Who is a business informatist and how to learn a profession?

All the time, completely new specializations and areas of human activity appear. Now it is necessary to find out as clearly as possible who a business informatist is, what kind of profession it is, how to learn a profession and who will have to work. Equally important information is what universities and faculties to enroll in, what to take in the specialty, what feedback about this area of ​​training is given by previous graduates.

Business Informatics is truly a new type of specialist, not a brand new name. Applicants are paying more and more attention to this profile. He has already managed to become one of the hundreds of the most demanded areas of training in industry universities and universities. However, it is necessary to give a description of such a profession, to analyze its main features. Only then will the applicants' decision be fully realized.

It cannot be said that Business Informatics is a clearly unnecessary specialty. It is taught even at the Higher School of Economics and a number of other reputable educational institutions that value their reputation. But even advertising information from leading universities, including foreign ones, emphasizes that this is not a technical specialization. It most of all has to do with the field of management. At round tables and events for university applicants, it is often said that computer science in business opens the way to the heights of managerial careers. Often they refer to the biographies of those who have taken up respectable posts in a particular organization or department.

However, the topic of the real relevance of this profession is worth considering a little further. Now it makes sense to figure out what it is like in the curriculum. Training programs at the bachelor's level in different universities, if they differ, are very weak. It will take 4 years to study full-time after grade 11; 5 years training will last for:

• evening;
• correspondence;
• part-time scheme.

Almost everywhere the list of disciplines taught is more or less identical. About a third of the study time is devoted to general disciplines taught at any university, regardless of specialization. In the first two years, the emphasis is on mastering higher mathematics. Then they move from theory to economic disciplines. The business is not complete without English, and without training in information technology.

As for the business disciplines themselves, including classes in seemingly pivotal business analytics, they are taught almost everywhere in the 4th year. At the same time, students finally have a chance to move from academic affairs to the development of practical skills. It is difficult to get an internship at a really serious company. The management of firms can be understood: they need people who will have a more serious base either in computer science and informatics, or in business itself, or at least in general economics.

Therefore, we can say this: this profession has potential. But the preparation in most universities leaves much to be desired, does not give special prospects for employment. Often, practice has to be done even in retail chains or somewhere else in auxiliary positions. Students will have to make independent efforts in order to get away from the “all-round-looking”, “picking up a little bit of everything” and learn really useful skills additionally. Only in a few universities where cooperation with national and world-class firms (the same HSE) is established, the situation with internships and general training is better.

Educational institutions offering training in this profile have an extensive network of branches. Therefore, there should not be any special problems in choosing the nearest training center.

In other words, it is worth going to such a direction of preparation or not. It is clear that in our era, any commercial activity is somehow connected with network technologies and opportunities. Even if the organization does not yet use such methods of promoting its interest, it will soon use them ... or it will completely leave the market. Business informatics are in great demand in the advertising field, which is now a source of very large income. But it is necessary to take into account one nuance that changes the whole thing.

Even if an applicant finds himself in a truly professional educational institution, where they really teach and train, and not just read a set of disciplines, then this is not all. Employers pay almost no attention to formal regalia (diplomas). They will be much more pleased with those graduates who have achieved a corporate grant or presented their own developments in the learning process.

Before applying for the Business Informatics specialization, it is worth considering that mathematics will be the key core subject for applicants. Moreover, the access score is at least 81. This requirement even applies to regional divisions of leading universities. If we talk about the Higher School of Economics, then the passing score there is from 90.There are almost no chances to enter the budget, since there are no more than 20 such places in each educational institution.

You can't limit yourself to mathematics. In addition to her, you will also have to take the Russian language on the exam. The level of requirements for it depends on the policy of a particular university. He himself chooses whether to test applicants additionally in social studies or in English. When choosing a specific educational institution, you should pay attention to:

• the actual experience of teachers in the field of business and modern technologies;
• their real level of merit;
• the fate of former graduates;
• the level of the material and technical base of the institution.

We repeat, training in the direction of "Business Informatics" can be a good springboard to success. But not by itself, but in close connection with other knowledge and practical skills. Studying purely academic disciplines, it is almost impossible to get them. Already at the moment of staying within the walls of the university, one must “look around” and establish contacts with people who have already achieved success. Now you need to characterize several educational institutions where you can master the specialty "Business Informatics".

The necessary training is provided, in particular, at the Financial University. The corresponding department was opened there in 2013. Education is conducted in accordance with the standards for a bachelor's degree. The specialized department "Business Informatics" was deployed at the Faculty of Information Technologies and Big Data Analysis; preparation period - 4 years. Therefore, we can say that, in general, the case has been raised to a serious level.

Training in the same specialty is also conducted at VLGU. Vladimir University named after Stoletovs organized training not only at the bachelor's level; there is even a magistracy. A special department worked as part of the Faculty of Technology and Economics, now - as part of the Institute of Economics and Management. Attention is paid to teaching students the digital economy and information security.

