Feasibility study

Introduction

The feasibility and viability study of the Interdepartmental Foreign Language Program “Artificial Intelligence and Data Science” of the Department of Informatics and Computer Engineering (ICE) in collaboration with the Departments of Food Science and Technology, Electrical and Electronic Engineering, Industrial Design and Production Engineering, Surveying and Geoinformatics Engineering, Mechanical Engineering and Civil Engineering of the University of West Attica is presented.

Both the Department of Informatics and Computer Engineering (ICE) and the collaborating departments aim to provide high quality education, which leads to the creation of scientists with a correspondingly high level of knowledge, skills, and abilities in different fields of engineering. A central objective of the collaborating Departments is also the production of research work, in the context of doctoral studies and collaborations with other research centers.

According to a post of the European Employment Services (EuRES) of the European Union (https://ec.europa.eu/eures/public/future-work-ict-professionals-2020-09-25_en), ICT professionals carry out research, design, write, evaluate, consult and improve information technology systems, hardware, software and related concepts for specific applications. It is reported that (data 25/9/2020):

• About 3.5 million people were employed as ICT professionals in 2018.
• Employment in the profession increased by more than 29% between 2006 and 2018.
• 71% of ICT professionals held a high-level degree in 2018.
• 25% of the workforce held a mid-level qualification in 2018.
• ICTs are general-purpose technologies, so changes in the economy may have a significant impact on future skills requirements for these professionals.

According to the same data, employment for ICT professionals is projected to grow by 11% over the period 2018-2030, resulting in the creation of 395,000 new jobs. Combined with the number of those who will leave the profession due to retirement over the same period (estimated at 1.2 million), 1.6 million ICT jobs will need to be filled between 2018 and 2030. The share of ICT professionals with medium-level qualifications is expected to remain unchanged at 23% by 2030, while the share of those with high-level qualifications is expected to increase to 74% by 2030. In line with the above, competitiveness, innovation and job creation in European industry are increasingly driven using new innovative information and communication technologies and the availability of highly skilled workers and in line with rapidly evolving market trends. In today’s rapidly evolving technological and economic digital environment, the added value that can be derived from the use of advanced information and communication technologies for the collection, processing, analysis, management, and storage of data is of paramount importance. In particular, the use of AI is reshaping the global economy in a multidimensional way by increasing productivity, reducing costs, and improving efficiency. Indicative in this direction is the rapid increase in capital investment in AI-focused start-ups, which attracted $75 billion in 2020 compared to $3 billion in 2012, according to a report by the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). According to Gartner Inc.’s annual report on emerging technologies for 2019, AI & Data Analytics is one of the 5 pillars of emerging technologies.

The most significant investments in AI are being made at the level of companies, research centers and universities, at regional, national, and supranational levels (OECD, 2019b), both in the European Union and in countries such as the USA, Canada, Australia, Japan, Brazil, etc. (GOV. UK., 2019? AI, 2018; Thompson, 2018; Strategic Council for AI Technology, 2017), while new opportunities for the development of products and services in different application areas using AI are emerging from the close cooperation between universities and businesses (OECD, 2019a). In this direction, there is a corresponding increase in demand for highly skilled personnel in the above technologies to meet the needs arising from their integration into everyday life. Based on the above and in line with the implementation of extroversion actions in line with the Strategic Plan of the UNIWA, the collaborating Departments integrate the Foreign Language Undergraduate Studies Programme (FLUSP) “Artificial Intelligence and Data Science” in English. The aim of this course is to provide a high-quality educational program, to strengthen the international presence of the University of West Attica and to enhance the infrastructure. The FLUSP is addressed to foreign citizens on the basis of Law 4957/2022 and is expected to attract, among others, Greeks of the diaspora who wish to study in the fields of AI and Data Science in their country of origin.

Expected Learning Outcomes

The learning outcomes of the curriculum refer to the set of knowledge, competences and skills that students will know and be able to apply after successful completion of their studies. The Master in AI and Data Science aims to train a competent workforce in the most evolving areas of information technologies, such as AI and Data Science, in Europe and worldwide. In particular, the graduates of the Programme will be able to carry out:

• Study, research, analysis, design, development and implementation of software systems, complex computer systems, computer networks.
• Study, research and development of theoretical approaches and implementation of methods and systems related to the fields of Artificial Intelligence and Data Science.

The curriculum is structured to include courses that ensure:

1. a grounding in the basic sciences that collaborate in the fields of AI and Data Science
2. the study of the relevant subject matter in a broad range, through elective courses, with an emphasis on interdisciplinarity

The 8th semester is devoted to the preparation of the Thesis, which is compulsory.

By successfully following and completing the requirements of the basic science courses, students can understand the fundamental concepts and use the main tools and techniques of Computer Science and Engineering, in the broader context of Artificial Intelligence and Data Science.

Successful completion of the requirements of the specialization courses in AI and Data Science (compulsory and elective) will enable students to analyze, design and implement complex AI systems, as well as applications of Data Science, applying critical, analytical, and synthetic thinking with elements of research production.

Upon completion of the thesis, students will be able to deepen their knowledge in the two areas of the Programme and gain significant competencies, skills, and experience from the integrated in-depth study of a topic of their specialisation in cutting-edge technologies and contemporary issues.

