Diploma in Full Stack Development (DFSD)

This module introduces the basic concepts of relations, functions, matrices and their applications relevant to IT professionals. The primary purpose of this module is to help students increase their problem-solving capability. Topics covered include Sets, Relations & Functions, Matrices and fundamentals of statistics and probability.

This module introduces the fundamentals of programming and how to develop programs using appropriate problem-solving techniques in a modular style. In this practice-oriented module, students are taught how to apply problem-solving skills using a top-down structured programming methodology and given ample practice in translating solutions into computer programs, then test and debug the programs. Topics include data types, variables, expressions, statements, selection structures, loops, simple computation and algorithms and functions.

This module focuses on the fundamentals and principles of Operating Systems. It explains what general operating systems are and what they do. The module teaches concepts that are applicable to operating systems such as Windows and Linux. Concepts including processes, physical and virtual memory, understanding of files and directories, file systems, shell and OS commands will be covered. The module also covers the terminology and technologies in current networking environments and provides a general overview of the field of networking as a basis for subsequent related modules in the course. The topics related to types of networks, network topologies, network technologies and layered protocol architecture will be taught.

This module builds upon the knowledge and skills acquired in Programming Fundamentals. It aims to provide opportunities for the students to develop medium-scale applications based on a different programming paradigm from procedural programming to allow students gain exposure to different approaches and techniques in programming. The main concepts of the programming paradigm and the development of applications with it will be taught in this module. A high-level programming language suitable to demonstrate the programming approach will be used.

Today's business organisations depend on information systems in virtually all aspects of their businesses. Corporate databases are set up to hold the voluminous business transactions generated by these information systems. This module introduces students to the underlying concepts of database systems and on how to model and design database systems that reflect business requirements. Skills to be taught include data modelling technique, transformation of data model to relations, normalisation technique and SQL (structured query language).

This module provides students with the fundamental knowledge and skills required in server-side development. It will also cover the integration of back-end system with databases, possibly external systems as well as consuming data from web application protocol interfaces (APIs). Towards the end of the module, it may also introduce to the students how their knowledge in server-side development can be applied in applications with various front-end interfaces; this allows students to flexibly apply their server-side development concepts and skill learnt in developing back-end systems of various uses.

This module introduces students to the two activities in a software development lifecycle: Software Analysis and Design. An overview of Software Development Life Cycles will be provided to give context to the two main activities needed to prior to implementation. Students will learn about the different concepts and techniques to analyze the given requirements, derive related software components and develop suitable software design based on the components derived from the analysis activities. Students will specify, design and document the different components using various appropriate tools, notations and methods of representation.

This module provides students with the knowledge and skills needed to develop responsive user interfaces and build front-end applications using languages and tool such as HTML5, CSS3, JavaScript and other modern front-end web frameworks. Students will learn how to consume and integrate third-party APIs in their applications. Students may also learn in practice how to clearly document and present the projects they have built, using up-to-date project/code management and source control tools like Git. User experience concepts in front-end applications will also be covered in the module. The focus of this module is to develop and strengthen skills in development of front-end applications with care for user experience.

This module provides students with the opportunity to apply the knowledge and skills gained from the various modules in the course, particularly Front-End Development and Server-Side Development, to culminate in a project. The students also will have the chance to explore topics in IT and application domains that they have a personal interest. Students may choose to undertake a real-life IT project, a competition-based project or a research and development. Through the project, students have opportunities to work in teams, work on real-world problems, and build up their personal portfolios in full-stack development. The chosen project should ideally include problem definition, requirements gathering, analysis and design, development and testing and subsequent deliverable of artefacts that would be suitable for their personal portfolios.

This module aims to provide students with the knowledge and skills to implement DevSecOps. The focus is to teach the set of software development practices that automates the processes between software development and IT operations. Building upon their knowledge of agile methodology and software development, students will be taught how to leverage the concepts of continuous integration and continuous delivery (CI/CD) to deliver value more rapidly. The module will provide hands-on practice for students to experience the CI/CD pipeline with the use of popular open-source tools.

