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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
While the number of people carrying mobile devices, such as smartphones, tablet computers and wearables, continues to grow, so do the opportunities for application developers. But there’s more – businesses also need bespoke applications to process their data and serve their clients. Our BSc (Hons) Computing (Application Development) course is an ideal route into this dynamic and evolving digital industry.
Key information
Award:
BSc (Hons)
Mode of Study:
Full-time
Duration:
3 years
Location:
University of Bolton
UCAS points:
96
UCAS code:
G490
Start date:
To be confirmed
Course Details
While it’s possible to become a mobile app developer by studying short online courses independently, our BSc (Hons) Computing (Application Development) degree offers comprehensive training designed to prepare you for a career in the wider applications development industry. Our focus is to ensure you fully understand the principles and concepts that underlie the technologies, programming languages, platforms and operating systems used to develop and run applications. In the fast-moving digital world, tools and technologies evolve rapidly. Having a solid understanding of computing fundamentals will help you stay current, adapt to changes, and maintain the skills you’ll need to continue developing high-quality applications commercially throughout your career.
Our expert and dedicated team will support you to gain the in-depth, comprehensive skills and understanding needed to develop truly functional, creative and intuitive applications – be these secure, efficient business applications or 5-star mobile apps that users choose to return to. Drawing together aspects of software development, cloud computing, networking, and security, we’ll support you to gain a sound understanding of how mobile, desktop and tablet computers interact with applications and data repositories. We’ll explore design for user experience, multi-platform and cross-platform development, security testing and evaluation, and how to plan, manage and deliver projects within constraints such as user requirements, timescale and budget.
The department’s strong links with business mean you’ll have the chance to work on ‘live briefs’ in your coursework assignments, so you’ll have the opportunity to enjoy real-world context and application for the skills and knowledge we’ll help you develop.
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.
The department, and the wider University, provides a warm and friendly environment for your studies, with relatively small class sizes, purpose-built teaching facilities, and excellent student support and library services.
Your teaching and tutorial team brings an impressive range of professional experience and technical prowess to the course, so you’ll have the chance to explore and evaluate a range of perspectives relating to your studies.
A big part of our commitment to your progress is helping you develop your employability and industry networks. So we’ll encourage you to attend guest lectures that give your learning context, offer industry contact, and contribute to your underlying professional development.
By underpinning our content and assignments with a strong industrial focus, we foster a keen understanding of the professional IT environment and help you develop essential skills such as team-working, communication and problem-solving.
We’ll focus on your individual needs and provide personalised support to help find the learning strategies that best support your learning and ultimate success.
To boost your employability, you’ll study a number of different programme languages and approaches. Each new language you experience and approach you master will enhance your ability to impress potential employers, opening up a wider variety of graduate job opportunities.
Key Features
Our dedicated laboratories, servers and end-hosts feature high-specification hardware and the latest software, so you’ll have industry-equivalent hands-on experience.
You’ll also get to experience the latest technologies, such as AWS Cloud technologies.
As you’d expect, many of our computing facilities are accessible online, so you can work on your assignments wherever you are and whenever inspiration kicks in.
We’ll support you to develop sought-after skills such as background research, critical reasoning and problem-solving, as well as professional communication, time management, teamwork, and lifelong learning.
We’ll also encourage you to build a portfolio of evidence representing the projects and tasks you’ve completed during your studies, ready to impress potential employers.
We continually monitor and update the course to reflect current and ever-changing computing issues and keep your learning in line with technological advances and innovations.
Your Level 3 subjects must include a science, technology, engineering or mathematics (STEM) related subject; for instance, A-level Mathematics or BTEC Extended Diploma in Computing.
You should also have five GCSEs at grade C or above or grade 4 to 9 (or equivalent), including English and Mathematics.
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 need to achieve a minimum mark in a diagnostic mathematics test and attend an interview.
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.
Our BSc (Hons) Computing (Application Development) degree deals with application development for computers, smartphones, web interfaces and other user interfaces such as streaming players and smart TVs. It offers graduates the technical knowledge, design know-how and transferable skills needed to take up freelance app development jobs or gain employment with an in-house application development team or agency. As a graduate, your comprehensive understanding of computing fundamentals will also support you to move into new areas as the digital landscape continues to evolve and new technologies emerge.
During the course, you can also expect to develop a wide range of technical, professional and interpersonal skills, such as attention to detail, team working, communication and analytical skills, time management, problem-solving and lifelong learning.
What can I do with this qualification?
Graduates from this programme will be attractive to various business sectors, including finance and the public sector. You may wish to apply for one of the specific IT graduate-training programmes many major retailers and financial institutions offer. Alternatively, you might seek employment with an IT company or software consultancy. If you have an entrepreneurial spirit and novel, creative ideas, you may wish to create mobile apps or mini-games for download from app stores such as Google Play, the Apple App Store or Windows Store.
After graduation, you’ll also be ready to progress to postgraduate-level study or additional IT certification to develop your expertise further. Studying for a PhD or professional doctorate is another option.
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:
Consultancy
Digital copywriting
IT sales
IT training
Teaching
Research and development
Network engineering
Product management
Technical writing
Social media management
Data analysis
Information systems management
Games development
Course fees
Home Fees
Year of study
Total
Entry year
2021/22
2022/23
2023/24
2024/25
2021
£9,250
£9,250
£9,250
-
£27,750
International
Year of study
Total
Entry year
2021/22
2022/23
2023/24
2024/25
2021
£12,450
£12,450
£12,450
-
£37,350
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.
For details of how to apply for this course, please choose your status from the options below:
September start
Please apply through UCAS (the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service) for September entry.
The online application form and guidance notes are available on the
UCAS website.
You can apply for up to 5 courses through UCAS (at the same or different institutions) for a fee of £24.
Alternatively, if you only wish to apply for a single course at a single institution then a reduced applicant's
fee of £13 is applicable.
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 online applications
Admissions
University of Bolton
Deane Road
Bolton, BL3 5AB
United Kingdom
Tel: 01204 903903
Email: enquiries@bolton.ac.uk
Learning and teaching methods use a blended style, which means you’ll have face-to-face sessions as well as take part in online learning. You can expect a mixture of seminars, lectures and tutorials, practical laboratory/workshop sessions, a visiting speaker programme, critiques, self-directed study and e-learning, as well as online sessions and support. We’ll help you gain practical skills through technical introduction and support, workshop sessions, demonstrations and activity-based assignments. Throughout the course, a strong practical theme promotes active learning.
In terms of assessment, we aim to provide creative and industry-relevant ways for you to demonstrate your theoretical and practical knowledge. You can expect assessments to involve assignments, projects, in-class tests, portfolios, examinations and presentations. Some assessments will contribute to your final module mark and allow you to demonstrate that you’ve met the learning outcomes. In contrast, others are designed to help you identify areas that need extra attention on your part or where you need extra support from your tutors.
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.
Introduction to Software Development
Computing Infrastructure
Databases
Security Fundamentals
Advanced Programming
Data Structures and Algorithms
Modern Applications
Systems Analysis and Design
Undergraduate Project
Enterprise Systems Development
Machine Learning
Emerging Technologies
Assessment methods
Level
Assesment method
Level one
Coursework 100%
Level two
Coursework 100%
Level three
Coursework 100%
Learning activities
Level
Learning activity
Level one
Guided independent study 66%, Scheduled learning and teaching activities 34%
Level two
Guided independent study 77%, Scheduled learning and teaching activities 23%
Level three
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.
