‘industry-ready’. If our graduates have
to be good enough for today’s (and tomorrow’s) world of computing, and if we
need to do so in numbers running into millions, then it would need a dramatic
shift in the paradigms, approaches, processes, techniques and tools of
teaching-learning in the filed of Software and IT. And given the critical
importance of the SW/IT domain in the nation’s Industry and Economy, India has
to pioneer this shift with bold experimentation and innovation in the field of
computer science education so that we as a nation can build on the strengths we
have acquired in this field globally.
Launching
of the two-year Online M.Sc. (Computer Science – Free/Open Source Software)
Program by Anna University Chennai under its Distance Education Department
(http://cde.annauniv.edu/Default.aspx) represents one such pioneering step.
Motivation and support for this initiative have also come from the NRCFOSS
Project (http://nrcfoss.org.in/) funded by the Dept. of Inf. Tech, Ministry of
Communication and Inf. Technologies, Govt. of India, and coordinated by C-DAC
Chennai, of which Anna University has been a participating institution since
its inception.
The objectives
of the M.Sc.(CS-FOSS) Program.
Within
the broad context mentioned above, this Online Program has goals and objectives
that include the following:
Evolve
an affordable mode of imparting quality SW/IT Education at the university level
that can scale with the future needs of the industry and society in a cost
effective manner.
Train the students formally in the philosophy, approaches, methods,
technologies, tools and solutions of FOSS so that they can bring in innovation
and creativity into the industry, leading to quality IT products and solutions
that are affordable to the masses. The program would help address the needs of
the Industry and Government for manpower well trained in FOSS.
Impart SW/IT knowledge and skills to large numbers of students with out
sacrificing quality by the use of effective online, web-based and interactive
processes and techniques that are already in use world wide.
Impart a high level of ‘industry readiness’ to the students by basing all
teaching and learning on the use of proven real world products, technologies,
processes and standards from the FOSS domain – the learning environment that
the students see will not be fundamentally different from the industry
environment as far as the SW packages and tools used are concerned.
Realise and deploy all parts of the Online Program (content creation, content
delivery, inter-activeness, evaluation etc) using available FOSS products and
solutions so as to make the program itself a powerful demonstration of the
maturity of today’s FOSS technologies and products.
Provide an opportunity to non-SW/IT graduates, including working people from
all over the country, to acquire a SW/IT degree from a reputed university in a
flexible manner. SW/IT industry could also use this program to equip their
engineers with specialised FOSS skills without having to send them away to the
class rooms.
Despite
the strong emphasis on FOSS, it is expected that the graduates of this program
would fit into the broad needs of the Indian SW/IT market like the BE s , B.
Tech s, MCA s etc. coming out of the regular programs.
Some details of
the Program
The
Online M. Sc. (CS-FOSS) program shares many features of the regular M Sc.
(CS/IT) programs in terms of the structure, regulations, curricula, syllabi,
theory courses, laboratory classes and project work, continuous internal
evaluation, end-semester examinations, etc. The candidates would have to
successfully complete around 16-18 Courses (theory and laboratory) and a
Project work, over a minimum duration of four semesters (two years). Like in
other similar programs, there will be one or two textbooks on which each course
syllabus is based, supplemented with additional reference materials. For each
course, live online classes will be conducted twice a week by a Teacher/ Mentor
using slides and synchronized audio, and the students can interact with the
teacher in real time during these classes using audio. Students are expected to
be logged into these classes from their computers in real time, and a minimum
attendance in these virtual classes is mandatory. Interaction would also take place
between the teacher and the class, as well as amongst the members of the class,
through chat sessions, e-mail, sms, conferencing, etc. All the students
registered for a course during one semester would in fact constitute a closely
interacting ‘community’ in the FOSS sense, and a significant amount of learning
is expected to happen in the community mode. The final year project in
particular will be carried out following many of the principles and practices
of the SW development methodology followed in the FOSS world.
There
will be regular processes of laboratory classes, assignments, reports, quizzes,
tests etc. conducted online by the Teacher/Mentor, based on which ‘Sessional
marks’ will be awarded for each course. All end-semester examinations will be of
the conventional written type, along with any laboratory component as
applicable. The final year project presentation would be conducted within the
Anna University campus in Chennai for which all students have to be physically
present.
One
distinguishing feature of the present program would be that all the topics
would be taught using the approaches, processes, packages and tools from the
FOSS domain - their freedom and openness contributing significantly to the
effectiveness of the teaching-learning process. Learning of a subject would
happen through the study and exploration of a robust FOSS technology or product
in that area so that, along with the understanding of that subject, the student
also acquires a good knowledge of a real world product that he/she is likely to
encounter after joining the industry. Similarly, the structure and process of
learning a subject itself would be collaborative and communitybased following
the FOSS approach, so that the candidate is better prepared for today’s cutting
edge SW/IT industrial practices.
Content
Creators and Mentors for the courses taught in the Program would be experienced
FOSS experts and practitioners drawn from the national FOSS Community, Academia
and Industry. The NRCFOSS network is expected to aid in this significantly.
