SLIIT welcomes Students for New Academic Year

IIT holds 19th convocation

The Informatics Institute of Technology (IIT) has always prided itself on being the leader in providing quality IT & Business education in Sri Lanka. In collaboration with the University of Westminster UK, the IIT campus has once again produced top quality achievers in the field, evidenced at the recently concluded 19th convocation ceremony of the Institute held on Saturday 23rd November 2013 at the BMICH in Colombo.

Dr. Gamini Wickramasinghe, Chairman, Informatics Group of Companies and Founder of the Informatics Institute of Technology, Mr. Hasith Wickramasinghe, Deputy Chairman, Informatics Group of Companies, Mr.Hiran Wickramasinghe, Managing Director Informatics Group of Companies, Mr. Sudharshan Welihinda, General Manager IIT, and Assoc. Prof. Alfred Perera, Dean of IIT graced the occasion. The Chief Guest was Mr. Peter Kyle OBE, Chairman of the University’s Court of Governors, University of Westminster UK. Ms. Kamalini Sivagurunathan, Course Leader of the Business Information Systems degree at University of Westminster UK too was present.

The Dean of IIT, Assoc. Prof. Alfred Perera, in his welcome address congratulated the new graduates on their achievements and said that they reflected the high standards of education at IIT. This was followed by granting of awards to students who had completed their first and second year of the degree programme and the industrial placement year.

Mr.Peter Kyle OBE, Chairman of the University’s Court of Governors, University of Westminster, UK then con- ferred degrees to students who had successfully attained their BEng (Hons) Software Engineering, BSc (Hons) Information Systems with Business Management, (ISBM) and MSc in Advanced Software Engineering.

Students who achieved a high aggregate in their respective degree programmes and performed exceptionally well, upholding the quality of education imparted on them by IIT, were awarded with the Dr. Gamini Wickramasinghe gold medal. These included Ishara Perera for BEng (Hons) Software Engineering, Sharaniya Jaysekaran for BSc (Hons) Information Systems with Business Management, (ISBM) and Prabath Nuwan Premaratne for MSc in Advanced Software Engineering.

Another highlight of the function was the University of Westminster award for all round performance and recognition in their respective degrees. This comprised Suranga Kasthurirathne for BEng (Hons) Software Engineering and Visharathan Kugamoorthy for BSc (Hons) Information Systems with Business Management. Students who won Gold at the Microsoft Imagine Cup Sri Lanka and Samsung Digital Native Award at the Microsoft Imagine Cup, World Finals were also recognized and awarded trophies.

Speaking at the function, Mr.Peter Kyle OBE, Chairman of the University’s Court of Governors, University of Westminster UK, said that he was delighted to be present and be a part of such a proud occasion and stated that this was the ninth year of partnership with the Informatics Institute of Technology (IIT), He said that he was extremely impressed and proud with the high standards maintained by the students. It was a tremendous credit not only to themselves but also to the high quality of the academic tuition, support, dedication and commitment of the academic staff at IIT. He also pointed out that he is proud to note that IIT has secured awards at the annual National Best Quality Software Awards (NBQSA) competition conducted by the British Computer Society (SL branch) and winning the Gold award for the Microsoft Imagine Cup Sri Lanka and Samsung Digital Native award at the Microsoft Imagine Cup world finals held in Petersburg, Russia which brings both local and international recognition to the institute. He said that such achievements certainly proved and endorsed the vision of the institute which was to foster creativity and innovation and to shape the future for exciting careers and professional life. This year’s convocation stood as a testament to, not only the many accolades and achievements of IIT students’ performances in the fields of IT & Business, but also to the institute’s commitment to moulding the best industry versatile graduates.

SLIIT, the leading degree awarding institute in the fields of IT, Business and Engineering, welcomes yet another batch of ambitious and motivated students. This year over 1,100 students commenced classes on the 18th of November and have received the opportunity to be a part of one of Sri Lanka’s finest higher education institutes.

