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Curriculum Insights for Students

Bachelor of Applied Science (BASc) in Digital Technologies

Overview

The BASc in Digital Technologies is a unique program designed to equip you with the skills required for a successful career in the digital technologies sector. It aims to address the skill gap across the digital industries through a combination of degree level education and workplace learning. The first of its kind in Canada, this fully work-integrated learning program enables you to earn a salary as a full-time employee with one of our employer partners while dedicating approximately 20% of your work time to study for Bachelor of Applied Science degree through a combination of online and on-campus sessions. The program has been designed in collaboration with companies like Ceridian, CGI, Cinchy Inc., Cisco Canada, Connected (Connected.io, Now part of Thoughtworks), EY Canada, General Motors of Canada Company, IBM Canada, mimik Technology Inc., RBC, Saa Dene Group, Shopify Inc., TELUS Health, Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat and TribalScale Inc.

Eamon Ryan DT student interview

Is this program right for you?

Whether you are a high school graduate, a professional looking to shift your career to the Information & Communications Technology (ICT) field or an existing employee in the technology sector looking to climb up the corporate ladder, this innovative program has you covered. The holistic design of the program allows you to strengthen the fundamentals in the first two years and then excel in one of the following specializations:

  1. Software Developer
  2. Cyber Security Analyst
  3. Data Scientist

Delivery model

The program delivery is designed with flexible learning activities integrating theory, practice and reflection over the year at a pace that best suits you and your work environment. You will attend a 3-week induction in the beginning, after which the delivery becomes blended. You will get a weekly half-day release from work to allow for self-study (webinar, lecture, tutorials) interspersed with regular (e.g., every 6-7 weeks) 5-day blocks to attend campus. At the same time, you will continue skill development by fulfilling your work tasks and duties. You will also need to devote some additional time for independent study, assignments, reflection and preparation.

To ensure you can balance degree-level studies with full-time work over four years, the program is designed to deliver:

  • Academic-only courses: where learning objectives are met through a blend of classroom, synchronous and asynchronous learning activities.
  • Academic & workplace courses: where learning objectives are met through a blend of classroom, synchronous and asynchronous learning, and workplace experience.

You will receive continuous support & guidance through a robust student support system including a Course Director, Professional Skills Coach and others.

Courses

First Year

Course CodeCreditsCourse Title
LE/DIGT 11612.00Teamwork and Communication in Software Development
LE/DIGT 11014.00Introduction to Computational Problem Solving
SC/MATH 15163.00General Mathematics for Software Development
AP/ADMS 10003.00Introduction to Business
LE/DIGT 11723.00Being a Digital Citizen
LE/DIGT 12711.00Technology Leadership and Professional Reflection 1
LE/DIGT 12018.00Object-Oriented Problem Solving
LE/DIGT 12723.00Mobilizing Digital Citizenship
LE/DIGT 13023.00Web Development Basics
By the end of Year One, the learner has developed foundational technical skills, encountered the tools of the trade (computer languages and systems, and common development platforms and tools) as well as development methodologies including teamwork and communication. Learners have built some simple software artifacts with an awareness of correctness, testing, and security. These technical skills and knowledge have been acquired through both academic and workplace learning.

In addition, the learner understands common business organisation and structure, basic management strategies, and basic competitive and productivity drivers. They have recognised the potential contribution of technology solutions to such business processes. This contextual knowledge has led the learner to an awareness that effective communication of technical solutions at all levels of the organisation is a crucial ability they will need to develop. Thus, they have a nascent awareness of the scope of their future learning objectives. Learners will be able to participate in code reviews, user and acceptance testing, contribute to product documentation and automate simple tasks through scripting. Year One sets the stage for future technical learning and to operate better as a unit within the context of their workplace.

Second Year

Course CodeCreditsCourse Title
LE/DIGT 22711.00Technology Leadership and Professional Reflection 2
LE/DIGT 21034.00Introduction to Computer Organization & Systems
LE/DIGT 21028.00Data Structures, Algorithms and Analysis
LE/DIGT 21073.00Practice of Software Development
LE/DIGT 23073.00Principles of Operating Systems
LE/DIGT 22063.00Computer Networks
LE/DIGT 23023.00Security Fundamentals
LE/DIGT 22013.00Introduction to Data Science
In Year Two, the learner continues to grow their skills in software development, with a stronger understanding of computer systems, networks, and data organization, as well as experience in team-based development methodologies by explicitly incorporating at the same time security awareness. These technical skills include developing competency in applying testing strategies for supporting the correctness of software products.

Learners will have contributed to the design and implementation of a system for which they can articulate the business case, thereby demonstrating their growing awareness of the business context for digital technology solutions. Articulating the business case has likely included professional presentations to both a technical and non-technical audience. Teamwork skills include the ability not only to effectively contribute technically but also to support others in the team as appropriate. Equity and inclusion, particularly with respect to diversity, are key values that the learner will demonstrate. By the end of Year 2, the learner will be able to participate in technical design meetings and engage in the implementation of small yet key software modules in the workplace.

