Computer Science (Cyber Security) BSc (Hons)

Through practical workshops, collaborative activities and short reflective tasks, you’ll learn how to communicate clearly, work with others respectfully and make purposeful use of technology in your learning. You’ll explore how to find and evaluate reliable information, use academic sources correctly, and reference your work following university guidelines.

You’ll also reflect on your own strengths, goals and areas for development. This will help you build self-awareness, support your wellbeing and develop as an independent learner.

Assessment includes a portfolio of short tasks that demonstrate your developing academic skills, and a short oral presentation where you will communicate your ideas clearly and appropriately.

You’ll learn about common network structures, communication protocols and the principles that allow devices to connect and share information. The module also examines the risks that networks face, including security threats and system vulnerabilities, and how these can be reduced through protective strategies.

You’ll also explore emerging technologies in networking and cybersecurity, and consider how they shape the way organisations and society use computing systems.

Throughout the module, you’ll apply what you learn to practical scenarios. This will help you understand how networking and security concepts can be used to address real-world computing challenges.

This module will provide you with a strong foundation in networking and security that will support your future study in computing.

You’ll explore key programming concepts, including control structures, algorithms and object-oriented programming. You’ll also learn how to choose and use appropriate data structures to solve different computational problems.

As you progress, you’ll develop practical coding skills and gain experience in designing, building and testing applications. This includes working with both console-based programs and graphical user interface (GUI) applications, helping you understand how different types of software are created.

The module focuses on hands-on learning, giving you opportunities to practise writing code and developing your own solutions to programming challenges.

This module will prepare you for more advanced study in software development, algorithm design and specialised areas of computing.

You’ll explore access control, authentication methods, and the core ideas behind network security, gaining a clearer sense of how organisations protect their systems and data.

You’ll develop practical skills in vulnerability management, intrusion detection, and incident response. These skills will help you recognise security weaknesses, understand how attacks unfold, and take appropriate action when something goes wrong.

You’ll also examine risk assessment methods, governance frameworks, and the compliance standards that shape professional security practice. This will help you see how technical decisions connect to wider organisational responsibilities.

Across the module, you’ll learn to explain key security principles, apply processes for identifying and managing threats, and understand the legal, ethical, and organisational expectations placed on cyber security professionals.

This module gives you both the confidence and the knowledge to engage with real security challenges in modern digital environments.

You’ll explore how computer systems operate, examining hardware components, processor architectures, and the way these elements work together to run programs and manage tasks.

You’ll also investigate key operating system functions, including process management, memory management, and file systems. This will help you understand how the system coordinates resources and keeps everything running smoothly.

A major part of this module is learning to write low‑level programs using assembly language. You’ll create simple system‑level programs and see how software interacts directly with hardware and system resources.

This module will see you learn structured approaches to software development, including requirements analysis, design methods, implementation techniques, and testing strategies. These skills will guide you as you design, build, and deploy relational databases that meet real user and organisational needs.

You'll develop professional practices such as version control, clear documentation, and Agile ways of working. As you create functional databases, you’ll learn how to apply appropriate security measures and access controls to protect data effectively.

You'll create database schemas, identify security threats and apply safeguards, use established software development and quality assurance techniques, and understand how software engineering principles guide the entire process of database creation.

This module covers core cryptanalysis methods that help you identify vulnerabilities and assess the robustness of cryptographic implementations. Through practical investigation, you’ll learn how weaknesses can be exploited and how systems can be improved.

You’ll explore a range of encryption techniques and cryptographic protocols, gaining insight into how secure systems are designed and how information is protected in practice. You’ll also examine how different architectural choices influence the strength and reliability of secure systems.

By looking at emerging cryptographic technologies you'll be able to consider their wider professional and societal implications; such as ethical, legal, and technical challenges.

On this module, you'll discover the security architectures, protocols, and cryptographic standards that support secure communication across modern networks.

You’ll analyse the role of cryptographic technologies in protecting data and evaluate how secure communication protocols are applied to prevent interception, tampering and unauthorised access.

You'll take a look at wireless and mobile security threats, helping you understand how vulnerabilities emerge and how different protection methods address these risks.

This module introduces you to digital forensics methodologies and malware analysis techniques used in cybercrime investigation and incident response.

Uncover how evidence is acquired, preserved, analysed and documented in line with legal and professional expectations. You’ll also investigate how malicious software behaves through both reverse engineering and behavioural techniques.

The skills you learn will help you to identify characteristics and understand attack methods to form integrated investigation workflows.

You’ll practise linking evidence acquisition with technical analysis and learn how these processes guide real investigative decisions.

This module introduces you to the legal, ethical, and professional responsibilities that shape ethical hacking and penetration testing.

You’ll explore how security testing is carried out within strict legal and ethical boundaries and examine the methods attackers use during social engineering and exploitation. Understanding these techniques helps you identify system vulnerabilities safely and responsibly.

You’ll learn how to plan and structure a penetration test; ensuring your approach is evidence‑based and aligned with organisational requirements.

You’ll produce clear and professional security assessment reports that demonstrate impact and support effective decision‑making.

This module gives you the space to demonstrate what you can achieve when you take full ownership of a significant piece of work, from identifying a topic to presenting your final outcomes.

You’ll begin by defining a clear problem or question and examining its feasibility. This involves exploring the wider context, understanding the needs and expectations of relevant stakeholders and clarifying the objectives of your proposed project. You’ll develop a plan that sets out the methods you’ll use, supported by a careful consideration of ethical responsibilities.

Through guided workshops, you’ll explore each stage of the project process, looking at research design, data collection, analysis and project organisation.

You'll also explore how appropriate technologies and research methods can support your investigation. You'll work with a supervisor to provide you with specialist guidance as you refine your approach and move towards producing your final output.

Your project may take the form of a written investigation, practical solution, digital artefact, or another approved format, but all projects must include evidence‑based conclusions or recommendations.

Alongside this hands-on element, you'll present your findings to different audiences and explain their significance or potential impact. These reflections will enhance your communication skills to support your future professional ambitions.