Reason for Certificate Courses

Many employees find themselves in the computer industry without formal qualifications. They typically received in-service training in the "technology of the day", which becomes obsolete within a short period of time. Enterprises are aware of this, and prefer that employees are educated in the fundamentals of the discipline.

The aim of the certificate courses is to provide an environment where students can study the underlying principles of a particular field of interest and be rewarded with a UNISA certificate upon successful completion of the course. Some courses focus strongly on practical issues with various sessions of training while other courses focus on the theoretical principles forming the basis of a particular field.

Short courses offered

For a list of short courses offered, click here

Web Communication for web-based courses
Teaching relies a lot on communication. Therefore, it is crucial for you to understand how communication for WEB based courses is conducted.  

Web Servers

The WEB pages form the primary way in which we will communicate formal information to you. Visit the WEB site regularly to ensure that you are aware of what is happening in the course. There are four WEB servers available:

CS-CERT Web Server	OSPREY Web Server
WEB server for Computer Science Certificate courses. These pages contain information which is directly related to your web-based certificate course, for example a study guide and tutorial letters which can be downloaded.	Main WEB server for the Department of Computer Science & Information Systems. It contains information about courses taught in the Department, as well as information on the lecturers and their research areas.
myUnisa Web Server	UNISA Web Server
This is UNISA's "Students On Line" server. It is maintained for all students at UNISA and linked to UNISA's student database. You can for example get access to your study record (e.g. assignment marks) on these pages. Please follow the procedure on the home page to register as a SOL user.	This is UNISA's main web server. It forms the home page from where all other pages can be reached.

Forums

Some courses have web-based discussion forums available.

The forum is the preferred way in which technical issues are discussed. This is where you can ask questions and air your views on the technical content of the course. The forum is there to give you a chance to participate in the class.

The forum is also used for informal discussions. It simulates both a classroom situation where students can ask questions and the lecturers can give extra information, and a student discussion group where you can meet other students and share information among yourselves.

We want you to make use of the forums to solve your problems and make comments about the module to help us improve the course. If you have content-related queries, first check the forums (most students suffer with the same problems). If no-one else has had a similar problem yet, post your question on the forum. Remember, this is an informal discussion forum - nobody will think you are stupid! Often your query will be answered by a fellow student before we even get the chance to look at it. Please feel free to also answer the questions posted by other students and don't remain silent if you do not agree with what is said.