The Bachelor of Information Technology External Degree of the University of Colombo was introduced as the brainchild of the Late Prof. Samaranayake. The objective was to meet the demand of the local ICT industry by giving students the opportunity to learn the latest technologies and earn a degree from a prestigious university.

The BIT Degree focuses on producing graduates in the Software Development field, who are in high demand with leading large-scale IT organizations in Sri Lanka offering them placement / employment even before their results are officially released.

Students that complete their A/L Examinations with 3 passes in any stream can gain entry into the programme directly. The old entrance examination has been scrapped, thereby making entry even more accessible to the masses. If the student does not have A/L passes or has not done A/Ls, the student can first enter into the Foundation in Information Technology (FIT) programme and then proceed onto the BIT Degree. Students with other qualifications can also be selected into the programme by sitting for an e-Selection test to check their aptitude. The aim of relaxing the entry criteria is to cater to the growing demand of IT graduates that Sri Lanka is currently experiencing.

ESOFT has been conducting classes for BIT ever since its inception in the year 2000. Our commitment to quality and performance is exemplified by the fact that we have produced several 1st class Degree Holders including a Gold Medalist.

Students that complete the 1st year (Semesters 1 & 2) will be awarded with the UCSC Diploma in IT, and then proceed onto the 2nd year (Semesters 3 & 4). Successful completion of this stage entitles you to the UCSC Higher Diploma in IT, making you eligible to progress to the final 3rd year (Semesters 5 & 6) which will award you with the Bachelor of Information Technology (BIT) Degree.

Through the nine years of experience that we have of conducting the BIT Programme, we have observed that students who join with us from the beginning have a higher success rate in gaining the Degree within 3 years. This provides you with an excellent platform of skills which gives you the potential for better opportunities in the industry.

Students that start their BIT at other institutes or those who do self-studying in the beginning are later compelled to join up with ESOFT from the 2nd or 3rd year onwards. But we have seen that their success rates are less resulting in an extension of the time needed to complete the Degree.

Studying for the BIT Programme at ESOFT gives you a higher return on your investment. We see this as an "Investment" as you are acquiring the skills and knowledge that will help guarantee a secure place for you in the IT industry.

With the vast experience that we have accumulated over the years, we have re-engineered the course structure and decided to move away from the traditional "semester" model of registrations. We will instead be registering students on a yearly basis for the UCSC Diploma, UCSC Higher Diploma, and the BIT Final Year.

This allows us to better focus on quality delivery and helps tune the mindset of the student to a specific target such as obtaining the end-of-year qualification. This is also supported by the fact that the University does not release results on a semester basis, but only on a yearly basis. We have further decided to limit our intakes (see accompanying advertisement for details) to allow us to focus on core values.

For students that wish to study on a full time basis with access to additional resources, facilities, and value added course modules, we also have an extension product by the name of "BIT Plus". In addition to the normal BIT material, students learn other skill areas including web designing, programming, networking and hardware, and also have access to vendor certifications from Microsoft, Sun, and Cisco. This is the programme we recommend for the majority of students due to the immense value addition that students receive. The BIT Plus programme used to be available as a weekday programme only, but we have now introduced a weekend mode as well. The normal BIT programme is available as a compromise for those looking for a more economical option.

Key Reasons for doing BIT

• Recognised qualification from the University of Colombo.
• High demand from the industry for BIT Graduates.
  
• Completion in 3 years.
• Part time or full time mode of study.
• Students can select where they study.
• Cost effective.
• Syllabi are continuously revised to cater to the changes in ICT.

When ESOFT opened its doors in the year 2000, we started out by offering professional courses at a grassroot level. However, we placed emphasis on delivering quality education and our clients quickly realized the value that we provide, thereby catapulting us to the top in the Industry.

Today, we are the Leader in coaching students for the BIT External Degree examinations conducted by the University of Colombo as well as the BCS Professional Examinations. ESOFT is also one of only two organizations to be accredited by the University of Moratuwa for conducting classes for their BIT External Degree. We are currently in the process of registering students for the 2009 intake and classes will commence in July.

ESOFT is headed by Dr. Dayan Rajapakse, who is a veteran in the IT industry with more than 15 years of experience in lecturing in various courses. Starting his career as a medical doctor, he also had a knack for IT and thus setup ESOFT. In 2005, he stopped practising medicine and switched to IT completely, further reinforcing the strength at ESOFT.

ESOFT's Facilities
We always strive to provide maximum facilities and benefits to our students, as we strongly believe a healthy environment leads to a healthy performance.

To highlight a few:

" Dedicated and qualified lecture panel available as permanent staff.
" Mega Computer Lab + interactive training labs + dedicated Internet connectivity.
" Recreational Activities (cricket matches, outings, etc) and Indoor sports (table tennis, carom, etc.)
" Fully stocked Library
" Separate study area
" Student Counselling Support.

Aside from these, we also provide additional services such as the conducting of mock examinations, arranging loan facilities for course fees, and more.
Courses on offer
We offer a wide selection of courses including:

" BCS
" BIT
" SCJP / J2ME / J2EE
" Microsoft Certifications
" Hardware & Networking
" Web Designing
" Desktop Publishing
" Multimedia
" Certificate and Diploma Programmes

Our Branch Network
We have a steadily growing branch network which currently consists of nine locations, and students can study for the BIT programme in Colombo, Negombo, Kandy, Kurunegala, and Matara.

These are conveniently located in the heart of the cities to allow easy access along with a comfortable study environment.
More information is available at www.esoft.lk