UNIVERSITY OF CAPE TOWN

BUSINESS
SYSTEMS ANALYSIS
ONLINE SHORT COURSE
Study online with Africa’s leading University and online education experts, GetSmarter.
ABOUT THIS COURSE
This 10-week systems analysis course will empower you to facilitate positive business change in any organisation.
You’ll be equipped with the ability to increase the value and efficiency of a business through identifying and fulfilling
software and information systems requirements. This course will enable you to consult effectively with stakeholders,
define and document all system requirements, and translate the requirements into project specifications.

10 weeks R14,900 7-10 hours/week

(excluding orientation) of self-paced learning,
online and fully supported entirely online

THIS COURSE IS FOR YOU IF:

 

You’re new to the field of business systems analysis, system development, and project
management and analysis, and you wish to upskill yourself to enter the industry.

You’re an experienced business systems analyst looking to formalise your training

in order to take on new responsibilities or move up within your organisation.

You want to gain university backing of your systems analysis and development expertise
in the form of a certificate from the University of Cape Town.*
*Certificates of completion are issued in your legal name upon successfully completing a course according to the course
completion criteria outlined during the course. No certificate will be issued to you if you do not meet the stipulated requirements
for the award of a certificate.

WANT YOUR SKILLS TO BE RECOGNISED WORLDWIDE?

When you successfully complete this course, you’ll get recognition and backing from a global leader in
business systems analysis, and you’ll qualify for 40 Professional Development (PD) hours.

FIND OUT MORE

UCT BUSINESS SYSTEMS ANALYSIS ONLINE SHORT COURSE

WHO YOU’LL
LEARN FROM
YOUR HEAD TUTOR
This subject matter expert from UCT guides the course design and appears in a number of course videos,
along with a variety of industry professionals.

MEET THE HEAD TUTOR

BRENT COMBRINK
Business Systems and Project Management Specialist

Brent is a specialist business mentor and executive coach for entrepreneurs in established small businesses.
He helps clients solve strategy, leadership, marketing, and productivity problems to achieve extraordinary
results and meaningful change. When not mentoring or coaching, he consults and lectures in project
management and business analysis. He also regularly holds public workshops on developing personal
and interpersonal skills in business.

YOUR SUCCESS TEAM

GetSmarter, with whom UCT are collaborating to deliver this online course, provide a personalised
approach to online education which ensures you’re supported throughout your learning journey.

HEAD TUTOR SUCCESS MANAGER GLOBAL SUCCESS TEAM

A subject expert who’ll Your one-on-one support available Available 24/7 to solve your
guide you through during University hours (9am - tech-related and administrative
content-related challenges 5pm EST) to resolve technical and queries and concerns
administrative challenges

UCT BUSINESS SYSTEMS ANALYSIS ONLINE SHORT COURSE

WHAT WILL YOU LEARN
ON THIS COURSE? YOUR CAREER PATH PROFILE

HOW TO BECOME A
BUSINESS SYSTEMS
Find out more about the learning outcomes you’ll achieve as you ANALYST
progress through the 10 modules of this course:

ORIENTATION MODULE
WELCOME TO YOUR ONLINE CAMPUS
• Get to grips with your new online classroom
• Meet your Course Teaching Team and get to know
your fellow classmates

MODULE 1
CONTEXTUALISING BUSINESS SYSTEMS ANALYSIS
• Explain systems theory and how it applies to organisations
• Recognise different types of organisations and stakeholders
• Assess the degree to which systems support business strategy
• Define the role of a business systems analyst
• Outline the key skills and knowledge areas of a business
systems analyst
• Identify the phases in the Systems Development Life Cycle (SDLC)
• Differentiate between the Agile and the Waterfall approaches
to the SDLC

MODULE 2
ANALYSING THE CURRENT BUSINESS SYSTEM
• Identify the structure for documenting a business case
• Investigate existing business systems and assess their
problems and opportunities for improving how systems
support business strategies
• Analyse stakeholder interests in a system
• Apply problem solving, critical thinking, and analytical techniques
to a business challenge

MODULE 3
RECOMMENDING AN ALTERNATE BUSINESS SYSTEM
• Analyse solution approaches that will support
the business strategy
• Compile a feasibility study for a possible business solution
• Formulate a business case to recommend a solution that
is aligned to a business strategy

UCT BUSINESS SYSTEMS ANALYSIS ONLINE SHORT COURSE

MODULE 4
ELICITING AND COMMUNICATING REQUIREMENTS VIDEO
• Differentiate between the different types of business
COURSE PREVIEW:
and system requirements
What are the phases
• Investigate techniques for eliciting requirements
in a systems development
• Construct a context model life cycle?
• Identify sound interpersonal and communication skills for eliciting
and communicating requirements

MODULE 5
PREPARING TO CREATE A BUSINESS REQUIREMENTS
SPECIFICATION
• Differentiate between the different ways to specify
and model requirements
• Recommend version control methods and rules for project
documents and artefacts
• Differentiate between different types of non-functional requirements
• Compile a non-functional requirements specifications document

MODULE 6
MODELLING BUSINESS PROCESSES AND SYSTEM
ARCHITECTURE REQUIREMENTS
• Differentiate between the different types of process
modelling techniques
• Identify the different levels of abstraction in process modelling
• Describe BPMN and modelling rules
• Apply BPMN conventions to produce business process models
• Create a process model using BPMN
• Develop a system architecture model