A more solid level of training, apparently, has been achieved at NRNU MEPhI. There, not a separate department, but a whole faculty is allocated for business informatics and management. It is proposed not only to master the necessary disciplines at the bachelor's or master's level, but also to continue their studies in graduate school in the areas of "computer technology" or "economics". The administration focuses on the fact that graduates will master the basics of managing complex information, technical and organizational processes. It is worth noting that the military department at the faculty works, but budgetary places are not provided at all.

At MIPT, the corresponding area of ​​study works at the Department of Information Business Systems. It is noteworthy that its creation was initiated by the IBS group of companies, which oversees this project. It is one of the leading software developers not only in Russia, but also across Eastern Europe. IBS implements long-term projects together with Rosatom, Gazprom, Boeing, Ford, IBM and many other major customers. Therefore, the chances of graduates for employment are quite high.

At the Moscow State Pedagogical University, the Department of Business Informatics was opened relatively recently - in 2019, the first group was released. The training is carried out in close cooperation with the 1C corporation.

Training in the same specialization is still being conducted in our country:

• Northwest Institute of Management (St. Petersburg branch of RANEPA);
• NCFU;
• Polytechnic University named after Peter;
• MIREA;
• MEI;
• SPbSU;
• Plekhanov Russian University of Economics;
• UrFU;
• Samara University named after Korolev;
• SUSU;
• RUDN.

In educational institutions of a good level of business informatics, a wide course of mathematical analysis is mandatory. It is much larger than most other economic specialties. The difficulty may depend on the specific teacher, but here you don't have to choose. The only way out that students have is to try and do their best. It is also necessary to be prepared for the fact that probability theory will also be taught much more intensively and at a more complex level than for ordinary economists.

But if mathematical analysis can still be discarded later, then the theory of probability is advised to study seriously. As for the economic disciplines, they seem boring to many ... until a certain time. Without owning them, in any case, there is nothing to do in business informatics. This part of the program will make it easy to understand the most intricate speeches:

• employees of ministries;
• administration representatives;
• bank employees.

Programming will also have to be learned. Most often, students are introduced to basic programming languages, databases, and in advanced educational institutions - even with neural networks. Additionally, the program includes:

• management;
• project management rules;
• business ethics;
• business process methodology;
• resource management methodology.

Such a seemingly contradictory set of objects is actually quite well thought out. The goal is to train specialists who can become a link between economists and administrators, on the one hand, and programmers and engineers, on the other. Good institutions teach conflict resolution and cooperation skills. General disciplines usually include:

• foreign language;
• religious studies;
• general subjects;
• physical education;
• history;
• life safety;
• marketing.

But even if you managed to choose a suitable direction of training and an educational institution, it is important to immediately figure out what you will have to do in the position of business informatics. These specialists:

• analyze information and communication systems;
• planning their development;
• participate in such development;
• implement the resulting systems;
• improve them in practice;
• collect information about the experience of using these systems and the identified deficiencies.

Also, business informatics evaluate, compare, develop application programs in widespread operating systems. They can also be engaged in the implementation of such programs. Business informatics are sometimes tasked with selling hardware and software to solve a wide variety of application problems. These are, for example, data warehouses and related software packages. Such specialists can also be employed:

• holistic management of the implementation of information projects;
• system design;
• preparation of strategies for the implementation of IT complexes;
• determining the requirements on the part of practitioners for information systems, dividing these requirements into real and impossible, thinking over ways to implement justified requirements;
• preparation of recommendations regarding the functionality of the systems.

Post-graduation work in Business Informatics depends primarily on the students themselves. For those who have mastered programming well, it makes sense to look for a job in the field of information technology. Those who have a penchant for project coordination and general management are also expected there. If neither one nor the other can be said about yourself, you can follow the economic path:

• accountant;
• a salary economist;
• auditor;
• a bank employee;
• an employee of the administration or municipality;
• marketer;
• loan officer;
• department specialist;
• sales manager;
• a trader;
• broker;
• financial analyst;
• business consultant;
• strategic planning manager.

The salary level of a business informatics (as well as specialists of similar profiles) is determined primarily by the place of residence and the scale of the company where he works. Novice programmers in large cities receive from 30 thousand rubles a month. System analysts can claim earnings of 80-100 thousand rubles. Employment in Moscow and St. Petersburg is much more difficult than in regional centers, but the salary level there is significantly higher. However, a lot again depends on the industry and on the policies of a particular organization.

The scale of the social package also depends on it (although, where it is, there are usually no complaints). Obeying the dress code is optional, but the decision is made by the managers themselves. The work schedule is usually a classic five-day week. You can increase your earnings and, at the same time, value in the eyes of bosses through the development of additional skills and related professions. The prospects for freelancing are also great; But you need to understand that business informatics, even in this case, work as a team, and a good group still needs to be assembled, rallied and coordinated its work.

We'll have to look for additional clients. Practice shows that singles are approached much less often than studios and other organizations. The choice of a public or private structure depends on personal taste and the available vacancies.