BEng (Hons) Software Engineering with foundation year

• 48 UCAS points. Please see our guide to the UCAS Tariff for examples of how to achieve these points.
• Any subjects are acceptable at Level 3.
• You should also have five GCSEs at grade C or above or grade 4 to 9 (or equivalent) including English Language and Mathematics. If you didn’t study GCSEs or don’t have the required grade in English Language or Mathematics, please contact us for details of other acceptable qualifications.
• If you have non-traditional entry qualifications and relevant experience, or a suitable portfolio of work that we consider a reasonable substitute for the qualifications we typically accept for this course, then we will be happy to consider your application.
• You’ll be required to attend an interview and/or provide a portfolio of work. As part of your interview, you may be asked to undertake additional assessment(s) to determine your suitability for the course.
• Every application will be considered on its individual merits.
• If English isn’t your first language you’ll also need IELTS 5.0 with no less than 4.5 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 we think you’ll benefit from English language tuition, we’ll support you to improve your English language skills as part of your foundation year. This will help you to succeed at degree level.
• Please visit www.rcl.ac.uk to find out more about our London Academic Centre and Regent College London.

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.

Software engineers may work at any stage of the software development life cycle. Duties can include producing project requirements, writing algorithms, coding, testing, deployment, or maintenance.

A software engineering graduate will have developed a wide range of technical and transferable skills such as advanced IT skills, analytical skills, communication, creativity and innovation, independence, logic, numeracy, project management and organisation. The demand for skilled and qualified software engineers is increasing. This is fostered by a transforming economic landscape, driven by the need for computing technology solutions.

What can I do with this qualification?

Software engineering graduates who are new to the field often start out as programmers and work their way up to positions of greater responsibility, whether it’s as an architect or a project manager. Jobs directly related to a software engineering degree include games development, systems development, web design, web development, search engine optimisation, information systems management and business analysis.

There are also a wide variety of career options available within the sectors of business, engineering, health care, gaming, publishing, IT, retail, education, medicine, aerospace and cybersecurity.

Alternative career options

Graduates can also use the qualification as a stepping-stone into a range of other careers. For some of these roles, both relevant experience and/or postgraduate study may be required. Some of these careers include:

• Advertising, marketing and PR
• Banking, finance and accountancy
• Energy and utilities
• Manufacturing and production
• Public sector and defence
• IT consultancy
• Radio and TV production
• Systems analysis
• Telecommunications
• Multimedia programming
• Digital copywriting
• Network engineering

Important note regarding tuition fees for the 2021-2022 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 eligibility 2021-2022 policy 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 2021-2022 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 2021-2022 and its current rating in the Teaching Excellence Framework.

Bursaries

Click here for more information about the scholarships and bursaries available to University of Bolton undergraduate students.

Lectures will be used to introduce the core course content, while practical laboratory sessions will give you practical experience and help consolidate your learning. Tutorials will allow you to ask any questions you have to ensure you understand the topics covered in lectures and laboratory sessions. We use case studies and practical scenarios as a means to help you learn to apply academic theory to real-life practical scenarios, allowing you to gain insights into software engineering in industrial environments.

Guest lectures/presentations by a variety of visiting speakers from relevant employment areas will offer you the chance to further develop your knowledge and understanding.

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 do not count towards your final marks. For instance, you might be asked to complete quizzes or undertake programming exercises. You'll also receive feedback on assessment drafts. These will help 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.

• Fundamentals of Programming
• Logical Analysis and Problem Solving
• Computer Systems
• Foundation Project
• Introduction to Software Development
• Computing Infrastructure
• Databases
• Fundamentals of Software Engineering
• Advanced Programming
• Data Structures and Algorithms
• Software Engineering
• Advanced Databases and Big Data
• Undergraduate Project
• Agile Programming
• Enterprise Systems Development
• Machine Learning

Assessment methods

Learning activities

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.