Cyber Security BSc (Hons)

Protecting organisations from cyber-attacks is a valuable skill and graduates are highly sought after and it’s one we’ll prepare you for. You’ll explore how to detect and identify security risks before building on this with developing your own preventative measures – all with plenty of opportunities to test your solutions in our industry-standard facilities. 

Building on a solid foundation covering network and system technologies, this course covers the core knowledge and skills needed to protect businesses against security threats. You will develop a detailed understanding of computer security issues, the detection of computer-based crime and the preservation and interpretation of digital evidence of crime.

This course is accredited by the BCS, The Chartered Institute for IT to Chartered IT Professional (CITP) status. There's an opportunity for a year-long paid work placement and the School has strong links with local industry.

What you’ll study

• This course aims to enable you to identify security risks and preventative measures in technological solutions. You will learn the basic principles and practice of collecting computer data as evidence of computer crime and how systems operate in terms of their software and hardware infrastructure. Based on this you will learn how to manage such systems as a system administrator specialising in ensuring security. Your knowledge will be further developed to give you a good appreciation of security issues and the steps organisations need to take to protect themselves from security breaches and crime.

About the Computer Science Team

• We have a rich mix of knowledge ranging from software development for different types of system through to hardware aspects such as networking. This involves many uses of computing and considers all aspects including security and management. Our knowledge is built up and maintained through our wealth of industrial experience, our industrial links and our research activity. These are the ingredients for ensuring the relevance and vitality of your course.
• Much of our research is internationally recognised, particularly in the areas of Games for Learning and in Security. For example, Prof David Brown leads several projects, funded by the European Union, in games and assistive technology, while Prof Paul Evans’ innovative developments in security are supported by USA Dept of Homeland Security.

We engage fully in our subject area and this engagement feeds directly and indirectly into our teaching. Other examples of our activity are:

• Developing patents e.g. in voice signal processing
• Organising conferences on Interactive Technology and Games and on Intelligent Environments
• Working with local companies on funded projects e.g. enhancing the capability of the press association to search their image database
• Publishing novel findings in research publications on for example financial prediction, mobile communications, detection of human behaviour patterns.

Study abroad opportunities

• Get ready to embark on an adventure with our study abroad programs at partner universities or by getting a work placement overseas. Both opportunities will boost your employability, build lifelong friendships, and allow you to experience the world in a whole new way.

Learn a new language

• Alongside your study you also have the opportunity to learn a new language. The University Language Programme (ULP) is available to all students and gives you the option of learning a totally new language or improving the skills you already have.

Year One
Foundations of Computing Technology and Programming

• This module has four strands, including programming and technical aspects that introduce you to the fundamentals of writing computer programs, as well as numeracy and website development.

Essential Skills

• Develop the skills required to succeed on your computing degree. You’ll learn how to confidently deal with numerical aspects of your course and practice your web publishing skills by creating and formatting basic web documentation.

Systems Programming

• This foundation module in programming explores high-level languages and how to apply them to produce scripts or programs for networking and forensics-related applications.

Systems Technology

• Learn the key principles, underlying technologies and practical application of computer networks. You’ll be introduced to embedded systems, fundamentals, operation and hardware components.

Systems Analysis and Design (SAD)

• Introducing you to the fundamental principles of SAD, this module will give you a working knowledge of the key systems, development methodologies, techniques and tools.

Professional Development for Industry

• This module will enable you to learn about the professional bodies and standards relating to the computing profession and enhance your employability potential by increasing your awareness of the technological, social and economic factors driving the IT industry.

Year Two
Network Design and Administration

• Network infrastructure has become key to the effective operation of most organisations. This module will enable you to plan, configure and manage networking solutions to support business needs.

Cyber Security

• Learn to manage the security of computer based information and systems within organisations and develop the ability to make informed choices based on business drivers.

Distributed Network Architectures and Operating Systems

• Introduction to operating systems running on single machines and how they can be put together to form a large scale system comprising many networked machines.