SLIIT which was established in 1999 at the BoC Merchant tower, had its first intake with just 400 students. However, today SLIIT has over 6,000 students making it a university with a difference. Over the years, SLIIT has tied up with foreign universities, established centres, expanded the range of academic programmes and today according to a survey carried out by the prestigious LMD magazine it is ranked first among the higher educational institutes in Sri Lanka.

SLIIT offers a variety of undergraduate and masters degree programmes accredited and recognized by the University Grants Commission. SLIIT is the only degree awarding institute in Sri Lanka, included in the Association of Commonwealth Universities, an association of over 2,700 universities and institutions of higher learning encompassing the entire commonwealth. SLIIT is also a member of the International Association of Universities.

The teaching and learning process at SLIIT is of high credibility since the institution maintains the best international and professional academic standards. Students are provided with topical knowledge, continuous assessments and relevant skills to prepare them to face the real world.

The students of SLIIT can join student led societies, engage in sporting activities, participate in student fairs, talent shows and enjoy the fully air-conditioned cafeterias, gymnasium, study rooms, lounges and environment friendly campuses. All this combines to make SLIIT the ideal institute for students to complete their degree and have a memorable university education.

“In addition to providing a wide range of academic programmes, we promote our students to participate in competitions, such as the CodeFest, RoboFest, Software competitions, symposiums and extracurricular activities such as talent shows, sports days and community projects. This enables our students to gain exposure not only within but also outside the classroom, giving them the opportunity to take up any challenge upon graduating from SLIIT. Our students have won many local and international events, bring- ing honour to our esteemed institution” notes Professor Lalith Gamage, President and CEO of SLIIT.

SLIIT’s new intake this year will benefit through the extensive spectrum of B.Sc. Degree programmes. The SLIIT Degree programmes offered are; a B.Sc. (Hons) degree in Information Technology, BBA. Special Hons degrees in Business Management, B.Sc Eng in Civil Engineering, Electrical and Electronic Engineering, Materials Engineering and Mechanical Engineering. The minimum criteria for entry are 3 local or London GCE Advanced Level passes, including a pass at the Aptitude Test conducted by the Institute.

SLIIT which has affiliations with many foreign universities has carved out numerous pathways for students to complete their degree at SLIIT or transfer to the respective partner university after two years of study at SLIIT. The partner universities are high in rank, internationally focused and deliver high quality education.

SLIIT’s long term academic partner, Curtin University in Australia, has an agreement with SLIIT which permits students to complete the B.Sc. in Software Engineering, BEng in Mechanical Engineering, Civil and Construction Engineering, Electrical and Power Engineering, Computer Systems Engineering, B.Sc. Degrees in Information Technology, Computer Systems and Networking of the Curtin University curriculum at SLIIT, or they have the option of transferring to Curtin University, Australia once they successfully complete their second year (Diploma Level) at SLIIT.

Sheffield Hallam University (SHU) of UK, also offers study package to SLIIT students. The Degree programmes available under this partnership are the BBA (Hons) in Business Management, B. Eng (Hons) degree programme in Electronic Engineering.

Commenting on the future of SLIIT professor Gamage notes, “Looking at our future plans, we want to position ourselves among the top 10 universities in the region. We hope to expand our academic programs within the next eight years to reach over a 10 to 12,000 student population. With the aim of getting into the field of internationalization, we also hope to get more students from South Asia, the Middle East and Africa.

Welcoming all parents and students present at the inauguration ceremony, Professor S. Karunaratne, Chairman of SLIIT comments, “I am proud to note that we have the largest base of PhD holding lecturers in the country, and therefore we have a very efficient system of teaching to impart our knowledge to the next generation. In four years our students have the chance to be highly recognized professionals. Hence I ask you to utilize your time in the most productive manner to reap the best of benefits”

With two main campuses situated in Malabe and Kollupitiya, SLIIT has established centres at Matara, Kandy, Jaffna and Kurunegala.