Focus areas

Students specialise in one of the seven alternative focus areas (30 credits each). They give students in-depth, specialist knowledge of the chosen subject area. The master's thesis is written on a topic connected to this area. Alternative focus areas in the Master's Programme in Information Technology are:

Communication Systems and Networks »
Human-Technology Interaction »
Information Technology for Health and Biology » 
Mathematics » 
Pervasive Systems »
Positioning and Navigation »
Signal Processing »

Communication Systems and Networks

 Students may freely specialize in one of the following options:

• Communication Networks and Protocols
• Wireless Networks
• Communication Theory

Teaching in the field of communications engineering emphasizes mainly to various aspects of emerging wireless and broadband communication systems and IP networking.

The focus area of Communication Networks and Protocols covers various aspects of wired and wireless packet switched networks. The courses focus on TCP/IP protocols, routing and MAC-level algorithms and methods, networking paradigms (e.g. peer-to-peer networking) and information security. Current research topics include the performance analysis and simulation of wireless networks and the development of concepts and technologies for the Internet of Things. Basic software engineering skills are considered as an essential prerequisite for the studies.

Wireless Networks is related to the practical techno-economical optimization of wireless networks based on the latest technologies, as well as to the theoretical aspect of optimizing radio access system performance through the design of radio network topology and radio resource management functions. In addition, students gain a comprehensive understanding of waveform, modulation and coding related aspects and/or networking related aspects.

Communication Theory provides an information theoretic view to wireless and wireline communications, including modulation, detection and coding techniques, and link performance analysis for single and multi-antenna systems aiming at Gbps data rates. Students gain a comprehensive understanding of radio access system related aspects.

Communication Systems and Networks as a focus area provides competence for design, implementation and analysis tasks in the chosen core area, as well as a broad understanding of the operation principles of communication systems. The mission is to train top-level experts for communication network operators, R&D houses, manufacturing companies, consulting work and research institutes.

Best suitable educational profile:
Applicants should have a BSc in communications, computer, electronics, information engineering, or a closely related field. In the Networks and Protocols focus area, basic software skills are a prerequisite. In Wireless Networks and Communication Theory, good knowledge of signal theory is needed.

Information Technology for Health and Biology

The crossroads of information technology, biology and medicine has been one of the fastest developing areas in science and technology during the last decade. The role of information technology in health care is increasing rapidly and by now, advanced information technology has become a necessity in the analysis of medical and biological information. The goal of the analysis of, for example, medical images and signals is to understand and model the complicated underlying physiological, anatomical and biological phenomena. Application areas include drug development, automation of the diagnostics and decision making in medicine, and computer-based gene analysis. After graduating with this focus area the student can contribute to people's well-being by learning how to develop computer programs that understand biological signal and images, and how to model biological phenomena with mathematical models. This focus area prepares the student for working in a multidisciplinary environment and after graduation one can find a career in research, in medical product development, or as an entrepreneur.

Best suitable educational profile:
Applicants should have a BSc in technical sciences (e.g. computer science, electrical engineering, mathematics, or physics). Solid mathematical background and satisfactory programming skills are recommended.

Human-Technology Interaction

 Students may freely specialize in one of the following options:

• User Experience Design and Evaluation
• Interaction Design and Research
• Development of Interactive Software

An effective and pleasurable interaction with technological systems and products is an essential part of the quality of life in industrial and post-industrial societies. The field of Human-Computer Interaction grew initially from the difficulties in building user interfaces for increasingly complex computers. Later computers were networked and turned mobile. Now they are embedded in almost all the technologies that we use. Education focusing on Human-Technology Interaction (HTI) is a response to this development. The goal is to prepare future developers and researchers for the challenges that lay ahead in ensuring that the increasingly complex technological environment is designed to be easy and satisfying to control. The aim is to make technology serve our daily needs even better than in the past.

The human-technology interaction focus area prepares students for flexible career opportunities in the field of human-technology interaction. Students can specialize in one of the three options: User Experience Design and Evaluation, Interaction Design and Research, or Development of Interactive Software. The focus area in Human-Technology Interaction gives students a solid practical and theoretical background for understanding, analysing, and designing human-centered technology. Success as a researcher, user experience designer, usability engineer, or other HTI specialist also requires excellent communication and team work skills.

The education is carried out in close cooperation between the Unit of Human-Centered technology (IHTE) at Tampere University of Technology and Tampere unit for Computer Human Interaction (TAUCHI) at the University of Tampere. IHTE is responsible for the focus area on User Experience Design and Evaluation. TAUCHI is responsible for the focus areas on Interaction Design and Research and Development of Interactive Software.

