About the course
About the course
This course considers current research and practice in cyber security. You will develop technical expertise and practical skills in the design, management and evaluation of secure systems, and in the use of tools and techniques for penetration testing and cyber defence. This MSc can lead to a career such as a network system administrator, security analyst, ethical hacker or a security consultant.
This course is part of our Masters Programme in Computer Science. For more information about the different course titles, visit our Programme Summary page. Here you can also download the Programme Prospectus as a pdf file.
Why choose this course?
The MSc Cyber Security consists of two major parts: taught modules and an MSc project. Each taught module has an assigned number of credits (either 15 or 30). In order to obtain an MSc degree you must study and pass 120 credits of compulsory taught modules plus the project i.e. 180 credits in total.
Part I: Taught modules:
A student will complete two compulsory taught modules which are Professional Issues (15 credits), Investigative Methods for Computer Science (15 credits).
The remaining 90 credits are made of six compulsory core subject modules which are Distributed Systems Security (30 credits), Secure Systems Programming (15 credits), Information Security Management and Compliance (15 credits), Penetration Testing (15 credits), and Cyber Security.
Part II: MSc Project
After completing the required credits of taught modules, the student may progress to the project.
Professional Accreditations
Accredited by BCS, The Chartered Institute for IT for the purposes of fully meeting the academic requirement for registration as a Chartered IT Professional (for 1st year entrants only)
Careers
Our masters programme is designed to give Computer Science graduates the specialist, up-to-date skills and knowledge sought after by employers, whether in business, industry, government or research. This particular course will prepare you for a career such as a software engineer, developer or project manager.
Teaching methods
Classes consist of lectures, small group seminars, and practical work in our well-equipped laboratories. We use modern, industry-standard software wherever possible. There are specialist facilities for networking and multimedia and a project laboratory especially for masters students. In addition to scheduled classes, you will be expected a significant amount of time in self-study, taking advantage of the extensive and up-to-date facilities. These include the Learning Resource Centres, open 24x7, with 1,500 computer workstations and wifi access, Studynet our versatile online study environment usable on and off campus, and open access to our labs.
Work Placement
This MSc is available with an optional one year industry placement. The 'with placement' programmes give you additional industrial experience by applying the skills you have learned throughout your studies.
This offers you the opportunity to work for one year in a highly professional and stimulating environment. You will be a full time employee in a company earning a salary and will learn new skills that can't be taught at University. During the placement, you will be able to gain further insight into industrial practice that you can take forward into your individual project.
We will provide excellent academic and personal support during both your academic and placement periods together with comprehensive careers guidance from our very experienced dedicated Careers and Placements Service.
Although the responsibility for finding a placement is with you, our Careers and Placements Service maintains a wide variety of employers who offer placement opportunities and organise special training sessions to help you secure a placement, from job application to the interview. Optional one-to-one consultations are also available.
In order to qualify for the placement period you must maintain an overall average pass mark of not less than 60% across all modules studied in semester ‘A’.