Finally, the FLUSP aims to:

• To integrate foreign students into a European, scientific, technological, and business environment, while highlighting the comparative advantages of Greek culture and the Greek academic ecosystem.
• To form young scientists interested in continuing their studies at postgraduate and/or doctoral level and possibly pursuing academic or research careers in the promising scientific and technological fields of the undergraduate programme.

Scientific competence of the teachers

From the collaborating Departments, 64 faculty members and 7 Laboratory Teaching Staff Members have expressed an interest in participating in the FLUSP. Their fields of expertise are shown in Annex I.

Evaluation criteria and procedure

The main evaluation criteria for the courses are:

• The content of the course
• The organization of teaching
• The content of the course
• The availability of the proposed literature
• The laboratory equipment, its availability and accessibility

The main criteria for the evaluation of teachers are:

• The ability to present and transfer knowledge
• Cooperation with students
• The organization of teaching
• Consistency of timetabling

The procedures of the Quality Assurance Unit (QA/QCU) of the University of West Attica will be followed for the evaluation of courses and lecturers. In this context, the evaluation will take place from the 8th to the 11th week of teaching the courses, so that students have attended most of the lectures and have made use of the educational material and the available resources, to evaluate the educational work more objectively. Student participation in the evaluation will be voluntary. During the course, students will be asked to log on to the UNIWA assessment platform and complete online questionnaires in the absence of the lecturers. An overview of the overall assessment results will be reviewed at the Curriculum Committee (CPC), and the Director of the PADC will inform the lecturers of each course of the individual assessment results.

In addition to the internal and external evaluation procedures, as well as quality assurance and certification, the external academic evaluation of the undergraduate programmes of each Faculty will be carried out by a six-member Scientific Advisory Committee (SAC), in accordance with the provisions of Article 44 of Law No. 4485/2017.

Tuition fees – resources of FLUSP

Considering the rapid scientific developments in this field, the growing interest of the market for the implementation of applications in the field and the competitive cost of the tuition fees compared to similar programmes abroad, the FLUSP brings together all the conditions that will make it viable and competitive. The operating costs of the FLUSP will be covered by tuition fees in accordance with the provisions of Law 4957/2022. Additional funding from donations, endowments, requests, sponsorships, research projects and other resources, if any, may be used to reduce the burden on students’ tuition fees and/or to provide additional benefits to students. The annual fee is set at EUR 6000 per student, divided equally between the two semesters, the programme provides for the enrolment of up to 50 students and will run for eight (8) semesters. The number of credits (ECTS) required for the successful completion of the course of study and the award of the degree is 240, distributed equally across all semesters of study. The teaching staff is composed of faculty members, HQDs, lecturers with a contract according to the applicable legislation (e.g., visiting professors, teaching assistants, etc.) of Greek-speaking MSc courses. The financial management is handled by the services of the Special Account for Research Grants. It is also foreseen that financial resources will be allocated from the annual cash balances of the FLUSP for the maintenance – upgrading of the infrastructure of the collaborating Departments, which will enhance their self-sufficiency in the future. Up to two (2) full and four (4) half-year tuition waiver scholarships may be awarded in each cycle of the programme.

Annual operating budget for the FLUSP

In terms of budget inputs according to the template in Table 1, the FLUSP at inception expects to receive income exclusively from tuition fees.

Regarding operating expenditure, the following is noted:

• The operating costs of infrastructure are considered to be the percentage retained by the UNIWA Special Account for Research Grants.
• Equipment costs refer mainly to equipment and software necessary for the successful execution of the educational process, such as the use of tele-education equipment and laboratory equipment (modern computer systems, FPGAs, GPUs, switches – routers, etc.). Although the Departments supporting the FLUSP have fully equipped laboratories and classrooms with tele-education equipment, it has been proven in practice that the equipment related to ICT needs need frequent renewal due to the rapid evolution of these technologies. In fact, part of the new equipment will be connected to the cloud-based AI support infrastructure (UNIWA AI Cloud), exploiting its potential for expansion.
• The software expenditure relates to the purchase and renewal of software used in the educational process and the management of the FLUSP.
• Expenditure on consumables relates mainly to consumables of cables, electronic components, etc. that are necessary in the laboratory training that the FLUSP aspires to provide.
• Travel costs refer to: (a) the travel of eminent scientists from abroad who will be invited to give lectures in the framework of the Programme, (b) the travel of teaching staff to participate in scientific conferences for the dissemination of the results of the educational and research activity carried out at the XRFP and (c) the travel of students for educational visits.
• Teaching fees refer to the compensation of faculty members who teach at the FLUSP, in excess of their statutory teaching obligations. The estimated cost per teaching hour is EUR 100. This allowance refers to both regular and temporary staff.
• Administrative and technical support fees are deemed necessary based on the four-year duration of each cycle of the XRFP, the management requirements and the range of material resources to be used.
• Other costs refer mainly to publicity and promotion costs, registration fees for international conferences, the organization of workshops and fieldwork in the context of the courses.

In conclusion, considering the rapid scientific developments in this field, the growing interest of the market for the implementation of field applications and the competitive cost of the tuition fees compared to similar programmes abroad, the FLUSP meets all the requirements that will make it viable and competitive.

Table 1:  Annual inputs – operating expenditure