Mathematics

 Students may freely specialize in one of the following options:

• Mathematical Modelling
• Discrete Mathematics

Mathematics as a focus area, combined with a minor in an engineering subject, provides competence to pursue innovative research and design in the field of advanced technology in industry, as well as a strong theoretical base for postgraduate studies in many areas. Students can focus either on Mathematical Modelling or Discrete Mathematics:

Mathematical Modelling is the analysis and simulation of phenomena in technology, physics, economics, biology, medicine, etc., using mathematical tools such as differential equations, linear algebra, statistics, optimisation, and functional analysis. The field typically requires extensive use of computers for data analysis, numerical solutions, and visualisation.

The core courses cover the main tools of mathematical modelling. Advanced courses can be chosen to specialise in an application area or the theoretical foundations. In this area, the research interests of the Department of Mathematics cover inverse problems, systems theory, positioning algorithms, biostatistics, finance, and Clifford analysis.

Discrete Mathematics is a branch of mathematics used in the modelling of digital information processing and data transmission, operations research, computer algebra, and in theories of computation and information. The courses in logic, algebra, finite fields, graph theory, automata, information theory, and coding provide an overview of core topics in this area. Advanced courses can be chosen to specialise in an application area or the theoretical foundations.  In this area, the research interests of the Department of Mathematics cover algorithmics, algebra, combinatorics, logic, and information modelling.

Best suitable educational profile:
Applicants should have a BSc in mathematics, applied mathematics, or statistics, or a BSc with a strong mathematical component, i.e. at least 50 ECTS credits in mathematics.

Pervasive Systems

Students may freely specialize in one of the following options:

• Software Systems
• Computer Systems

The way people use computers has changed radically in the recent years. The man-machine interaction has obtained different forms while the computers have been integrated in smaller and smaller devices. Modern micro electro-mechanical systems ranging from nanometers to millimeters allow sensing of environment in a completely new fashion allowing devices to sense the user context. Such intelligent devices are often networked and they are, therefore, a part of a larger distributed system. Such computing model is referred to as pervasive computing, ubiquitous computing, ambient intelligence, or everyware. The focus area Pervasive Systems considers many aspects to make computers embedded and natural in the environment such that we use them without even thinking of using them: software, computing platforms, sensors etc. 

The student can specialize the studies in software or computer systems. Software Systems will provide students with a good understanding of software engineering, the ability to design and implement software systems, as well as the ability to manage and improve software development processes. Computer Systems will provide expertise on designing digital systems, including application-specific circuits, processors, embedded systems, and systems-on-chip. Students learn to understand the functionality of digital and computer systems and to design new equipment using modern methods and design tools. 

Best suitable educational profile:
Applicants should have a BSc in computer science, electrical engineering, mathematics, or physics.

Positioning and Navigation

Positioning and navigation applications are rapidly growing in number, and there is an increasing demand for professional engineers in this field. This study module offers both theoretical and practical knowledge of navigation technologies and applications, including satellite-based systems (GPS, Galileo, etc.) and non-satellite techniques such as inertial navigation. The topics covered include:
- Satellite positioning systems, satellite signals, accuracy of satellite-based positioning
- Algorithms to compute position, velocity and time, and their accuracies
- Enhancing or assisting satellite navigation systems with available information
- Signal processing, Kalman filtering, and statistics from the viewpoint of navigation
- Inertial sensors and inertial navigation algorithms
- Indoor navigation

Best suitable educational profile:
Applicants should have a BSc in electrical engineering (communications, electronics, or computer engineering), applied mathematics, or statistics.

Signal Processing

Signal processing and its applications are playing an increasingly important role in our everyday lives. Smart phones, MP3 players, DVD players and digital TV broadcasting are just a short excerpt from a long and continuously developing list of applications based on advanced signal processing methods.

The courses of the focus area in Signal Processing deal with processing and interpreting digital signals in the wide sense of their information content. The mathematical basis of signal processing methods and algorithms is particularly emphasised. Key application areas of these algorithms comprise telecommunications, instrumentation and automation, as well as various kinds of speech, audio, image and video representation, compression, processing and delivery.

The focus area in Signal Processing deepens the students' theoretical and practical skills of analysing signals and designing signal processing methods and systems, especially for one of the major application areas of signal processing. Studies in signal processing teach students to independently select the optimal signal processing methods when confronted with a new kind of signal processing problem. The goal is to train students to design hardware and software for signal processing systems.

Best suitable educational profile:
Applicants should have a BSc in computer science, electrical engineering, mathematics, or physics. Solid mathematical background is highly recommended.