SAQA

All qualifications and part qualifications registered on the National Qualifications Framework are public property. Thus the only payment that can be made for them is for service and reproduction. It is illegal to sell this material for profit. If the material is reproduced or quoted, the South African Qualifications Authority (SAQA) should be acknowledged as the source.

SOUTH AFRICAN QUALIFICATIONS AUTHORITY

REGISTERED QUALIFICATION THAT HAS PASSED THE END DATE:

Master of Arts: Informatics: Research

SAQA QUAL ID	QUALIFICATION TITLE
4455	Master of Arts: Informatics: Research
ORIGINATOR
Rand Afrikaans University
PRIMARY OR DELEGATED QUALITY ASSURANCE FUNCTIONARY			NQF SUB-FRAMEWORK
CHE - Council on Higher Education			HEQSF - Higher Education Qualifications Sub-framework
QUALIFICATION TYPE	FIELD		SUBFIELD
Master's Degree	Field 04 - Communication Studies and Language		Information Studies
ABET BAND	MINIMUM CREDITS	PRE-2009 NQF LEVEL	NQF LEVEL	QUAL CLASS
Undefined	240	Level 8 and above	NQF Level 09	Regular-Provider-ELOAC
REGISTRATION STATUS		SAQA DECISION NUMBER	REGISTRATION START DATE	REGISTRATION END DATE
Passed the End Date - Status was "Reregistered"		SAQA 2663/05	2006-07-01	2009-06-30
LAST DATE FOR ENROLMENT		LAST DATE FOR ACHIEVEMENT
2010-06-30		2013-06-30

In all of the tables in this document, both the pre-2009 NQF Level and the NQF Level is shown. In the text (purpose statements, qualification rules, etc), any references to NQF Levels are to the pre-2009 levels unless specifically stated otherwise.

This qualification does not replace any other qualification and is not replaced by any other qualification.

PURPOSE AND RATIONALE OF THE QUALIFICATION

The primary purpose of this qualification is to provide qualifying learners with the ability:

o Specialize in a specific area of Informatics as a discipline.
o Do original research work.
o Display his knowledge on theoretical aspects of informatics.
o Solve problems related to a research topic.
o Obtain competences and skills in the IT domain which can be used in future decision making and strategic thinking.

LEARNING ASSUMED TO BE IN PLACE AND RECOGNITION OF PRIOR LEARNING

Learners accessing this qualification should demonstrate their ability to:

o demonstrate their knowledge, understanding and insight into IT related matters.
o Investigate a relevant informatics field by consulting textbooks, journals or searching the internet and to write a report on the findings.

Credits on level 7 for:

* Informatics

Recognition of prior learning:

A learner who claims to have achieved entry requirements through experiential learning will be assessed. If the student is found to be competent the student may
gain access; advanced placement; or recognition of degree status will be granted on condition of continuing education.

RECOGNISE PREVIOUS LEARNING?

EXIT LEVEL OUTCOMES

The learner should be able to:

1. Solve a research problem in IT under the guidance of the study leader, and come to a valid conclusion;

Solve the research problem in IT under constraints of time, man-power and budgets.

2. Must be able to work on an individual basis, doing research work in collaboration with the study leader.

Must be able to work in collaboration with other research teams, locally or abroad.

Must be able to give guidance to students on junior levels.

3. Must be a reliable student, completing tasks assigned by the study leader within constraints such as present time limits.

Must be a motivated worker who will work towards a preset goal.

4. Must be able to work independently in solving a research problem.

Must be able to use technology to gather information (internet etc)

Must know how to apply the basic principles of the scientific research methods in the IT field

Must be able to summarize research results in a form which can be communicated to others (by visual/graphical/oral means)

5. Must be able to give a well written report of the research findings in the form of a thesis or articles to be published in accredited journals.

Must be able to verbally communicate research results by way of seminars or deliver papers at research conferences.

6. Must be able to use IT technology in solving research problems (internet, client/server systems etc.)

Must be able to develop algorithms solving research problems.

7. The learner must be able to apply research/theoretical knowledge to solve problems which can benefit society by improving living conditions.

Must be aware of how research knowledge can be applied to improve the environment.

8. Must be able to obtain research results from sources such as search engines on the Internet, CD-ROMs, journals and text books.

Must be able to form an own interpretation of the obtained research results and to place it into context.

Must be able to use the obtained information in building a conceptual research model to solve the problem under investigation.

9. Must be aware of methods/strategies to be used in applying research results to improve living conditions of other citizens.

Must be responsible not to misuse research results to the detriment of other citizens. (e.g. Hacking the Internet, breaking security code systems, writing viruses.)

10. Must be sensitive to the needs of other citizens and how to apply research results in such a way not to offend any individual or group.

11. Must be aware of how to obtained knowledge can be applied in forming a career path in IT.

Must be able to draw up a CV.

12. Must be aware of the principles of self-employment.

Must be able to act as an IT consultant.

Must be aware of business principles in managing a business.

Must be aware of generating jobs in the IT industry.
Apply the basic principles of the scientific research methods in the IT field.

ASSOCIATED ASSESSMENT CRITERIA

1. The learner can demonstrate his ability to solve a research problem in a reasonable time to come to a valid conclusion by writing a study report (thesis).

2. Ongoing evaluation by the study learner of the ability of the learner of a group work such as guidance to another students in solving IT problems.

Feedback from leaders of other participating research groups in assessing participations of the learner in mutual research activities.

