NUS's IS5005 and IS5009 Reviews - Master of Computing (Information Systems) Modules

With a new academic year fast approaching within the next few months, I thought I better get my Semester 1 modules review out before taking a well-deserved break from modules and study. Afterall, it feels like quite a feat to have completed my first year in Master of Computing, specialising in Information Systems, which hasn't been easy considering my jump into computing from having hardly any background at all.

But enough about me and on to the reviews. In this post, I will cover my Year 1, Semester 1 modules - IS5005 and IS5009 whereas other posts will cover my Year 1, Semester 2 modules - IS5008, IS5111 and IS5128 , Year 2, Semester 1 modules - CS5228, IS5116 and IS5151 and Year 2, Semester 2 modules - IS5002 and IS5004. So do check them out too. Alternatively, you could also check out my post on some tips to do well in your part-time Masters!

And now for the Year 1, Semester 1 modules which might be some of your choice picks for the upcoming year....

IS5005 - Digital Engagement (under Prof HENG Cheng Suang)

Workload  

2 Hours of Lecture a Week 

The lectures are recorded and available for students' viewing so it is not really necessary to attend them live. There is a final exam though so you probably will have to review the video some time.

Having said that I also wish to say that I absolutely enjoyed attending the lectures and always tried not to miss it! The Prof plays in lots of videos and sometimes these are better viewed live but not absolutely necessary. The example videos he show during lectures might help you with generating ideas for the group project.

A relatively light module.

Assessment

Group Project - 50%

I really enjoyed doing the group project! In teams of five, we had to come up with ways to apply digital engagement to the F&B industry. We could, of course choose whichever food and beverage or whatever eatery we wanted to work on.

Groups will have to make a video as well. Sort of a promotion/campaign video for the company or F&B you chose. Some might find making the video portion challenging. He did mention that (since Covid-19 was raging at that time) submitting a moodboard is also acceptable. But I believe every group actually submitted a video so it might not be as hard as it seems. And besides that was half the fun of doing the project!

Everything project related were submitted in PowerPoint slides. No report to do! Every team was given 20 minutes to do their final presentation. Not every group member is expected to present.

Prof Heng also recommends every group to go for at least two or three consultations with him for the project so do book your consultation slots with him.

Final Exam - 50%

The final exam might be a little challenging especially in terms of time. There were five questions for our batch and each question is sub-divided into further parts. For each question, there is also a case study to read and several questions to answer based on the case study. So that is quite a lot to be done within the two hours exam duration.

It was an open-book exam so relatively stress-free but it helps to familiarise yourself with the lecture contents beforehand as there might really be no time to flip around looking for answers. You need to be able to just go straight to the relevant portions of the notes.

Overall I found the exam to be rather intuitive and relatively easy. Most content were already covered in lectures. And Prof Heng is sweet enough to explicitly highlight what he requires of us for each question during the revision lecture he held in the final week of the semester.

Grades

Grades were not released for all the assessment components, which is not so surprising considering both the assessment components were submitted after the 13-weeks lecture period. 

Thoughts about Module

One of my favourite modules really (out of the ten modules I did) - very interesting! 

To me understanding how businesses can better engage with their customers and potential customers was really insightful.

Prof Heng showed really interesting case studies during the lectures, plenty of videos! He brought in lots of real life exciting campaigns that companies have done. Some with extreme success, others not so much.

Plus this is a really low commitment module. One of the lightest out of the ten I did and maybe out of all IS modules. 

Opinion of Prof Heng

Prof Heng is a really sweet lecturer. He tries his hardest to make lectures fun and engaging, getting all hyped up so we don't fall asleep during lectures (what did I say... absolutely sweet guy!).

In the first lecture itself, he made it clear what contents he will be covering throughout the semester and set clear expectations for students. 

He is very generous with his time. Like I mentioned he recommends every group to have at least two or three consultations and he makes it very easy to book slots and provide lots of different time options.

And Prof Heng is an absolute darling in that he calms students down before their presentation and his whole presence during the group presentation is reassuring rather than intimidating.

So as you can see, I really enjoyed being Prof Heng's student and would actually love to have the chance to do another module with him.

Would I Recommend this Module?

Hell, yes! You could use this as a buffer for some of the heavier modules you might take! 

But the key is really to get together with good team mates and plan well so you can accomplish set milestones every week. The problem with such light modules is that you might underestimate the work that goes into delivering a good project. 

The module also requires you to output a video for you end-product so do consider if that is something you might be comfortable with.

