The British Computer Society (BCS) as it was known before has now transformed into BCS: The Chartered Institute for IT, which is the only Chartered Institute in the world for IT. BCS has a long history in Sri Lanka spanning over a period of 25 years well before all local institutions offering UK Degrees in Sri Lanka, and the local awarding bodies as well. For this reason, BCS Graduates are well recognized and accepted by the local industry and the rest of the world as well. Some of the earliest graduates of ESOFT are serving in top ranking positions such as CEO, CIO, CTO in many leading organisations.
ESOFT Computer Studies (Pvt) Ltd has obtained the highest possible recognition by being Accredited by the BCS CIIT for all three levels of the Programmes. This is indeed an unique achievement as no other organization in the World can claim such a feat.

BCS accredited course providers have not only made a commitment to a BCS code of practice but have also been assessed by BCS examiners. With the influx of new students after the have completed their A/L examinations, students should choose wisely before making a commitment. Do not be misled by the claims that are being made by some local institutes, or the discounted course fees that they are advertising. The bottom line should be the commitment to quality delivery of course content and the best preparation of the student for the professional examinations.

ESOFT has more than 10 years of experience in preparing students for the BCS examinations and our students have claimed many Sri Lankan and World prizes along the way. At the 2010 Graduation Ceremony held last week, our students stole the show by winning the Certificate Level Sri Lankan Prize (won by Mr. Lakshitha Liyanage), the Diploma Level Sri Lankan Prize and the World Prize (won by Mr. Ishan Balasuriya), as well as the Professional Graduate Level Sri Lankan Prize (won by Mr. Koshal Krishnakumar). This is the 3rd consecutive year where ESOFT students have claimed all of the prizes that were won.

Cross section of the more than 200 Graduates at the 2010 BCS Graduation Ceremony BMICH Colombo-2nd October 2010

Our academic panel is well qualified, experienced, and dedicated to the task at hand. One of the main reasons for our success is the perfect blend of fulltime and visiting lecturers that we utilize, thereby allowing us to incorporate vital practical experience into the lessons.

We offer the BCS Higher Education Qualification (HEQ) as a fulltime Degree programme under the designation of BCS-Plus. The course is conducted full time, on all weekdays and covers the BCS subjects as well as additional modules including SCJP, MCTS, CCNA, Web Designing, Hardware and Networking, and more. The exams can be completed in 18 to 20 months and thereby provides a fast track to gainful employment or entrance into a Masters Programme such as an M.Sc or MBA.

The course fee for the entire duration is only Rs. 299,000 and as an added incentive, students who make a full payment are provided with a brand new Laptop Computer to help them in their studies. When most foreign Degrees are being offered at a million or more, this is truly an affordable and cost effective option to get you where you want to be.

A less demanding version of this programme is also available in part time mode for those that are already working and for those students who are already involved in other studies and wish to obtain a parallel qualification.

The 11th Annual Graduation Ceremony of the BCS (Chartered Institute for IT) was held on the 2nd of October 2010 at the BMICH with the participation of over 500 Awardees and their parents and well wishers.

Among the awardees were the graduates who completed the BCS Professional Graduate Diploma (PGD) Level thereby gaining a qualification that is equivalent to an UK Honours Degree. This thereby enables them to proceed to a Masters Level qualification and also gain fruitful employment, in a minimum amount of time, at a fraction of the cost of a standard UK Degree Programme. This is one of the main reasons as to why the BCS Higher Education Qualifications (HEQ), formerly known as the Professional Qualifications attracts a large number of professionals from the industry, as well as new recruits directly after they leave secondary school.

One of the secrets behind the great performances at ESOFT is the fact that ESOFT is Sri Lanka's only Accredited Course Provider. Registered course providers (entry-level) are committed to a code of practice which requires them to ensure that students are treated fairly and are properly informed about the examinations. Accredited course providers (higher level) have become registered and then had their course provision successfully assessed by BCS examiners.

The BCS Higher Education Qualifications (HEQ) are a popular choice due to the following reasons:

• 1. BCS HEQ is the fastest path to obtain a UK Degree Level Qualification - namely, the three levels of the qualification can be completed within 18 to 20 months which is half of the time that you would invest in a Degree Programme.
• 2. ESOFT offers the BCS (HEQ) course in Colombo, Kandy, Kurunegala, Galle, Matara, and Negombo, and Jaffna.
• 3. BCS (HEQ) is the most economical option - the total investment including course fees, textbooks, examination fees is approximately Rs. 225,000 (if done on a part time basis)
• 4. The Qualification is modular and students can choose the order in which they complete it. Some students do either the Certificate and Diploma levels in one sitting or the Diploma and PGD levels in one sitting, thereby reducing the time to complete the entire programme.
• 5. There are two examination sittings per year - April and October. This considerably enhances your opportunity to complete the qualification at your earliest.
• 6. Classes at ESOFT are held in part time mode on the weekends either only on Saturday and only on Sunday, and also on weekdays in the evenings after 5.45 pm. Fulltime classes are also available for those that would like to receive additional value through our popular BCS Plus programme.
• 7. At any given time, we have ten or more batches of the BCS Certificate Level classes, and three or more batches for the Diploma and PGD levels, thereby increasing your chances of finding a class that matches your schedule. Students are given the flexibility of choosing their classes / subjects from different batches to suit their busy schedules.
• 8. We have established links with Institutions in the UK thereby allowing a student that completes the BCS Diploma level here with us to proceed to the UK to complete the final year of a B.Sc (Hons) Degree in Computing at an affordable fee.
• 9. Students that complete the BCS Diploma also have the option of joining various UK Top-Up Degree Programme offered in Sri Lanka and completing their B.Sc (Hons) Degree in just one more academic year.

Many leading organizations in Sri Lanka already provide lucrative employment to BCS qualified professionals, and academic organizations such as Sri Lankan Universities are accepting the BCS Qualification as an entry qualification into their Masters Degrees.

Industry analysts point out that this is one of the main reasons behind the current trend of students who are enrolled in other Degree programmes taking up BCS HEQ in parallel, thereby gaining double qualifications for themselves.

There is also a tendency for students to complete up to the Diploma level of the BCS HEQ, and then switch over to the final (3rd) year of a UK Honours Degree either here in Sri Lanka or in the UK itself. This makes practical sense as the BCS Diploma can be completed in less than twelve months thereby saving more than a year of your time, along with a considerable amount of money as well.

Students and professionals that wish to obtain more information about the contents of this article, or about the Course Provider are invited to visit, or call on 0117 555 545 to talk to our specially trained Student Counselors on how best you can leverage this qualification to suit your requirements. You can also obtain more information by visiting www.esoft.lk