3. The learner has to demonstrate his abilities to complete a research project within the constraints of time, budgets and manpower.

The candidate must submit a detailed project plan to the study leader indicating main activities and when these milestones will be reached.

The study leader must assess the progress with reference to the work plan. If the progress is not acceptable, the necessary steps should be taken to rectify the situation.

4. The leader has to demonstrate his abilities in applying the basic principles of the scientific research methodology in the IT field.

The study leader must assess the learner`s ability to apply the fundamental theoretical principles to formulate the research model.

The study leader must assess the learner`s ability to demonstrate how the model solves the original problem.

The leader must validate the correctness of the solution by testing algorithms, progress, formulas and other results.

5. The learner must demonstrate his abilities to communicate his research findings using his variety of media such as written or verbal reports, graphical presentations in slide shows or internet web pages.

The study leader must assess study written reports (thesis, articles) according to the technical correctness of the presentation, to the layout and structure of the document and to correct language use.

The study leader must assess the learner`s ability to verbally communicate his findings to group of technical and non-technical people at IT conferences and the general meetings and lectures.

6. The learner should be able to demonstrate his ability to use IT technology in solving the research problem. The study leader must judge the learner`s ability to develop the necessary software to solve the research problem.

The study leader must judge the use of advanced technological facilities such as high level programming languages, distributed systems client/server architectures etc.

7. The learner should be able to demonstrate his abilities to apply research knowledge to the benefit of the society and the environment.

In cases where the research work was of an applied nature, the study leader must ascertain that the learner is aware of his responsibilities to apply his research results to the benefit of society and the environment.

8. The learner should be able to demonstrate his abilities to follow a systematically procedure in acquiring the necessary background knowledge and skills to conduct the research project.

The study leader must judge the learner`s abilities in integrating the acquired knowledge and skills in building models to solve the research project.

9. The learner should be aware of the importance of applying his knowledge of the benefit of other citizens in a society.

The study leader must ascertain the learner`s attitude towards the citizens of the country, making sure that the acquired knowledge will be used to the benefit of the society at large.

10. The learner should be aware that there is a diversity of culture groups in the country and that the research must be applied in such a way as not to offend any individual or groups of individuals.

The study leader must ascertain that research results are presented in such a way that nobody is offended.

11. The learner should be able to present himself to the IT industry as a productive, honest and reliable worker.

The study leader must see to it that the learner knows the ethics of employment in the IT Industry.

12. The learner should be aware of the importance of generating job opportunities in the IT industry

The study leader is responsible to assess the learner`s awareness of the importance of generating job opportunities in the IT industry by informal discussions.

The study leader has to assess the learner`s knowledge of business principles by informal discussions during the research period.

Formative assessment practices that will be implemented:

Learners are continuously assessed by informal discussion with their appointed study leader. The course requires the learner to study, interpret and evaluate a wide range of subject related documents - like research papers, theses and product documentation. Furthermore learners are exposed to document writing, and must produce several technical documents that are often submitted as papers to subject journals.

Summative assessment practices that will be implemented:

Integrated assessment, focusing on the achievement of the exit-level outcomes, will be done by means of a comprehensive thesis on which the final evaluation is based.

ARTICULATION OPTIONS

Access to qualification at lower level:

Due to the level of specification in an MA, is not possible to gain access to this qualification from a lower level outside informatics.

Access to qualifications on the same level:

If learners want to continue their studies at another higher education institution, they may switch towards the end of the first or the second semester. Accreditation of all courses passed at this institution will depend totally on decision of the other institution. For studies on the same level, there`s the following possibilities or continuation of studies within other education programmes:

Access to qualifications on a higher level:

Having obtained this qualification, the following possibilities for further study of higher education programme exist:

A PhD degree-programme at any university.

MODERATION OPTIONS

External processes:

External assessors are appointed by formal invitation.

Assessors must formally accept the appointment as external examiner.

An external examiner has to complete a formal assessment report in writing that will be submitted to the office of the dean.

The study leader coordinates the written reports received from the external examiners.

One external examiner will be appointed coming either from the other Information departments at other universities, locally or abroad or from the IT industry.

CRITERIA FOR THE REGISTRATION OF ASSESSORS

Any assessor must at least have a MA or PhD in informatics/relevant field.

Any assessor must have had experience in the IIT environment with some academic experience in research.

Any assessor must have had exposure to assessment in a tertiary academic environment, preferably in academic research or industry.

REREGISTRATION HISTORY

As per the SAQA Board decision/s at that time, this qualification was Reregistered in 2006.

NOTES

This MA (Informatics) with endorsement qualification is registered as a separate qualification only with SAQA. At the Department of Education it is not registered separately, but is included in the registration of the generic MA.

LEARNING PROGRAMMES RECORDED AGAINST THIS QUALIFICATION:

NONE

PROVIDERS CURRENTLY ACCREDITED TO OFFER THIS QUALIFICATION:

This information shows the current accreditations (i.e. those not past their accreditation end dates), and is the most complete record available to SAQA as of today. Some Primary or Delegated Quality Assurance Functionaries have a lag in their recording systems for provider accreditation, in turn leading to a lag in notifying SAQA of all the providers that they have accredited to offer qualifications and unit standards, as well as any extensions to accreditation end dates. The relevant Primary or Delegated Quality Assurance Functionary should be notified if a record appears to be missing from here.

NONE