Interest in e-commerce qualifications has reflected the mixed fortunes of the IT world. 

E-commerce was the buzzword of the early years of the century, when pioneers were convinced they were going to earn megabucks from staking out brave new territories on the internet. But then came the tech crash and the realisation that selling widgets online wouldn’t guarantee you fame and fortune.

So why would you choose to take an e-commerce degree? The danger of choosing a course with a trendy title but ending up with a qualification which will have fallen out of fashion after a few years is a risk that should be carefully weighed.

Kieran Conboy, now director of the MBS in E-commerce in National University of Ireland, Galway (NUIG), himself enrolled in the course in 2000 and says there’s no doubt a number of his classmates took it up because e-commerce was a hot topic at the time.

“There has been a drop in the level of interest in the course in the past couple of years,” he says. “2000-2001 was very good, but it tailed off during the following few years. This year, however, double last year’s number applied.” Last year there was a class of 14 on the course, but this year there are 33, 80pc of whom, Conboy reckons, have come straight out of their undergraduate degree.

The course covers subjects such as business policy, e-commerce strategy, databases, programming, systems analysis and design, internet and multimedia development, internet technologies and information systems innovation. Students spend the second year on a workplace placement and doing a dissertation.

He says the course’s title may put off some students who would be attracted to its content, but don’t want to become web programmers or involved in the nitty-gritty of e-business.

Graduates of the NUIG course use the e-commerce qualification to follow many different career paths, including web programming, business strategy, multimedia, web design and animation. According to the college, past graduates have been employed by the likes of PricewaterhouseCoopers, Ernst & Young, Accenture and the banks in roles ranging from IT consultant to business analyst.

The hybrid nature of the course, marrying business and technology, means it attracts a diverse mix. “There are those people who are strong on business but have no IT skills. There are others who are strong on IT but have no business skills, who might be trying to get a management position but who lack the business skills needed because they came into the company as a programmer,” says Conboy.

While e-commerce is offered as a module within many undergraduate or postgraduate business programmes, there are some colleges which offer it as a stand-alone qualification. University College Cork offers a two-year postgraduate MBS in Electronic Business and Commerce, which has a heavy slant to the technical side of e-business and includes programming modules. Dublin City University offers a 12-month MSc in Electronic Commerce, which is offered jointly by its business and computing schools. Students can opt for the business or technical stream, and all students take common modules in topics such as design, marketing and e-commerce regulation. According to a DCU survey carried out last year of 2003’s graduates, the vast majority found employment in this country, in areas ranging from consultancy to sales.

Institute of Technology, Tralee and Tipperary Institute both offer a four-year BBS in E-business, which had CAO entry points of 310 and 225 respectively this year.

Do your homework

While most courses in e-business offered in Ireland are at postgraduate level, it’s wise for those who want to study a specialised area, especially as undergraduates, to research carefully.

Brian Mooney, president of the Institute of Guidance Counsellors, advises: “If you are choosing a degree that is highly specialised in any area, it is important to ensure you are fully aware of all the aspects of the course, the various things that are taught, the career options and your own suitability for the course. The courses are offered because they are specifically targeted — but because they are targeted, you need to be sure that you’re right.

“If you haven’t done the level of research that gives you that level of certainty, there is an advantage of staying with a more general qualification. It depends on whether the person taking the course is clear what they want.”