Future of the UNISA short course

Hi Mac

You mentioned somewhere in an earlier post that it takes quite an effort to get a short course approved and up and running. I see that many of the short courses are not well attended on the forum - does this mean that there are also few persons actually doing the course? The one that concerns me greatly is the Java course. A large aspect of the future of IT is Java.

One of the best aspects of the UNISA short courses, as opposed to self-study, is the commitment to deliverables. I have several Java books lying around but I always seem to have better things to do. I have also done one of those intensive 5-days courses but it is simply too much in too short a time. They are also generally quite expensive. For many still entering the IT market a degree is the most useful option but at my age and with my work commitments - it’s really not an option. By the time I get finished with a degree - I'll be considering (an early) retirement.

Java is a tough language to master and it would be of great service to the IT community if UNISA could run something along the lines of a double semester course in Java, which I would propose should cover more than your existing course does - I feel its a little too much of an introduction - it needs to cover a bit more stuff - after which one could move ahead on ones own.

Any thought or comments on this?

Short courses are just that - introductions. Anything more then must be part of a degree.
I cannot comment on other courses
I am not a fan of Java