MODULE 7
MODELLING FUNCTIONAL REQUIREMENTS
• Construct a use case diagram and use case narrative
• Create a functional decomposition diagram
• Write user stories and group them into epics
• Develop a system architecture model

UCT BUSINESS SYSTEMS ANALYSIS ONLINE SHORT COURSE

MODULE 8
VIDEO
MODELLING DATA AND HUMAN SYSTEM INTERFACE DESIGN
• Complete part of an entity relationship diagram You might not be familiar

• Complete part of a data flow diagram with this virtual classroom

• Formulate data definitions TAKE A TOUR

• Compare usability and user experience OF YOUR
• Deduce factors that affect user experience ONLINE CAMPUS
• Compile specifications that improve user experience
• Differentiate between the different types of wireframes
and prototypes

MODULE 9
ASSURING QUALITY
• Identify elements that inform quality assurance activities
• Identify how requirements inform the quality of the final deliverable
• Differentiate between requirements validation and verification
• Compare quality control testing methods
• Recognise the features of a test case
• Complete a test case using a given template
Being the lead of a
MODULE 10 fairly new analysis
FACILITATING CHANGE AND INNOVATION team, I wanted to
• Explain the role of the BSA as an agent of change
ensure that I would be
• Differentiate between organisational, project, and personal change
guiding the team with
• Compare models for supporting personal change
• Assess the need for specific change strategies
the most contemporary
• Recommend appropriate strategies for supporting change tools, techniques and
at both an organisational and individual level methodologies. During
the course I set up
weekly meetings with my
manager to show her
what I had learnt, and to
discuss whether we could
introduce small changes
or new processes I had
learnt on the course.

- CANDICE GOVENDER,
PAST STUDENT
Business Systems Analysis
online short course

UCT BUSINESS SYSTEMS ANALYSIS ONLINE SHORT COURSE

A POWERFUL
COLLABORATION
Since 2007, The University of Cape Town (UCT) has partnered with
South Africa’s leading online education company, GetSmarter,
to take the University’s world-class education online. The move
towards delivering education through the online model is strongly
driven by the University’s goal to broaden access to education
from Africa’s leading University to those who previously would
not have been able to access it due to geographical constraints.
UCT’s scope extends to all areas of sub-Saharan Africa, and all
possible opportunities are being investigated for providing both
UCT and its future students opportunities for growth.

WHAT IS THE
UNIVERSITY OF
CAPE TOWN?
Founded in 1829, UCT has a proud tradition of academic excellence
and effecting social change and development through its pioneering
scholarship, faculty and students. UCT’s reputation for excellence
is underpinned by its distinctive research, led by its distinguished
faculty, many of whom are world-leaders in their field.

WHAT
IS GETSMARTER?
GetSmarter is an online education company collaborating
with leading universities to present career-focused online short
courses. GetSmarter’s high-touch, people-driven approach to
online learning — centred around the importance of human
support — has resulted in an aggregate completion rate
consistently above 90% serving more than 48,000 students over
almost a decade.

UCT BUSINESS SYSTEMS ANALYSIS ONLINE SHORT COURSE

HOW BROWSER REQUIREMENTS
We recommend that you use Google Chrome as

YOU’LL LEARN your internet browser when accessing the Online

Every course is broken down into manageable,
weekly modules, designed to accelerate your
learning process through diverse learning activities:
Campus. Although this is not a requirement, we
have found that this browser performs best for
ease of access to course material. This browser
can be downloaded here.

ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS
• Work through your downloadable and online
Certain courses may require additional software
instructional material
and resources. These additional software
• Interact with your peers and learning facilitators
and resource requirements will be communicated
through weekly class-wide forums and reviewed
to you upon registration and/or at the beginning
small group discussions
• Enjoy a wide range of interactive content, of the course. Please note that Google, Vimeo,

including video lectures, infographics, live polls,
and more
• Investigate rich, real-world case studies
• Apply what you learn each week to quizzes
and assignment submissions
and YouTube may be used in our course delivery,
and if these services are blocked in your
jurisdiction, you may have difficulty in accessing
course content. Please check with a Course
Consultant before registering for this course
if you have any concerns about this affecting

TECHNICAL
your experience with the Online Campus.

REQUIREMENTS
BASIC REQUIREMENTS
In order to complete a course, you’ll need a
current email account and access to a computer
and the internet. You should be familiar with
using a computer and accessing the internet,
as you may need to be able to read documents
in Adobe PDF Reader, view Microsoft PowerPoint
presentations, and read and create documents
in Microsoft Word. In addition, you will need
to install Adobe Flash Player to view the video
lectures, resources and activities available in
each course module. Both Adobe applications
are available for download:
Click here for Adobe Reader
Click here for Adobe Flash Player

UCT BUSINESS SYSTEMS ANALYSIS ONLINE SHORT COURSE

 UNIVERSITY OF CAPE TOWN

BUSINESS
SYSTEMS ANALYSIS
ONLINE SHORT COURSE

REGISTER NOW

CONTACT US
Email: admissions@getsmarter.com | Call: +27 (0)21 447 7565
www.getsmarter.com