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“At the University of Bolton, we take great pride in providing a quality, supportive learning environment for our students.” Professor George E Holmes DL | President & Vice Chancellor
“...tutors are very supportive and you’re not just a student ID number, at this university you are an individual with a name.” Ellisse Vernon | BSc (Hons) Adult Nursing
BSc (Hons) Computer Networks and Security - HE6 top-up
Organisations rely on talented and well-qualified professionals to keep their data safe from hacking, espionage, user error, and equipment malfunction. If you've already completed a related foundation degree or HND, our BSc (Hons) Computer Networks and Security (top-up) course offers you honours-level skills and knowledge ready to help keep the modern world running smoothly.
Key information
Award:
BSc (Hons)
Mode of Study:
Full-time
Duration:
1 year
Location:
University of Bolton
UCAS code:
G485
Start date:
To be confirmed
Course Details
Recent news reports reveal data breaches at large corporations, and some people say the age of cyber-warfare has already begun. The need for talented, professional and ingenious computer network and security professionals has never been greater. Governments, organisations, and individuals need to store and access information securely and efficiently. Our BSc (Hons) Computer Networks and Security (top-up) course seeks to enhance your existing foundation degree or HND-level knowledge and skills and expand your cyber security and computer networking opportunities.
Our dedicated and experienced staff will support you in developing honours-level understanding and practical know-how vital to protecting data against all possible sources of disruption at all times. Building on your prior studies, we'll guide you as you gain skills in problem analysis and finding solutions to contemporary networking and security problems. You'll have the opportunity to deepen your knowledge of IT operations management, your understanding of cloud and network threats and the strategies for countering them. You'll also choose optional modules depending on your prior knowledge, experience, and personal preferences.
We'll support you in gaining vital academic and lifelong learning skills to prepare you to research new technologies and apply your knowledge in new ways. As a graduate of this course, you'll be well prepared to keep abreast of innovations and enhancements in the computer networks and security industry throughout your career.
Highlights
Our Computer Science courses are top in the UK for student satisfaction, according to The Complete University Guide 2022.
Our Computer Science courses are also placed first in the UK for teaching quality and student experience by The Times and The Sunday Times Good University Guide 2021.
Our dedicated staff team has a wide range of professional experience, industry knowledge, technical expertise and academic credentials, offering you a variety of perspectives and broadening your horizons.
We prefer to keep lecture and practical classes relatively small so that you have plenty of opportunities to us ask questions and get help, as well as benefit from the ideas and support offered by your classmates.
Our dedicated laboratories are firewalled so that you and your classmates can experiment and evaluate attack tools without worrying about disrupting the wider University network.
We’re committed to helping you develop your employability and career network. You’ll be encouraged to attend guest lectures that enhance your learning, help you make contacts in the industry, and contribute to your professional development.
By designing the course assignments and projects to mimic industry pipelines and standards, we aim to give you a real feel for a career in computer networks and security.
Key Features
We offer a warm and friendly environment for your studies, with relatively small class sizes, purpose-built teaching facilities, and excellent student support and library services.
We want to work with you as an individual, giving you access to the help and support you need to succeed.
Our dedicated networking laboratories have industry-standard hardware and software. You’ll have unrestricted access, so you’ll always be able to practice and develop your workplace skills.
As you’d expect, many of our computing facilities can be accessed across the internet, allowing you to work on your assignments whenever and wherever you choose.
Your final year project offers the chance to specialise in an area of interest. We’ll support you in developing it as a work portfolio that demonstrates your knowledge and skills, ready to impress potential employers.
By choosing to study with us, you'll have the chance to enjoy Bolton's many shops, bars, restaurants and leisure facilities. Manchester, one of the UK's most multicultural and lively cities, is less than 20 minutes away by train. Not forgetting, the North West of England is renowned for its beautiful countryside, coastline and heritage. This makes Bolton an ideal base from which to explore some of the best cultural and outdoor activities the UK offers.
For direct entry to Level HE6 (top-up), you'll need either a foundation degree (FdSc or FdEng) or an HND in computer networking and security, cloud computing, software engineering, or a similar computing-related qualification.
If you don't meet the standard entry requirements, but have non-traditional qualifications and/or relevant experience, we'll be happy to consider your application. You'll be required to undertake an assessment to determine your suitability for the course. You'll be assessed on your problem solving skills and your ability to participate in group work.
You may be required to attend an interview and/or provide a portfolio of work.
If English isn’t your first language, you’ll also need IELTS 6.0 with no less than 5.5 in any band (or equivalent). We also accept a range of other English language qualifications – please visit our English Language Requirements web page for more details.
Where changes are made to material information contained in this course description or a decision is taken to suspend a course between the offer of admissions and enrolment, we will inform applicants at the earliest possible opportunity and will outline the various options available to the applicant.
This is a growing sector as companies become increasingly liable for their customer and business data security and confidentiality. As a graduate of our BSc (Hons) Computer Networks and Security (top-up) degree, you'll understand how to evaluate an organisation's security needs and put plans in place to protect against possible cyber-attacks and security breaches. This course covers designing and implementing new systems and leading and managing them effectively. Completing your honours-level studies should prove valuable in helping you access more senior roles in the sector.
