Unit Synopsis
This unit offers the foundational communication skills, expectations, and ethical considerations that shape the role of Information and Communications Technology (ICT) professionals, also called digital professionals. Through hands-on activities, you will learn to communicate professionally, both in written and verbal forms, fostering clear and persuasive communication. The unit delves into strategies for effective interpersonal communication within team settings, promoting collaborative teamwork and conflict resolution. It equips you to develop and deliver effective oral presentations underpinned by critical thinking. In addition, this unit strongly emphasises ethics and codes of conduct in the ICT profession. You will apply ethical principles to real-world ICT scenarios, demonstrating ethical, legal, and societal decision-making competencies. Through a blend of theory and practical in-class activities, you will be well-prepared to navigate the multifaceted landscape of ICT professionalism.
Details
| Level | Postgraduate |
|---|---|
| Unit Level | 8 |
| Credit Points | 6 |
| Student Contribution Band | SCA Band 2 |
| Fraction of Full-Time Student Load | 0.125 |
| Pre-requisites or Co-requisites |
Anti-requisite: COIT20233 Professional Skills for Information and Communication Technology. Important note: Students enrolled in a subsequent unit who failed their pre-requisite unit, should drop the subsequent unit before the census date or within 10 working days of Fail grade notification. Students who do not drop the unit in this timeframe cannot later drop the unit without academic and financial liability. See details in the Assessment Policy and Procedure (Higher Education Coursework). |
| Class Timetable | View Unit Timetable |
| Residential School | No Residential School |
Unit Availabilities from Term 1 - 2026
Attendance Requirements
All on-campus students are expected to attend scheduled classes - in some units, these classes are identified as a mandatory (pass/fail) component and attendance is compulsory. International students, on a student visa, must maintain a full time study load and meet both attendance and academic progress requirements in each study period (satisfactory attendance for International students is defined as maintaining at least an 80% attendance record).
Recommended Student Time Commitment
Each 6-credit Postgraduate unit at CQUniversity requires an overall time commitment of an average of 12.5 hours of study per week, making a total of 150 hours for the unit.
Assessment Tasks
| Assessment Task | Weighting |
|---|---|
| 1. Presentation | 20% |
| 2. Portfolio | 45% |
| 3. Report | 35% |
This is a graded unit: your overall grade will be calculated from the marks or grades for each assessment task, based on the relative weightings shown in the table above. You must obtain an overall mark for the unit of at least 50%, or an overall grade of ‘pass’ in order to pass the unit. If any ‘pass/fail’ tasks are shown in the table above they must also be completed successfully (‘pass’ grade). You must also meet any minimum mark requirements specified for a particular assessment task, as detailed in the ‘assessment task’ section (note that in some instances, the minimum mark for a task may be greater than 50%).
Past Exams
All University policies are available on the Policy web site, however you may wish to directly view the following policies below.
This list is not an exhaustive list of all University policies. The full list of policies are available on the Policy web site.
Term 1 - 2025 : The overall satisfaction for students in the last offering of this course was 85.96% (`Agree` and `Strongly Agree` responses), based on a 30.98% response rate.
Feedback, Recommendations and Responses
Every unit is reviewed for enhancement each year. At the most recent review, the following staff and student feedback items were identified and recommendations were made.
Source: Teaching Team Feedback
The unit seamlessly integrates lecture content, tutorial activities, and assessment requirements to ensure a cohesive learning experience.
Foster the current learning and teaching practices.
The current learning and teaching practices in this unit continued.
Source: Unit Coordinator
The rising use of generative artificial intelligence for professional communication has left students uncertain about how to effectively utilise this technology.
Integrate in-class generative artificial intelligence activities to help students understand its potential uses and limitations within the context of their studies.
Students were informally encouraged to use Gen AI to assist in the task of creating a cover letter and resume.
Source: Unit Coordinator's Reflection
The use of generative artificial intelligence for professional communication has left students uncertain about how to effectively utilise this technology, raising questions about genuine interactions.
Consider introducing an in-class activity or assessment about GenAI use that prompts reflection.
In Progress
Source: Unit Coordinator's Reflection
Currently, feedback on assessments is provided without the use of marking rubrics, which may reduce clarity around expectations and assessment criteria.
Introduce marking rubrics for assessments to make expectations more transparent, ensure consistency, and support higher-quality feedback.
In Progress
On successful completion of this unit, you will be able to:
- Describe the skills and expectations that define ICT professionals, including attributes, communication skills, and ethical considerations
- Illustrate the ability to communicate professionally, facilitating clear and persuasive communication in both written and verbal forms
- Apply effective strategies for interpersonal communication within team settings to foster collaborative teamwork
- Develop and deliver compelling oral presentations supported by critical thinking, ensuring convincing and impactful communication of complex concepts
- Demonstrate the application of ethical principles and codes of conduct to real-world ICT scenarios, showcasing ethical, legal and societal decision-making competencies.
The Australian Computer Society (ACS), the professional association for Australia's ICT sector, recognises the Skills Framework for the Information Age (SFIA). SFIA is adopted by organisations, governments, and individuals in many countries and provides a widely used and consistent definition of ICT skills. SFIA is increasingly being used when developing job descriptions and role profiles. ACS members can use the tool MySFIA to build a skills profile. This unit contributes to the following workplace skills as defined by SFIA 8 (the SFIA code is included):
- Business situation analysis (BUSA)
- Business administration (ADMN)
- Competency assessment (LEDA)
- Consultancy (CNSL)
- Emerging technology monitoring (EMRG)
- Learning delivery (ETDL)
- Requirements definition and management (REQM)
- Research (RSCH)
- Risk management (BURM)
| Assessment Tasks | Learning Outcomes | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | |
| 1 - Presentation | • | • | • | ||
| 2 - Portfolio | • | • | • | ||
| 3 - Report | • | • | • | ||
| Graduate Attributes | Learning Outcomes | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | |
| 1 - Knowledge | • | • | |||
| 2 - Communication | • | • | • | • | • |
| 3 - Cognitive, technical and creative skills | • | • | • | ||
| 4 - Research | • | • | • | ||
| 5 - Self-management | • | • | |||
| 6 - Ethical and Professional Responsibility | • | • | • | ||
| 7 - Leadership | • | ||||
| Assessment Tasks | Graduate Attributes | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 8 | |