This module trains students to view information systems from the perspective of business needs and participate in the design of IT solutions to solve the identified business problems. Students will be exposed to work processes such as Design Thinking that facilitates problem identification to prototyping. This module also allows students to work in teams to experience a real-life application development cycle. Elements of project management, automated testing and source version controls will be introduced in relevant phases of the application development cycle. Students will be exposed to modern development methodologies such as Agile.

This module aims to provide learners with the skills necessary from the perspective of a Software Quality Assurance member in a software development team. The focus is to equip learners with the basics of software quality standards, testing measurement, testing methodologies, techniques and strategies. Learners will also be exposed to the latest trends which includes automated testing and the integration of Quality Assurance into a DevOps environment. The module will provide hands-on practice for learners to experience the delivery of a quality software developed through the use of popular open-source tools.

The industry practicum provides students with the opportunity to apply the knowledge and skills gained from the various modules in the course to the development of an IT solution to sovle a practical problem. Students undertake a real-life IT project in an organisation that may include problem definition, requirements analysis, design, development and testing, delivery and presentation of the solution. Through the project, students will learn and appreciate the project planning and control issues relating to IT project development.

Capstone Project: In this module, students are required to complete a substantial project that is the culmination of their education in the diploma. The project can be a real-world problem proposed by the industry. Students undertake a real-life IT project in an organisation that may include problem definition, requirements analysis, design, development and testing, delivery and presentation of the solution. Through the project, students will learn and appreciate the project planning and control issues relating to IT project development.

Elective Modules (2 out of the following 4):

Cloud Architecture and Technologies: This module gives insight into the key concepts and technologies of cloud computing which include cloud characteristics, service models (SaaS, PaaS, and IaaS), development models (Public cloud, Private cloud, Community cloud, and Hybrid cloud), and the features of cloud computing technologies. It also covers the cloud computing architecture, emerging trends and issues such as clouds for mobile applications, cloud portability and interoperability, scalability, manageability, and service delivery in terms of design and implementation issues. The module discusses the benefits and challenges of cloud computing, standards of cloud computing service delivery, and Service Level Agreement (SLAs) for cloud services. Hands-on activities are included to expose students to various cloud computing services offered by major cloud computing providers such as Amazon Web Services (AWS), Google App Engine (GAE), and Microsoft Windows Azure.

Secure Software Development: The module begins with the training students on how to identify, gather and record security requirements for a software. Students will learn secure software design, where various security frameworks, considerations and methodologies are taught. Students will understand how software vulnerabilities can be exploited and how to address the risks. Students are trained to write secure code that is resilient against critical web application attacks. Finally, students are trained in secure software testing and how to securely deploy software. This module provides students with the knowledge of the secure software development lifecycle. It trains students to incorporate security throughout the entire process of software development. With the knowledge gained from this module, students would be able to design, code, test and deploy software with a security mindset.

Mobile Applications Development: This module builds upon the programming skills and knowledge that students have acquired from the course to date, to develop software solutions on mobile platforms. It will explore the recent developments in mobile technologies and operating systems and focus on the development of applications on these emerging mobile operating systems. The module presents the techniques for mobile app development, covering mobile app architecture as well as key factors to consider, to develop effective accessible mobile software solutions. The students will have the opportunity to apply their knowledge and skills in practice to develop mobile applications in domain areas of their interest, such as entertainment, games, and healthcare.

Emerging Trends in IT: The revolution in computing and communications has spurred the rapid advancement of IT in modern societies, and there is little to suggest that its proliferation will slow down in the near future. In the light of this trend, this module is designed to help students keep abreast of the latest IT developments to stay current and relevant in the fast-moving industry. To achieve this objective, the syllabus for this module will be guided by technology research and feedback from industry partners, and both seminar-style and hands-on workshop teaching approaches may be adopted depending on the nature of the topic covered.