The Faculty of Information Science and Technology (Fakulti Teknologi dan Sains Maklumat) (FTSM) has established its academic roots as early as the conception of Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM). Before FTSM ever became a full-fledged faculty of its own, courses related to Computer Science have long been offered by UKM since the university was established in 1970. In line with the emergence of the computer science discipline, UKM set up the Statistics and Computer Science Unit in 1977 under the Quantitative School. The Statistics and Computer Science Unit was upgraded to become the Computer Science Department in 1982 while the Quantitative School became the Faculty of Mathematics and Computer Science in 1991. Academic programs at the Undergraduate, Master and Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) levels have been introduced incrementally. The number of academic staff with PhDs increased in accordance with the national requirements related to enhancing the quality of teaching and research.
In the 1990s, the world economy was driven by knowledge-based economics which was in tandem with the emergence of Information and Communication Technology (ICT). Not to be left out of these exciting developments, Malaysia devised various policies and initiatives including the Multimedia Super Corridor(MSC). Subsequently, ICT has become one of the nation’s most important industries. In line with the changes that have moved the world from the industrial to the information era, the Computer Science Department was upgraded on 1 October 1994 to become the Faculty of Information Science and Technology (Fakulti Teknologi dan Sains Maklumat) (FTSM). Strengthened by 40 academic staff, the faculty was awarded the ‘MSC company’ status on 24th November 2000.
Today, the FTSM family consists of a staff of 138 members. Academics, research and consultancy activities are carried out by 90 faculty members that includes 8 professors, 26 associate professors, 48 senior lecturers, 2 lecturers and 6 IT Instructors. The Faculty is also managed with the support of 25 administrative staff and 23 ICT support staff. The FTSM campus is located at the UKM Main Campus in Bangi. It also houses 3 research centers which are driven by experts in various fields of research. Since its inception, FTSM has progressed rapidly in various aspects. FTSM students too, are making their presence felt by being actively involved in numerous programs and competitions at the national and international levels such as the......
At present, research in FTSM is streamlined into 3 focus areas for innovation, guided by experts at the 3 research centers hosted within FTSM: the Center for Artificial Intelligence Technology (CAIT), the Center for Cyber Security (CYBER), and the Center for Software Technology and Management (SOFTAM). Between 2019 and 2022, these 3 research centers collectively managed RM18,029,703.30 in research grants and funding and have collectively produced 154 innovations, published 644 journal articles and 47 books within these 3 focus areas.
In recognition of its many academic and research achievements since its establishment, FTSM was awarded the highly coveted status of “Premier Digital Tech Institution” by the Malaysian Digital Economy Corporation (MDEC) on 18 December 2023.
