Moratuwa University Computer Science Dept. turns 25
The Department of Computer Science and Engineering at the University
of Moratuwa, the first ever computer engineering department at a Sri
Lankan university was set up on January 29, 1985.
The department went through a decade of rapid growth followed by a
decade of consolidation towards excellence. At present, it is in the
middle of a decade of establishing international repute as an
outstanding academic department.
This year the Department of Computer Science and Engineering is
celebrating its 25th anniversary in the midst of its achievements in
attracting global recognition to the University of Moratuwa and to Sri
Lanka.
In the past 25 years the Department of Computer Science and
Engineering has been renowned as a pioneer and a trendsetter for its
innovative approach to undergraduate education, aimed at producing not
merely employable, but globally competitive computer engineers.
Its graduates have consistently been the most sought after in the Sri
Lankan IT industry.
High acclaim
In its recent history, the department has earned high acclaim in the
global arena by obtaining the highest number of Google Summer of Code
awards for 2007, 2008 and 2009 and making it the world number one in
terms of total number of cumulative awards in GSoC.
To celebrate this journey of excellence during the past 25 years, the
department has organised a series of local and international events
throughout the year 2010.
The decade starting from 1980 was a decade of opportunity for Sri
Lanka. With the opening of the economy there was greater access to
technology and for interaction with the wider world for the technology
enthusiasts as well as for the academics. There was no exception at the
University of Moratuwa where a young engineer and academic, Dr. Abhaya
S. Induruwa, was beginning to dream of a future where the country would
produce thought leaders in a digital era.
With this vision, on January 29 in 1985, the Department of Computer
Science and Engineering at the University of Moratuwa was established.
This was the first Computer Engineering Department in a Sri Lankan
university.
The inaugural batch of undergraduates was inducted to the Department
in 1986. This signified a watershed event in the country, as, from a
population of 16 million people, 16 outstanding A/L scholars joined the
department as its first intake.
The setting up of the Department of Computer Science and Engineering
was supported by the Japanese aid agency, JICA, with a 200 million
Japanese Yen grant to build its infrastructure.
The extraordinary development of the department was catalysed with
this magnanimous gesture by the people of Japan.
The much needed human resources for the department came from a
stellar collection of academics from Japan (JICA), United Kingdom (VSO)
and Korea (KOICA) who comprised the academic staff until Sri Lanka's own
graduates completed their doctoral degrees at overseas universities and
came back to serve their motherland.
By the end of the first decade of its rapid growth, the department
had established itself with a staff of premier local academic scientists
teaching a rapidly expanding student body.
The beginning of next decade marked another milestone in the
engineering history of this country with the graduation of the first
batch of computer engineers in Sri Lanka. These young graduates were
immediately absorbed by the nascent computing and information technology
industry of the country.
By 1995, the 10th anniversary of the Department of Computer Science
and Engineering, the department had produced over 100 computer engineers
who were steering the IT workforce of the country as well as taking the
name of the university and the country to the international arena either
as budding academics or as computer professionals.
The 10th anniversary witnessed many 'firsts' for the country and the
university system.
The first ever networking (computer networks) conference in Sri
Lanka, NetCon '95 was organised by the department and was held in
conjunction with its 10th anniversary celebrations.
Another was the launch of the LEARN network which provided
countrywide direct Internet access for the universities and other
institutions of higher learning in Sri Lanka.
The second decade of the Department of Computer Science and
Engineering beginning from 1996, was a decade of consolidation towards
excellence.
Notable achievements
The infrastructure was improved and expanded to support the expansion
of course selection to the students of the department as well as
students from other departments of the engineering faculty.
The departmental staff strength also increased with the return of
several of the department's own graduates after completion of their
doctoral degrees from universities around the world.
The department's second decade came to an end with several other
notable achievements.
These included the inauguration of new postgraduate programs offered
by the department. The Masters of Business Administration specialising
in Information Technology (MBA in IT), a first of its kind in the
island, was started in 2003. The growing demand for higher learning by
the local IT professionals was catered to by the inception of a Master
of Science in Computer Science (MSc in CS) in 2004. The department also
spearheaded the e-learning revolution of the country by extending its
home-grown e-learning platform, the LearnOrg, to the entire university.
This system provided an integrated course registration, learner
management and course delivery platform.
The consolidation decade came to an end with the graduates of the
department who returned after higher studies in universities around the
world, taking the helm of the department.
The year 2005, saw the establishment of international repute of the
department. Four of the department's undergraduate students who won the
first ever Google Summer of Code competition in year 2005, brought the
name of this island - Pearl of the Indian Ocean - to the GSoC world map.
By this time the names of the graduates of the department were
appearing in a multitude of international conference proceedings, from
all over the world where they had dispersed to pursue their doctoral
degrees, such as the United States, United Kingdom and European
continent.
The 25th anniversary was celebrated on February 2 at the Department
of Computer Science by the University of Moratuwa. |