As a graduate, some of the key transferable skills you'll possess include teamwork, leadership, communication, time management, commercial awareness, problem-solving and negotiation. You'll also be well prepared for lifelong learning, as continuing professional development is significant for people working in computing because technology and software develop rapidly.
What can I do with this qualification?
Every company has some form of digital infrastructure that supports the day-to-day running of the business. As a computer networks and security graduate, you'll be able to explore opportunities in a range of businesses, including large corporates and small to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), government agencies, local authorities, health authorities, financial services, retail and e-commerce, network providers and internet service providers.
Completing this degree will also prepare you for a variety of related careers, such as computer and information systems management, technical support engineering, computer systems analysis, network and computer systems administration, network analysis and network security, digital forensics and computer network architecture.
Alternative career options
Graduates can use the qualification as a stepping-stone into a range of other careers. For some of these roles, relevant experience and/or postgraduate study may be required. Roles include:
Teaching
Research and development
Social media management
Technical writing
Product management
ICT Training
ICT sales
Digital copywriting
Telecommunications
Network engineering
Course fees
Home Fees
Year of study
Total
Entry year
2024/25
2025/26
2024
£9,250
-
£9,250
International
Year of study
Total
Entry year
2024/25
2025/26
2024
£15,950
-
£15,950
Important note regarding tuition fees for the 2023-2024 academic year:
EU nationals who meet residency requirements (have settled or pre-settled status) may be eligible for 'Home' fee status.
If you do not meet these residency requirements, overseas fees will apply. Irish citizens living in the UK or Ireland will be eligible for 'Home' fee status under the Common Travel Area arrangement.
Please read the student finance for EU students web page on www.gov.uk for information.
The fees for a student's course of study will be set for the
normal duration of that course subject only to inflationary increases – measured by the Consumer Price Index (CPI) recorded in
March each year to take effect for subsequent start dates.
For 2023-2024 entry, the maximum government approved undergraduate tuition fee for UK students is £9,250 per year.
The University is able to charge this fee subject to an approved Access and Participation Plan for 2023-2024 and its current rating in the Teaching Excellence Framework.
For details of how to apply for this course, please choose your status from the options below:
If you wish to apply to multiple institutions or courses for September, then apply through UCAS
You can apply for up to 5 courses through UCAS (at the same or different institutions) for a fee of £27.
Alternatively, if you only wish to apply for a single course at a single institution then a reduced applicant's
fee of £22.50 is applicable.
The online application form and guidance notes are available on the
UCAS website.
You will need the following information to complete your UCAS application form:
The University welcomes applications from international students from all over the world. We try to make the application process as simple and as fast as possible for our international applicants.
This course is not currently accepting international online applications.
Admissions
University of Bolton
Deane Road
Bolton, BL3 5AB
United Kingdom
Tel: 01204 903903
Email: enquiries@bolton.ac.uk
Lectures introduce the core course content, while practical laboratory sessions give you practical experience and help consolidate your learning. Tutorials offer you space to ask questions, ensuring you understand the topics covered in lectures and laboratory sessions. We use case studies and practical scenarios to help you learn to apply academic theory to real-life problems, allowing you to gain insights into computer networks and security in commercial environments.
Guest lectures/presentations by a variety of visiting speakers from relevant employment areas offer you the chance to develop your knowledge and understanding further.
In terms of assessment, you can expect time-constrained exams and coursework, such as essays, reports, presentations, portfolios, and others. These contribute to your final marks and allow you to demonstrate that you’ve met the learning outcomes for the course.
We also use other forms of assessment to help you learn, provide you with feedback and inform your development, though these don’t count towards your final marks. For instance, you might be asked to complete quizzes or undertake practical exercises. You’ll also receive feedback on assessment drafts. This helps to identify any areas that would benefit from extra attention on your part or where you need extra support from your tutor.
Modules
The modules listed below may be a mixture of compulsory and optional. You may not have the opportunity to study all the modules shown as part of the course.
Undergraduate Project
Ethical Hacking and Digital Forensics
Operations Management
Network Management
Assessment methods
Level
Assesment method
Level one
Coursework 80%, Written exams 20%
Learning activities
Level
Learning activity
Level one
Guided independent study 77%, Scheduled learning and teaching activities 23%
Disclaimer
The university will use all reasonable endeavours to deliver your course as described in its published material and the programme specification for the academic year in which you begin your course. The university considers changes to courses very carefully and the university will minimise any changes. Please be aware that our courses are subject to review on an ongoing basis and changes may be necessary due to legitimate staffing, financial, regulatory and academic reasons. The content of course modules and mode of associated assessments may be updated on an annual basis. This is to ensure that all modules are up-to-date and responsive to employment and sector needs. The published course material and the programme specification contain indicative ‘optional modules’ that may be subject to change due to circumstances outside of our control. For this reason, we cannot guarantee to run any specific optional module.