IS5009 - Topics in Financial Technology Solutions (under Prof Keith Barrett CARTER)

Workload  

2 Hours of Lecture a Week 

The lectures are recorded but NOT available for students' viewing so it is probably necessary to attend them live. And Prof Carter tends to overshoot the two hours lecture slot almost every week! Some weeks are worse than others, by half an hour or more at times.

To be honest, I feel the lecture contents are interesting but might not necessarily be all relevant for the assignments and projects. So I just took in the stuff I needed and for the rest, heard with only one ear. 

Personally I feel that this is quite a heavy module and will require lots of time investment if you wish to do well.

Assessment

For all assignments and projects, Prof Carter provides proper guidelines on what he expects of us. So it is easier to give him what is required. Just follow his instructions to the tee and you should be good.

Individual Assignment 1 - 15%

The first assignment was quite tedious because he wanted us to understand the large variety of products that banks offered to its customers. It really involved researching thoroughly and documenting every aspect of the products offered. 

Submission was in Week 5 and we had about two weeks to do it. Submission was in PowerPoint format.

Individual Assignment 2 - 15%

There was also about two weeks to do this assignment and submission was in Week 7. This time we had to select and analyse a FinTech app. This assignment was pretty manageable. I did take quite a bit of time to research on the various apps before finally selecting one to focus on. Submission can be done in PowerPoint or Word.

Group Project Proposal - 25%

For the group project, we had to form teams of three members and Prof Carter tries to help students get to know one another in the first lecture, where he put us into breakout rooms.

The project proposal was due in Week 8. Before that my group actually consulted with him to see if our ideas are in line with what he might want. And he also pointed us in the right direction on how we could approach the whole problem. This is crucial! So do try to consult with him to get your idea right. Once you do this well, the next two assessment component should flow smoothly too. 

Each group is required by the end of the project to have come up with a prototype. So make sure your project can deliver that!

For the proposal, we had to write a proper report of about three or four pages.

Individual Assignment 3 - 15%

This assignment, although individual, is actually a part of the project. Prof Carter just wants to make sure every member is contributing to the project I guess. So we were required to design the UI/UX prototype of group project. 

You could either split the project into three components and each member design one aspect of it or each can just design whatever aspect they choose. For better time management, go with the first option so that more of the project gets completed by this stage.

Submission was in Week 10.

Group Final Submission and Presentation - 30%

And finally for the project, we are supposed to present our work and demonstrate the prototype. The final submission was in the form of PowerPoint for us. We just put everything together and submitted it. Final submission was about one or two weeks after presentation so you could clean things up a little if you require it.

For the presentation, not every member is expected to present.

Grades

Grades for all the assessment components were released within LumiNUS's Gradebook. Comments and the brief marking scheme were given for the assignments and final project. 

Thoughts about Module

I honestly feel like I learnt a lot from the module but the learning is really mostly from the group project so make sure you choose a topic you are interested in to do the project on. Then it will be most useful for you.

You need good members for this module. With only three members a group, each member really needs to do their best and contribute or your project is not going to turn out good. I got really lucky in choosing my members.

This is quite a heavy module but I feel it is not as heavy as IS5128 (did that review in the post mentioned above). The reason it is not as heavy is because for the project proposal, assignment 3 and final project report/demo, they are all essentially linked. So it is like doing one big project in parts for a total of 70% of the module grades. For IS5128, you will be doing a lot more work for smaller portions of the entire grade. Up to you to decide which is the better module for you.

For this module, I feel that as long as you focus on your project and make sure it is headed in the right direction, you should be good.

Opinion of Prof Carter

Prof Carter is passionate about all things FinTech. As you can see, a big part of the entire module is on the group project and he wants to think innovatively in the FinTech space. Of course, he does provide guidance to students as required. He makes time to do consultation with groups, meeting us at ice cream parlours and various other locations.

Be warned though that Prof Carter is really particular about presentations, especially in keeping to within the set time limit. He monitors the time closely and once the timer goes off, he won't let you carry on. And since each group is given only ten minutes and there is quite a bit to present, you probably have to practice several times on your own to make sure you don't exceed that time. 

Would I Recommend this Module?

For those interested in FinTech then definitely. 

But even if you are not, I really feel it is a good module to introduce you to and get you interested in it! It is really one of the more interesting IS modules out there. Disclaimer though - I only did nine IS modules so that statement is really based against those modules only.

*And there you have it. The two IS modules I did in Semester 1 of my first year as an NUS Master of Computing student. If you have any questions you need to ask, please feel free to comment or contact me. I will do my best to answer whatever queries I can. Otherwise, wish you all a great module booking!