Background
The emergence of the knowledge-based economy has highlighted the need for effective exploitation of knowledge, making knowledge management an essential area of activity in organisations. Knowledge management (KM) is a systematic process of taking advantage of intellectual capital and knowledge assets for organisational success. It helps build the capacity of the organisation by developing, organising, retaining and utilising human and knowledge resources which contribute directly to its survivability and profitability. With the increased realisation of the value of knowledge and the need to exploit it in day-to-day operations, both public and private sector organisations have embarked on KM initiatives. Many have created formal positions and formed new divisions or departments to look into ways and means to apply KM in their operations. This has created a need for the training of KM professionals capable of taking the lead in the development and implementation of KM initiatives within their organisations.

Our Perspective of Knowledge Management
Knowledge Management, being inter-disciplinary in nature, draws upon the theories and practices of many disciplines such as business management, library and information science, information systems, computer science, philosophy, psychology, sociology, epistemology, and many others. However, a close examination of the literature and courses offered by KM programmes worldwide indicate that management, technology and information are the three foundation disciplines of knowledge management. Nevertheless, differences are prevalent among these programmes on the coverage and emphasis in these three core subject areas. Fortunately, we have a unique advantage over other KM education programmes that the Division of Information Studies offers two more graduate programmes in the areas of Information Studies and Information Systems. Taking advantage of our staff strength, we place equal emphasis on these disciplines and treat them as ‘three pillars’ of our KM education.

Aim of the KM Programme

Programme Mission: To educate and transform professionals from various disciplines into the next generation of knowledge management leaders to create, enhance and exploit knowledge assets of organisations of all types, by drawing upon the fields of management, technology, and information.

Upon completion of the MSc (KM) programme, graduates are expected to:

• Appreciate the importance of knowledge management in organisations of all types and sizes;
• Be familiar with strategies and technologies needed for managing knowledge and instituting changes within organisations;
• Develop an in-depth understanding of key concepts, functions, and issues related to KM systems;
• Understand and apply the principles and techniques of content management in organising knowledge and implementing controlled vocabularies, taxonomies, and information retrieval systems.

Career Opportunities
Employment is available with the private sector and government institutions, both in Singapore and around the globe. While the strategies and approaches to implementing KM vary between organisations, it is impossible to identify some generic roles that have been created to implement KM initiatives. While the following list concentrates on full time positions with a formal title, it is important to note that particularly in small organisations, where the size does not warrant full time positions, KM responsibilities are added to existing roles. Similarly, as KM is a multi-disciplinary subject, many jobs do not necessarily use the word Knowledge in their titles.

Knowledge-related Job Titles: Chief Knowledge Officer (CKO), Knowledge Engineer, Knowledge Asset Manager, Knowledge Editor, Knowledge Officer, Knowledge Analyst, Knowledge Architect.

Information-related Job Titles: Chief Information Officer (CIO), Content Analyst, Information Analyst, Content Manager, Document Manager, Information Architect, Content Management Director, Information Archivist, Information Developer, Web Content Specialist.

Information Technology-related Job Titles: Chief Technology Officer (CTO), Systems Developer, Senior IT Architect, Network Analyst, Systems Architect, Web Designer, Enterprise Portal Developer, Technology Manager.

Programme Structure
Students of the MSc (KM) programme can choose to study by:
• Coursework and Dissertation
• Coursework Only

Each subject in the curriculum is assigned 3 academic units (AU), with the exception of Professional Seminar and the Research Project that are assigned 2 and 6 academic units respectively.

A three academic unit course comprises 39 contact hours of lectures, tutorials and laboratory work. With the introduction of the Academic Unit System, the student will accumulate the required AU over the period of study

Academic Units

A total of 6 AUs is accumulated for successful completion of the Research Project that includes the submission of a dissertation.

Duration of Programme
The programme is taken by full-time or part-time study. The full-time programme can be completed within one year. The evening part-time programme can be completed within two years, although many students take an additional semester to complete their dissertation.

The courses are conducted through lectures, tutorials and laboratory sessions through a two-semester year, August-November and January-April. Students in the part-time programme attend classes on two or three evenings a week from 6.30 pm to 9.45 pm. Some courses are also offered on Saturdays. Note that the final exams for all courses are held during the day in November and April. Part-time students may need to make arrangements to come to campus at scheduled times in the mornings or afternoons for the final exams. The exam dates and times will be announced by the university before the mid-semester break.

Admission Requirements
Applicants seeking admission to the MSc (KM) programme must have:
• A good Bachelor's degree in any discipline, and
• Preference is given to applicants with working experience in information and knowledge-related fields.

International students whose undergraduate education was not in the English medium and who are not able to attend an interview in Singapore are encouraged to take the IELTS or TOEFL test, and include a copy of the results in the application. Though an IELTS/TOEFL score is still optional for the 2009 admission, preference is given to applicants with IELTS score of 6.0 and above, or TOEFL of 570 and above.

Application for Admission
Applications must be submitted online via the NTU Graduate Studies Office by February 25th for the August admission.

Carrying out a research project and writing a dissertation require a strong command of English, good grasp of the subject, self-discipline and time commitment. The coursework+dissertation option is recommended only for students with a high level of English proficiency and a cumulative grade point average of at least B+. Students taking the dissertation option make take a longer time to complete the programme.

Students choose three core subjects, six electives and a project for which a dissertation is submitted. The three core subjects provide the common essential knowledge of the information and knowledge management.

Building on this foundational knowledge, students take elective subjects to specialise in an area appropriate to a particular knowledge management profession.

General Electives
Students choose two of the Group A electives that provide the basic competencies for their
intended area of concentration.

Subsequently, they choose four of the Group B electives for concentration. Two of these four electives may be chosen from courses offered in the MSc (Information Studies) programme or other Master’s level courses offered in the School of Communication & Information or in other schools in the University, subject to approval of the Dean.