6 September 2000 JADE turns to dollars for top Computing student

From completion of a degree in French to study for a Graduate Diploma in Applied Computing at Lincoln University and winning the top prize in object-oriented programming, the future looks bright for former Rangiora High School student Heather Lander.

Heather has been awarded the JADE Prize as top student in the Lincoln University paper COMP 306, Object-oriented Programming, which is taught using the computer language JADE.

It is the second year that the JADE Group of Christchurch-based software company Aoraki Corporation has presented an award to the top student in the Lincoln University paper and the $2000 prize was presented to Heather by JADE's Tertiary Business Manager, Keith Cowan.

JADE has been associated with Lincoln University for about four years and provides its software free to the University for use in teaching.

"Our students find it rewarding and fun to learn JADE and they appreciate the opportunity to do so as they see jobs advertised seeking staff familiar with it," says Applied Computing Lecturer Elizabeth Post.

Lincoln University's Graduate Diploma in Applied Computing, for which Heather is studying, can usually be completed in one year if a student has previous computing experience or in 18 months if a student knows little about computers. The diploma provides an opportunity for those people who already have a degree in another area to move into the field of computing.

Heather says she felt her employment prospects would be enhanced by acquiring computing expertise and a formal qualification such as Lincoln's Graduate Diploma.

Ian Collins, Journalist, Lincoln University, Canterbury, New Zealand