Further details
can be seen at the websites of the programs:
It
is well known that the effectiveness of all distance learning programs,
including the online ones, depend significantly more on the learning process
rather than on the teaching process, and hence the student’s motivation and
keenness is the key factor that will decide the benefits he/she is likely to
derive from the Online M. Sc. (CS- FOSS) Program.
The
Coordinating Centre
Being
a purely on-line one, the M. Sc. (CS-FOSS) Pprogram under the Distance
Education Department of Anna University would not have any Study Centres, but
would be coordinated by the AU-KBC Research Centre of the University
functioning from the M. I. T. Chromepet Campus of the University
(http://www.au-kbc.org/) . The AU-KBC Centre had initiated the NRCFOSS
(National Resource Centre for FOSS) Project of the DIT, Govt. of India, in 2005
jointly with C-DAC Chennai, and is presently executing the Phase-II of the same
along with seven other institutions in the country. As a part of the NRCFOSS
Project, the AU-KBC Centre has been involved in promoting FOSS in the higher
education sector in the country (http://www.nrcfoss.aukbc.
org.in/),
and the proposal to start the Online M.Sc. program in FOSS is partly an
outgrowth of this initiative. Through the involvement of the NRCFOSS/AU-KBC
Centre, the Online Program will also be receiving appropriate academic and
technical participation and support from the other institutions participating
in the nationally coordinated NRCFOSS Project.
FOSS
being an essentially global movement, academic and intellectual collaboration
and support for Anna University’s program is also expected from the global FOSS
Community as well, such as the Free Technology Academy (FTA) of Europe
(http://ftacademy.org/).
The
Online M.Sc. program being launched would benefit significantly from the strong
presence that the Coordinating Centre already has in the areas of FOSS
Education, Technology Promotion and Networking, as well as in imparting
skill-based learning in diverse fields.
Admission
eligibility
Admission
to the Online M. Sc. (CS-FOSS) would be open to those having the following
qualifications:
B.C.A or B.Sc (10+2+3) in any branch of sciences or mathematics, with at least
one paper in mathematics at the degree level.
(or)
B.E./ B.Tech. (In any branch)
Admissions
are normally held twice an year, around Feb-March and Aug-Sept, and is open to
students from all over the country. The medium of instruction would be English,
and the candidates are expected to have adequate proficiency in the written and
spoken forms of this language.
Computing and
Internet resource requirements
Candidates
admitted to the program would be required to have unlimited access to the
following Desktop or Laptop facilities:
Hardware
specifications higher than: Pentium 4 @ 500MHz, 300GB Hard Disk, 512 MB RAM,
64MB video memory, 16 bit Sound Card, Speakers & Mike or headphones, Web
camera.
Software
specifications typical: Linux (Fedora version 15 or similar) OS, Open Office
Suite, PDF reader like Adobe, Firefox or Netscape Browser, and any other FOSS
SW packages as required for the program.
Internet
connection speeds: 1Mbps or more.
The
Coordinating Centre would provide necessary assistance to the enrolled
candidates in the downloading and installation of all the FOSS packages
relevant to the study program on their machines.
Workload
Estimate
Every
course for which a candidate has registered would require about 10-12 hours of
work per week from him/her. Attempting to take up and complete all the courses
prescribed for a semester in the first attempt itself so that the program can
be completed within the minimum prescribed period of four semesters, would
therefore need the candidate to put in about 50-60 hours of work per week --
amounting to ‘full time’ commitment.
Those
who may not be able to commit full time for this study and would instead prefer
taking up this program on a part-time basis can use the “flexible-pacing
facility” available in this Program. Under this option, the candidate can take
more than four semesters to complete the program with out incurring any
academic penalty , but with in the maximum permitted time of twelve semesters.
The Coordinating Centre would provide the necessary counseling in this regard
on request.
Contact
Addresses:
The
Director The Coordinator
Centre
for Distance Education Education & Training Programs
Anna
University AU-KBC Research Centre
Sardar
Patel Road M. I. T. Campus of Anna University
Chennai
– 600025 Chromepet, Chennai – 600044
Ph.
044- 2235 7216 Ph. 044- 22232711
Email:
distanceprog@annauniv.edu Email: mscfoss@au-kbc.org
The
Coordinating Centre
AU-KBC
Research Centre
MIT
Campus of Anna University
Chromepet,
Chennai – 600044
Applications:
Prescribed
application form is available on the Website link:
Application
should be filed online. A hard copy of the same with candidates’ signature and
Photograph should be sent to The Director, Centre for Distance Education, Anna
University, Chennai - 600025, along with a Demand Draft for Rs.100/- drawn in
favour of The Director, Centre for Distance Education, Anna University, Chennai
- 600 025.
Last
date for filing of application online and receipt of hard copy by The Director,
Centre for Distance Education, Anna University, Chennai - 600 025 is 30-09-2012
For
details, log on to the link:
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