Cyber Security with Foundation Year

About your course The BSc (Hons) Cyber Security at Liverpool John Moores University is informed by internationally important research, which means your studies will be at the forefront of developments in this important field. The course is accredited by the British Computer Society (BCS).

As we increase the scope of our working and personal lives online there has been a rise in the number of attacks being made against information systems by hackers and other criminals looking to steal resources. It seems that on a weekly basis there is another news story detailing a new ransomware attack or a new vulnerability in a piece of software used by the public.

The UK government has identified a skills gap and therefore a need for more staff trained in Computer Security. Students graduating from the Cyber Security course will be in demand by companies looking to fill their Computer Security roles with trained staff. LJMU has a growing national and international reputation for its research into computer security and this expertise ensures the degree is at the leading edge of developments in this discipline.

The Cyber Security course will teach you the skills required to be able to identify Computer Security issues, how to solve these issues and how to recover if a Security breach occurs. Students will learn some Digital Forensics skills to help them identify where attacks are being launched from and ways to secure their systems against them. There is a close relationship between Digital Forensics and Cyber Security.

Students will study Cyber Security topics such as Penetration Testing, Secure Software Development, Ethical Hacking, Applied Cryptography and Network Forensics. Modules will teach the required practical skills and the theory that underpins this material, as well as understanding of the business context for security. The modules are informed by internationally recognised research by the staff who teach the modules. The curriculum is informed by consultancy with Fujitsu and Computer Security companies within the local area.

Work-related Learning Practical, hands-on experience to boost your employability is incorporated into this programme wherever possible. However the best way to really get a taste of working in the computer security industry or the IT industry in general is to take a year out after your second year and spend 12 months on supervised work placement.

Dedicated Facilities There is a dedicated Cyber Security lab with its own private internal network that students can use to run experiments and look at the ways in which malware works. We teach Ethical Hacking using a virtual environment and this gives students a good practical experience of Ethical Hacking in the real world.

Upon Graduation Students on the course develop problem solving skills that are transferrable to employment, both in Computer Security and outside of the industry. Students have gained employment recently with GCHQ, Microsoft, Google, Ratheon, BT and Very.

About the Foundation Year The Foundation Year is ideal if you have the ability to study for a degree but don't have the qualifications to enter directly onto the Cyber Security honours degree programme. Once you pass the Foundation Year you will progress directly onto the first year of the honours degree.