Third Year

Common 3000-level courses

Course CodeCreditsCourse Title
LE/DIGT 31719.00Digital Technologies project
LE/DIGT 32711.00Technology Leadership and Professional Reflection 3
LE/DIGT 31013.00Software Development Lifecycle
LE/DIGT 32063.00Security and Privacy: Awareness and Governance
LE/DIGT 31073.00Data Management Systems
LE/DIGT 32033.00Distributed Systems
LE/DIGT 32613.00Introduction to Project Management

Software Development Stream

Course CodeCreditsCourse Title
LE/DIGT 31413.00Software I: Software Design and Architecture
LE/DIGT 32413.00Software II: Software Testing and Quality Assessment

Cybersecurity Stream

Course CodeCreditsCourse Title
LE/DIGT 31213.00Network Security
LE/DIGT 32213.00Security By Design

Data Science Stream

Course CodeCreditsCourse Title
LE/DIGT 31313.00Theoretical Foundations of Data Science
LE/DIGT 32313.00Data Science and Applications
Year Three allows the learner to gain a well-developed understanding and practice in software development as the foundation for their specialisation, either software development itself, security or data science. They are capable of planning and managing the execution of projects with awareness of broader implications such as ethics, privacy, and legal issues. Depending on their chosen path the learner has begun to develop deeper specialised knowledge and skills in one of the areas of software development, security or data science. They have developed a significant system, or a component of a system, in one of these areas, utilising their domain-specific skills and their nascent project management knowledge. The project has also honed their communication skills through presentations designed to garner support by demonstrating the business significance and persuading stakeholders of its feasibility. These experiences have allowed the learner to demonstrate initiative and the ability to acquire new knowledge and skills specific to the project.

By the end of Year Three, students have selected their path of study and have deeper technical knowledge in their field. In the workplace, students will be able to guide and support junior members of the team.

Fourth Year Courses

Common 4000-level courses

Course CodeCreditsCourse Title
LE/DIGT 42711.00Technology Leadership and Professional Reflection 4
LE/DIGT 41013.00Artificial Intelligence
LE/DIGT 41023.00Auditing and Governance of Information Systems
LE/DIGT 42013.00Cloud computing: infrastructure and software
LE/DIGT 41033.00User Interface development

Software Development Stream

Course CodeCreditsCourse Title
LE/DIGT 41423.00Software Development I: Software Requirements
LE/DIGT 41433.00Software Development II: Model-Driven Engineering and Model Verification
LE/DIGT 42413.00Software Development III: DevOps and Software Reliability Engineering
LE/DIGT 41419.00Software Development Synoptic Project

Cybersecurity Stream

Course CodeCreditsCourse Title
LE/DIGT 41223.00Threat Management and Protection of Systems
LE/DIGT 42213.00Digital Forensics
LE/DIGT 41233.00Security Development and Operations
LE/DIGT 41219.00Security Synoptic Project

Data Science Stream

Course CodeCreditsCourse Title
LE/DIGT 41323.00Machine Learning and Applications
LE/DIGT 42313.00Advanced Machine Learning
LE/DIGT 41333.00Big Data and Data Mining Applications
LE/DIGT 41319.00Data Science Synoptic Project (Capstone Project)
By the end of Year Four, the learner, irrespective of their specialisation, has a clear understanding of software development practices, data modelling and analysis, as well as machine learning techniques, including theory, limitations, and social implications. Two other key areas of importance to business and digital technology development, namely cloud computing and user driven development round out their core competencies.

The software development specialist can carry out a project using rigorous requirements, development, and testing methodologies, including explicit business case analysis and alignment with business priorities.

Similarly, the security specialist has a deep understanding of security strategies, from technical architecture to organisational posture, and of explicit technologies to control access, detect and respond to issues, and recover from actual events. This has been demonstrated through a significant workplace project that has developed some aspect of the existing organisational security posture.

The data science specialist can develop technical architectures for large scale data storage, as well as retrieve meaningful information of relevance to business priorities for analysis and presentation.

All specialisations encompass a workplace project that allows students to demonstrate their personal initiative, leadership, advanced communication skills, well-developed interpersonal skills, as well as their understanding of business priorities and their role in achieving those priorities. Graduates are able to convey to others the relevance and viability of a project in relation to the business context.

Assessment

The strategy for assessment in this program is driven by industry norms. There will be a wide variety of formative assessment tasks including class discussions, peer feedback on in-class presentations, workshop activities with feedback, online quizzes and tutor feedback on project work. You will also be completing a mandatory portfolio over the four years, which will document your progress towards personal, professional and program learning objectives.

What will you gain?

As a learner in this innovative program, you will:

  • enjoy the benefits of being a full-time employee.
  • get paid time off to study and attend classes.
  • develop an appreciation of the social, ethical, environmental and professional aspects of development and usage of digital technologies.
  • acquire the technical skills required for a future technical leader, including the creation of software solutions, development of digital technology infrastructure, security and data privacy methodologies, data and information management & analytics.
  • hone various soft skills needed for a future business leader including critical analysis, stakeholder management, agility, business communication, teamwork, conflict resolution, leadership and project management.
  • gain a competitive edge at program completion with four years of work experience at one of our partner organizations.
  • receive a Bachelor of Applied Science degree in Digital Technologies upon graduation.