Curricula in IT: 

In Switzerland, the trend is to consider Information Technologies in close ties with Communication ; ICT is really an important field. In a very different way, there are also significant and growing overlaps between IT and Business Management. Nevertheless, we shall focus here on curricula addressing very specifically IT, and even more specifically computer sciences. There are more than 10 institutions at university level in Switzerland, which offer curricula in IT. The examples shown below are taken from the largest Swiss university of applied sciences, the one of West Switzerland (HESSO). Furthermore, the latter institution offers these curricula under similar and coordinated conditions in several towns, in particular Fribourg, Geneva, and Yverdon-les-Bains. The nominal duration of studies is currently 3 years and an half. Prerequisites include at least one year of pratical experience in technical jobs. With Bologna recommendations, current trends in flexible, modular credit systems as well as in increased mobility, the actual, indicidual duration of training can significantly vary.
Engineers who graduate in computer sciences will develop software for systems, the purpose of which is to collect, store, transmit, process and present information. For students in engineering, at the West Switzerland University of Applied Sciences, there are mainly two specializations in Computer Sciences: Software Engineering (in French: “Génie Logiciel”) and Technical Computer Science (in French: “Informatique Technique” and in German: “technische Informatik”).
The software specialization insists on the design of large scale software, and this requires a deeper training in selected computer science domains, leaving aside some traditional courses. On the other hand, the hardware specialization insists on automation, electronics, realtime and low-level software and networks. Each case will be briefly introduced in English, and then detailed in French, which is the language used for the courses.

1.    Software Engineering:
Creative and good in human relationships, students in computer sciences can specialize in Software design and development. Although rather individualistic and autonomous, they also likes teamwork. They typically perform well as Research & Development engineers, and very often become Project Managers.
The software that is designed serves many purposes including the ones to grab, stock, transform and present information, in various fields such as on the Internet, in banking operations and network management. These engineers will work in the following domains:

• Data bases
• Teleinformatics
• Internet applications and services
• Computer graphics
• Processi optimization

Génie Logiciel :

Créatif et à l’aise dans les relations humaines, l’ingénieur en informatique, orientation Logiciel, est un spécialiste du développement et de la conception. Individualiste, il aime aussi le travail en équipe. Il est ingénieur de recherche et de développement, puis chef de projet.

Il développe, distribue et exploite des logiciels de grande envergure où le stockage, la transmission, le traitement, la transformation et la présentation de l’information sont les éléments mis en œuvre. Les domaines d’applications vont d’Internet aux applications bancaires, de la gestion de réseaux au développement de logiciels les plus variés.

L’ingénieur en informatique, orientation Logiciel, est en mesure de se spécialiser, en particulier, dans les domaines suivants:

• Bases de données
• Téléinformatique
• Applications et services Internet
• Infographie

·         Planification / optimisation de processus

2. Technical computer engineering:

Just like students specialized in software engineering, the technical specialist is first an engineer for Research and Development tasks, and may become a Project Manager. But his main interest is more oriented towards hardware, implementation and physical aspects, when he designs, develops and makes use of computers.

For a given application, he can integrate hardware components and high-level software elements into a system designed to collect, store, transmit, process and present data.

His training, mainly in automation, electronics, software and networks, enables him to design and use any computer structure, in order to develop novel products and services.

The engineer in technical computer sciences will typically work in the following fields:

·         Micro informatics, embedded systems

·         Signal and data processing

·         Operating systems

·         Reactive systems / concurrent program design

Informatique Technique :
L’ingénieur en informatique, orientation Informatique technique, est un créatif, spécialiste non seulement du développement et de la conception, mais aussi de l’utilisation des aspects matériels. Individualiste, il aime aussi le travail en équipe. Il est ingénieur de recherche et de développement, puis chef de projet.
Il est capable d’intégrer les matériels et les logiciels informatiques liés à la conception des composants et des systèmes pour le captage, le stockage, la transmission, le traitement et la présentation de l’information dans un contexte d’application.
Sa formation privilégiée en automatique, électronique, logiciel et réseaux informatiques lui permet de mettre en place et d’exploiter l’infrastructure informatique, de concevoir et de développer des produits et des services.
L’ingénieur en Informatique technique est plus particulièrement à même de répondre aux besoins des domaines suivants:

• Microinformatique, systèmes embarqués
• Systèmes de traitement du signal et de l’information au sens large
• Systèmes d’exploitation
• Systèmes réactifs / programmation concurrente

HESSO.HEIG-VD,Carl Kjeldsen 006.02.24.