Information Security

• Apply skills learnt in this module to conduct appropriate risk analysis and generate information assurance plans for a given context.

Practical Project Management & Professional Development

• Continued professional development and lifelong learning are important to your future career. Through this module, you’ll improve your time and project management skills, presentations and report writing.

Year Three

• Optional year-long work placement.  If you are not taking a placement you will progress directly to your final year in year three.

Final year
Project

• Investigate problems in computing, implement solutions, critically evaluate and reflect on your work, and develop your abilities to communicate, self-organise and manage.

Security in Practice

• Provides you with an understanding of various security vulnerabilities and cyber threats to computer systems and networks and how to assess and evaluate a variety of proactive and reactive security tools to protect computer systems.

Digital Investigations

• Learn to plan for computer crime in the corporate environment, the legal issues associated with the events and their investigation, and techniques for acquiring and handling potential evidence.

Advanced Topics in Cyber Security

• Study emerging and future developments in computer security reflecting current topics such as IoT security, applications of cryptography, anonymity and privacy enhancing technologies, and big data analysis for security.

Choose one of the following modules:
Service-centric and Cloud Computing

• Become accomplished in the design and implementation of object-based distributed solutions for building interoperable large-scale applications and analysing the quality of service.

Internet of Things

• Study a range of current and emerging wireless and mobile devices and their application to build an IoT system.

Business Analysis

• Discover two challenging aspects of implementing distributed computing systems in Service-Oriented Architectures (SOA).

Information Systems Management

• The aim of this module is to develop an understanding of how to manage the build and deployment of enterprise and Internet information systems in small to medium organisations.

Communicating Science and Technology

• An opportunity for you to gain valuable transferable skills working as a ‘student-tutor’ with teachers in local schools or to work on a community-based project.

You'll attend lectures and seminars across various buildings on the Clifton Campus, including:

• ISTeC Building
• Teaching and Learning Building
• Erasmus Darwin Building

Your career development

• Nottingham Trent University has an exemplary graduate employment record. As one of our graduates, you will possess a wide range of academic and transferable skills, including investigative and analytical techniques, problem-solving, planning, organisation and communication skills, all of which are invaluable for a number of careers including security analyst, forensic consultant and network administrators

Our recent graduates have secured roles at companies including:

• American Express
• UK Government
• Experian
• Boots UK
• Innovations in Transport

They have gone into a wide variety of job roles including:

• Cyber Security Analyst
• Business Analyst
• Product Consultant
• Cyber security network designer

Placements

• NTU is one of the most employment-focused universities. Increasingly, employers want to recruit graduates who have real-world work experience. That’s why all of our courses, across every subject area, offer you a work experience opportunity. Our experts help build and support your future with a range of career programmes and events.
• On this course, after your second year, you will have the opportunity to take a year's work placement (sandwich placement). This will give you the chance to gain vital experience and put your knowledge into practice. You're also twice as likely to secure a graduate job within six months if you take a work placement.
• Our recent students have taken placements across a wide range of companies including Lexis Nexis, Rolls Royce and The Press Association. They secured varied roles such as Fraud Analyst, Technical Support Specialist and Information Systems Assistant.
• You'll be supported and assessed throughout your placement year and will write a reflective report and diary at the end of your placement. When you successfully complete your placement, you will be eligible to receive an additional award of a Diploma in Professional Practice.

Campus and facilities

• The School of Science and Technology is a stimulating and creative environment which equips students with the knowledge and transferable skills to put them ahead of the graduate crowd.

We provide facilities that enhance the quality of our education and push the boundaries of our research. Students have access to specialist centres including:

• Games console laboratories
• Networking and security laboratories
• Human-interactive technology and stereo-projection.

Students also enjoy working with the latest software; examples include EnCase, 3D StudioMax, XNA Xbox development suite, The Adobe Creative Suite (Flash, After Effects, Photoshop) and the Unreal and Half-life Games Engines.