CofC Adds New Majors in Software Engineering, Statistics

The South Carolina Commission on Higher Education has approved two new majors for the College of Charleston. Beginning in the fall 2022 semester, students will be able to earn a Bachelor of Science in software engineering and a Bachelor of Science in statistics.

"Building out the College of Charleston's portfolio of technical degree programs is essential to supporting the current and future workforce needs in the Lowcountry and in South Carolina more broadly," says Sebastian van Delden, dean of the School of Sciences and Mathematics. "The addition of these two new majors is an important milestone in the College of Charleston's trajectory to becoming the primary provider of engineering, computer science, data science and statistical analysis talent in the state of South Carolina."

Software Engineering

The new software engineering degree program will be the only such degree offered in South Carolina. In a partnership between the School of Languages, Cultures and World Affairs and the School of Sciences and Mathematics, the new degree will require students to complete computer science coursework, software engineering courses and a minor in foreign language/cultural studies.

Renee McCauley, chair of the Department of Computer Science, says this new degree will help graduates better adapt to the ever-changing workplace.

"Most computing graduates become software engineers when they enter the workforce. This is one of the most common types of careers, but traditional computing degrees do not necessarily fully prepare students for such a career – making the onboarding process more lengthy," says McCauley. "Having a degree program specifically in software engineering adds a new dimension of instruction that targets this key career pathway, differentiating the Department of Computer Science as a leader in this space."

According to a recent report by the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics, software development positions are expected to grow by 22% in the next eight years. Currently, there are over 400 open positions for software engineers in South Carolina with over 80 of those jobs in the Charleston area.

Statistics

The Department of Mathematics will house the new degree in statistics.

The new degree will be the retooling of the department's longstanding statistics concentration to establish a stand-alone statistics major. The new major will consist of the current existing courses, with the addition of a capstone requirement.

Department of Mathematics Chair Elizabeth Jurisich says creating a stand-alone major in statistics will greatly enhance the College of Charleston's ability to market this program and grow the technical workforce pipeline for the Lowcountry and beyond.

"For students who choose the B.S. in statistics as their major, their specialty will be communicated more clearly to potential employers, research and internship supervisors, and graduate programs," says Jurisich. "This will make it easier for students to combine the major with various complementary minors including economics, data science and biology, to name a few."

A recent report finds that statisticians are currently one of the fastest growing occupations in the United States. The United States Bureau of Labor Statistics predicts a 34% increase in statistics jobs over the next eight years.

CDC Tech Life Podcast Episode 5 features Knudt Flor, former CEO of BMW, USA

Episode 5 of the CDC Tech Life Podcast features Knudt Flor, Former President and CEO of BMW Manufacturing and Distinguished Professor of Industry Practice at College of Charleston. Knudt shares his experiences in coming to South Carolina, the business-friendly climate that helped make BMW Manufacturing a South Carolina Business success story and his ideas for a 'revolution' in how Universities can help prepare students for careers in an increasingly digital manufacturing workplace.

This episode is sponsored by P3 USA.

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CDC Tech Life Podcast Episode 4 features Susan Porter , CEO of Abuzz

Episode 4 of the CDC Tech Life Podcast features Susan Porter, CEO of Charleston, SC technology startup Abuzz. Susan shares her experiences in launching the venture, how Abuzz is helping connect students more closely with campus life, and why she decided to bring the venture to Charleston.

Episode 3 is sponsored by The City of Charleston and the iFiveK.

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SC Venture Capital Firm Closes $102M Fund

Venture fund group Good Growth Capital today announced it has closed its oversubscribed third fund at $102 million. The new fund is the largest in state history, according to a statement issued at the Dig SouthTech Summit hosted by the College of Charleston. Read more:

Portside Technology Acquires isofy

Portside Technology, a team of seasoned technologists providing professional services and technology infrastructure solutions to the commercial real estate industry, has acquired isofy, a simplified network management platform for coworking and flexible workspaces. Portside Technology explored existing products in the market to deliver a simple and cost-effective network management solution to its coworking and flexible workspace clients. After an extensive diligence process, isofy was identified as the premier solution uniquely suited for the operational and technical challenges of these operators. The exploration-to-acquisition process took over a year, and the deal was signed May 10th, 2022 with immediate effect.

isofy's deep-rooted client relationships and strong domain expertise, coupled with Portside Technology's service delivery capabilities, will deliver an end-to-end solution with immediate value to both existing and future clients. Stymied by the pandemic, isofy never had a "formal" market launch after being developed in 2019. Despite those circumstances, isofy still experienced robust organic growth and is currently active at many flexible workspace brands across the United States.

"We're thrilled to bring isofy into the fold, as another tool in the toolkit in our pursuit to provide flexible workspaces with resilient, cost-effective, and unified technology infrastructure solutions," said Zach McNamara, Founder and Owner of Portside Technology. "Bradd Konert and the entire isofy team have built an incredible product and platform. I'm beyond honored and grateful for their trust in us to take it to the next level, continuing to build on their foundation of product excellence and legacy of meaningful relationship building."

There will be no changes for existing isofy clients. Portside Technology will become the exclusive distributor, as the service delivery arm of isofy, as isofy continues to operate as an independent company. This positioning allows Portside Technology to remain focused on end-to-end solution delivery through their Workplace Infrastructure offering, while isofy continues to prioritize service reliability, product development, and increasing market share. In addition to his duties at Portside Technology, Zach McNamara will lead isofy as CEO, with an immediate goal of increasing brand awareness, filling key leadership positions, and further developing integrations with complementary platforms.

"We are excited for Portside Technology to take isofy to the next level," says Bradd Konert, Founder and current President of isofy, "Their understanding of the coworking industry along with their shared values made them the ideal partner for this acquisition. We look forward to seeing what's next for the platform and the customers of isofy under their leadership."

CDC Tech Life Podcast Episode 3 features Thomas Kaiser, Co-Founder of Avicenna Biosciences

Episode 3 of the CDC Tech Life Podcast features Thomas Kaiser, Co-Founder and Vice President of startup Avicenna Biosciences. Thomas talks about the unique challenges of launching a pharma-tech venture and how Avicenna is using machine learning to streamline the discovery of new pharmaceuticals.

This episode is sponsored by Charleston County Economic Development and the iFiveK.

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