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FAQs

Hear from the Masters Programme in Internet of Things (IoT) participants talk about their experience on the programme

Fergal Brennan was over 20 years into his career and working as Hardware Engineering Manager with CathxOcean when he decided to upskill by enrolling in Digital Skillnet’s part-time master’s programme in Internet of Things (IoT).

“My motivation was to get an IoT qualification so that I could put all the experience that I had into a good context,” he says. “I figured I would just sharpen up my skills.”

Fergal started the two-year programme in September 2019, and just over a year later, he changed jobs to become Hardware Engineering Manager at Taoglas, which is a leading enabler of digital transformation using IoT. “The course definitely acted as a catalyst to the move,” he says. “In my previous job I was designing IoT projects all the time, but we weren’t an IoT-specific company. A lot of what we do at Taoglas is directly applicable to what the master’s is about.”

With the course just drawing to a conclusion, Fergal is glad he took the time to do it. “I am definitely pleased I did it,” he says. “It’s been a good thing for me. I think it will stand to me, and I think it would be the same for anybody.”

Having previously completed an honour’s degree in Electronic Engineering and a part-time master’s in Electronic Systems, he correctly anticipated a considerable workload. “If you find yourself with a lot of spare time on your hands, you’re probably not doing the work. But it’s good. There are some excellent modules,” he says.

“The module on connected embedded systems was excellent, and it is IoT in a nutshell. It encompasses the whole lot. It was very well lectured and very well delivered – even though that was the time when everything was going pear-shaped with Covid. It was very tough and very hard but very on point and very good.”

Other modules that stood out for Fergal included an object-oriented programme for engineers, encryption, machine learning, entrepreneurship for engineers and server side processing. He found that online learning worked fine for him but stressed the importance of communicating with the lecturers. “If I didn’t understand something or something was bothering me, I’d be on to them straight away. You have to engage with the lecturers and every time I did, I got a good outcome,” he says.

As someone now working in a company that builds and sells IoT systems, Fergal has no hesitation in recommending the course for those who are prepared to commit to it. “It has a high degree of relevance. I work with connected embedded systems all the time and I don’t see any disconnect between what they are putting forward in the modules and practical IoT.” he says. “But take it seriously and don’t fall behind. You have to put the time into it.”

About this programme

The Internet of Things (IoT) is a computing concept describing the interconnectivity and collaboration of a wide variety of everyday physical objects connected via the Internet. Rapid IoT development has been driven by ongoing research and technological advances (notably in 5G mobile communications and in Artificial Intelligence). IoT technologies are enabling a wide range of business opportunities in the context of “smart” homes, neighbourhoods and cities and in the exploitation of intelligent infrastructure and services, in areas such as transport, power and healthcare.

Ireland is a global centre for groundbreaking advancements in IoT. There is a strong demand for IoT professionals, who are competent in the design, development, management and support of IoT systems. To meet this skills challenge, Technology Ireland Digital Skillnet has developed, with consultation from industry, a level 9 Masters programme in Electronic and Computer Technology (Internet of Things).

Eligibility Criteria

The course is aimed at those employed in Republic of Ireland registered companies. The minimum entry requirement for standard entrants to the programme is a 2.2 (GPA 2.5 or equivalent), in a Level 8 primary degree in computing/Engineering or an equivalent cognate discipline.

Candidates not attaining this standard level may be offered the option of undertaking a ‘qualifier’ subset of the programme modules which, if successfully completed, would allow them to continue with the main programme (with credit).