Digital Forensics including Foundation Year
Digital Forensics plays a significant part in the investigation and analysis of criminal and corporate crime.
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Key Course Details
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UCAS Code
FG4F
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Start Date
September
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Location
Newport
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Campus Code
C
Fees
Home students
£9,790*
International students
£17,200*
- Full-time fees are per year. Part-time fees are per 20 credits.
Learn the skills and knowledge needed to work in Digital Forensic Units (DFUs) and Incident Response teams on this state-of -the-art course, gaining specialist skills and knowledge as you develop the practical and professional skills desired by employers in digital forensics, law enforcement and the wider corporate and cyber security sectors.
Designed For
This course is designed for those with a keen interest in digital crime, cyber security, criminal investigation, law enforcement and incident response in the criminal and civil industry sectors.
Career paths
- Digital Forensics Investigator
- Policing
- Government Intelligence Agencies
- Incident Response Analyst
- Private Forensic and Security Consulting Companies
Skills taught
- Investigative and analytical skills
- Presentation skills
- Legislation and digital forensics
- Problem solving
- Formal report writing
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Course Highlights
Course Overview
In your Foundation Year, you’ll explore real-world challenges, build practical, academic, and teamwork skills, and develop curiosity, confidence, and problem-solving abilities to prepare for future study and impact.
Starting your University Journey
This module helps you develop academic, personal and professional skills for university study. You’ll reflect on your progress, build confidence, and create an evidence-based portfolio to support your future learning.
Programming Fundamentals: First Steps into Software Development
This module introduces core programming concepts and software development practices, helping you plan, write, test, and refine code while building problem-solving skills and confidence using modern development environments and methodologies.
Data Solutions That Drive Change
This module introduces information systems and databases, showing you how to collect, organise, and protect data. Through real-world examples, you will discover how data powers smart, secure, and responsible decisions that drive real change.
The Impact Challenge
You’ll work in teams with other Foundation Year students to tackle real-world challenges, developing solutions through research, curiosity, collaboration, and responsible problem-solving while building skills that will support your future studies.
Course Highlights
How you will learn
You’ll learn by doing, through real-world activities that help you understand how learning works at university. You’ll be encouraged to ask questions, explore new ideas and work with others, as well as independently. Teaching builds confidence, critical thinking and reflection, supported by digital tools. Regular feedback helps you track progress, plan next steps and build resilience and a strong sense of belonging as you prepare for higher-level study.
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How you’ll be assessed
You’ll be assessed in different ways, including short tasks, coursework, presentations, and group work. Early assessments are designed to support your learning and help you understand what is expected at university. Most assessments are coursework-based and help you develop key skills such as research, academic writing, teamwork, and communication. You’ll also reflect on your progress and use university systems and digital tools. Clear, timely feedback will help you understand how to improve and support your next steps.
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Placements
To improve your employment prospects, we also strongly recommend you spend up to a year working in industry at one of a variety of organisations in the UK or abroad, through USW Placements. This can often lead to employment opportunities with your placement company.
The University has excellent relationships with industry, with students undertaking placements with the Financial Services Authority (FSA), Home Office Scientific Development Research Branch (London), GCHQ, Qinetiq, Cy4or, financial services, international banks, the Office for National Statistics, digital forensics companies and various government departments. We also have strong links with security agencies, incident response organisations handling cyber-attacks and local police forces.
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Facilities
Our facilities are at the cutting edge meaning you’ll use the latest technologies in high-spec labs. There’s a Digital Investigation Lab, which is a digital forensic facility and a Secure Operations Centre (SOC) typical of those used by law enforcement agencies and corporate organisations to analyse digital files and media to support corporate and criminal investigations.
You can join the fight against cyber-crime in our National Cyber Security Academy and become part of that next generation of Cyber Security Experts. We use leading digital forensic software and include industry engagement within modules while also helping you to network to support your learning while emulating a working environment.
You’ll have opportunities to interact with industry organisations like Splunk, South Wales Police DFU, Tarian Regional Organised Crime Unit (ROCU) and Gwent Police. You will also have the opportunity to gain industry recognised certifications in software packages.
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ENTRY REQUIREMENTS
UCAS Points: 48 (or above)
Typical qualification requirements:
- A Level: DD
- BTEC: BTEC Extended Diploma Pass Pass Pass
- Access to HE: Pass the Access to HE Diploma and obtain a minimum of 48 UCAS tariff points.
- T Level: Pass (D or E)
Additional Requirements:
The University normally requires a minimum 5 GCSE’s including Mathematics/Numeracy and English at Grade C or Grade 4 or above, or their equivalent, but consideration is given to individual circumstances.
International applications welcomed:
We welcome international applications with equivalent qualifications of our entry requirements. For more details related to your country of residence, please view our dedicated country pages.
English language requirements
International applicants will need to have achieved an overall of IELTS 6.0 with a minimum of 5.5 in each component/TOEFL 4 overall and a minimum of 4 in each component or equivalent.
Equivalents can be located on our English Language pages.
If you have previously studied through the medium of English, IELTS might not be required, please visit our country specific page for further details. If your country is not featured, please contact us.
If you do not meet the English entry criteria, please visit our Pre-Sessional course pages.
Contextual offers
We may make you a lower offer based on a range of factors, including your background (where you live and the school or college that you attended, for example), your experiences and individual circumstances (as a care leaver, for example). This is referred to as a contextual offer, and we receive data from UCAS to support us in making these decisions.
USW prides itself on its student experience and we support our students to achieve their goals and become a successful graduate. This approach helps us to support students who have the potential to succeed and who may have faced barriers that make it more difficult to access university.
We're here to help
Whether you a have a question about your course, fees and funding, the application process or anything else, there are plenty of ways you can get in touch, and we'd love to talk to you. You can contact our friendly admissions team by phone, email or chat to us online.
Fees and Funding
£9,790
per year*£17,200
per year*Additional Costs
Whilst in most cases these resources are more than sufficient in supporting you with completing your course, additional costs, both obligatory and optional, may be required or requested for the likes of stationery, printing, or equipment during your foundation year. For costs after you progress to year 1 of your degree programme, please see the list below.
University Quality Assurance
At USW, we regularly review our courses in response to changing patterns of employment and skills demand to ensure we offer learning designed to reflect today’s student needs and tomorrow’s employer demands.
If during a review process course content is significantly changed, we’ll write to inform you and talk you through the changes for the coming year. But whatever the outcome, we aim to equip our students with the skillset and the mindset to succeed whatever tomorrow may bring. Your future, future-proofed.
Life at USW
Halls are a big part of your student experience and there’s accommodation at all three of our locations. If you don’t want to live near the campus, there are great transport links to keep you connected.
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How to apply
All applications for full-time undergraduate courses or foundation degrees should be made via UCAS. Take the next step: Apply through UCAS. You can apply to us directly for all part-time undergraduate courses, if you’re seeking advanced entry or you’re an international student. To apply directly, please choose the application form below for your preferred start date and mode of study (full-time or part-time).
Advanced entry
If you already have a relevant qualification or experience related to the course you're applying for, you may be eligible to start at a later stage of the course. For example, students from partner colleges can ‘top up’ their qualifications to a degree by joining us in Year Two or Year Three of a course. This process is known as ‘advanced entry’, you can apply directly to the University for 'advanced entry' using the application forms provided above.
Applicants accepted through advanced entry may study a different combination of modules to those advertised, as they will be joining a course already in progress. You will be contacted and advised about these modules once your application has been processed and an offer made.
International admissions
International applicants can apply to us directly. If the University has an in-country team in your region, your application will be assigned to them for assistance.
