Internet-of-Things Developer

The purpose of this qualification is to prepare a learner to function as an Internet-of-Things Developer. An Internet-of-Things Developer coordinates all components of an Internet-of-Things (IoT) solution that includes sensors, devices, actuators, networks, and other infrastructure to aggregate and disseminate data, store the data on the cloud and make it available to the data scientist for decision making, thus being responsible for the full cycle from data collection to data delivery. A qualified learner will be able to: • Deploy an IoT solution by connecting sensors, devices, and things to a wired or wireless network. • Collect, aggregate, disseminate and store large amounts of unstructured and structured data generated by these devices. • Integrate collected data with the existing systems such as enterprise resource planning (ERP) of an organisation for consumption and use.

In the broadest sense, the term Internet of Things (IoT) encompasses everything connected through the internet, but it is increasingly being used to define objects that "talk" to each other. Simply, the Internet of Things is made up of devices, from simple sensors to smartphones and wearables - connected together". The IoT is one of the fastest growing fields in the world of digitalisation. It was projected by Gartner that a total of 4.2 billion things would be connected by 2019 and a total of 25 billion in 2021. Moreover, the GSM Association predicted the growth of IoT devices to about 25.1 billion by 2025. This expectation presents a huge opportunity for businesses to harness data, optimise their operations and deliver more relevant experiences to users. South Africa will similarly be affected by the growth in IoT, and the MICT SETA recognises the need for a qualification to enable qualified to find employment and engage with IoT related matters. There is no similar qualification on the National Qualifications Framework. The above is recognised by the Presidential Commission on 4IR (PC4IR) when it states that "The central and urgent agenda as the country transitions into and attempts to shape the 4IR is the re-skilling and re-integration of this demographic. Indeed, the country must prioritise a human-centred agenda to the 4IR, thereby capitalising on the unique advantage of a youthful population; put simply, realising a dormant demographic dividend. To achieve the necessary advances, it is necessary to restructure the human development ecosystem, placing people at the centre." By centralising 4IR in human development, the qualification will have a positive socio-economic impact, especially amongst the youth who are growing up in a digital era and who can benefit from developments in this regard - in terms of developing their skills, secure employment and creating entrepreneurial opportunities. IoT has become an integral part of the life of the individual, providing advantages and benefits in terms of leisure, socialising, healthcare, better user experience, to name but a few. IoT is a big driver in big data analytics, providing magnitudes of data in real-time used for real-time decision making for various economic sectors. Healthcare, Agriculture and Manufacturing and many other industries will benefit immensely because of the availability of big data to help making well-versed, on-time decisions. For example, IoT enables real-time alerting, tracking, and monitoring, which permits hands-on treatments, better accuracy, apt intervention by doctors and improved complete patient care delivery results. This qualification aims to prepare those who engage in IoT in broad areas of sensors and sensor nodes, connectivity and networks and analytics and applications and in the process benefit the development of the ICT sector. This qualification, together with the cluster of qualifications newly developed through the MICT SETA, will contribute to fulfilling the recommendations of the Presidential Commission on the 4th Industrial Revolution (PC4IR). The PC4IR report forefronts human capital and the future of work and refers to growing skills instability. It states that work will change, and that robotic process automation (RPA) will play a more pivotal role in the execution of tasks. The 4th Industrial Revolution (4IR) is a fusion of advances in artificial intelligence (AI), robotics, process automation, the Internet of Things (IoT), genetic engineering, quantum computing, cyber security, cloud computing, and data science. Typical learners include school leavers, qualified learners from TVET colleges and those currently in employment without formal recognition of competencies. No professional registration or licencing is expected for an Internet-of-Things Developer to seek employment in the sector. Internet-of-Things Developers can be employed in any organisation as IoT Systems Administrators, IoT Practitioners, IoT/Cloud Software Developers, or IoT Infrastructure Architects.

Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL): RPL for Access to the Qualification: • Learners will gain access to the qualification through RPL for Access as provided for in the QCTO RPL Policy. RPL for access is conducted by accredited education institution, skills development provider or is workplace accredited to offer that specific qualification/part qualification. • Learners who have acquired competencies of the modules of a qualification or part qualification will be credited for modules through RPL. RPL for access to the external integrated summative assessment: • Accredited providers and approved workplaces must apply the internal assessment criteria specified in the related curriculum document to establish and confirm prior learning. Accredited providers and workplaces must confirm prior learning by issuing a statement of result. Entry Requirements: The minimum entry requirement for this qualification is: • NQF Level 3 qualification.

• Demonstrate knowledge to connect things to internet through gateways and edge technologies for communication.
• Apply methods and procedures to maintain seamless connectivity and security of things in an IoT ecosystem throughout the entire lifecycle.
• Interpret and apply operational requirements to accurately collect large amounts of unstructured data according to the requirements of the context, aggregate and disseminate data, and store data in cloud infrastructure or intermittent local storage data base in terms of the IoT solution.
• Apply application programming interfaces (API) to integrate data with the existing systems for effective data usage.