MSc Digital Forensics - University of South Wales

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Start Date

September
Location

Newport
Campus Code

C

Fees

Home students

£10,800*
International students

£16,900*
Full-time fees are per year. Part-time fees are per 20 credits.

Start Date

September
Location

Newport
Campus Code

C

Fees

Home students

£1,200*
Full-time fees are per year. Part-time fees are per 20 credits.

Overview
Module Overview
Course Highlights
Entry Requirements
Fees and Funding
How to Apply

Get ready for the next step in an exciting cyber career as you learn with cutting-edge facilities alongside expertise from our staff and industry partners.

Career Paths

Law enforcement
SOC (Security Operations Center) Analyst
Government Intelligence Agencies
Incident Response Analyst
Digital Forensic Investigator

Skills taught

Analytical skills
Communication skills
Skills for the role of an expert witness
Problem-solving
Formal report writing

A close up of a computer screen that is displaying code.

Course Highlights

Cyber University of the Year Winners

Winners of Cyber University of the Year at the National Cyber Awards in 2019, 2020, 2021 and 2022.

Organisational Links

Real-world experience through our close connections with police, law enforcement, and private sector.

Industry Leading Tools

Industry leading digital forensic tools feature throughout the course enhancing student experience.

Standards of Excellence

The first Welsh university awarded Gold Standard Centre of Excellence in Cyber Security, and one of only 13 in UK.

Course Overview

Whether you want to solve crime using technology for law enforcement or if you want to investigate and prevent cyber-attacks, our course will empower you with invaluable skills and technological experience for a variety of fast-paced jobs in cyber.

Digital Forensic Standards and Compliance
Critically evaluate standards, regulations, and accreditation in an operational laboratory. Learn to apply tools, techniques, and practices in the industry while applying digital forensic principles to diverse problems.

Networking Technologies
Gain the skills and theoretical understanding relating to how computer systems and technology communicate so you can develop network solutions, based on international standards, using appropriate analysis and design techniques.

Emerging Technology and Digital Forensics
Critically analyse data associated with emerging technology. Examine its impact on the digital forensic industry, applying your skills and knowledge to vehicles as well as equipment like drones and AI.

Secure Operations and Incident Management
You will evaluate, analyse and synthesize the capability to perform security operations and incident management in the event of a cyber-attack against an organisation, while maintaining and ensuring business functionality.

Advanced Digital Forensic Techniques
This module with help you to critically evaluate and analyse at an advanced level, both practical and theoretical principles, regarding digital forensics and data recovery for a range of sources.

Mobile Device Forensics
In this module you will evaluate, analyse, and investigate a range of mobile devices, including challenges surrounding encryption, Apple Security, applications, and many more.

MSc Project
You will use your computing and research skills to investigate a topical and original award-relevant issue of your choice before producing a justified and informed solution to assist industry.

Course Highlights

Delivery and Assessment

Learn with cutting-edge facilities in our specialist cyber laboratories. From accessing data on vehicles involved in accidents to investigating cyber-attacks, you’ll experience working in the industry through our immersive ‘workplace’ learning environments - including the Secure Operations Centre (SOC), and the Hydra Suite. We are one of a few universities to offer these industry-standard facilities while also collaborating with government, academia, and industry to support the development of the cyber sector. You’ll learn through a combination of online and in-person lectures as well as immersive practical sessions. You’ll be assessed through a mix of evidence-based research and practical, project-based assessments.

Teaching staff

Learn digital forensics from the experts who have lived experience in the cyber industry. You will be taught by a variety of skilled and knowledgeable staff who are at the forefront of their subject area. Through our team’s industry contacts, you’ll benefit from guest lectures, industry seminars and access to licensed software that is used across the industry.

Facilities

Enjoy learning using the leading cyber software and our high-spec labs. Test your technical and communications skills as a forensic investigator by working in a team to determine what has happened following a cyber-attack using our authentic Secure Operations Centre. Find out what it’s like to work in law enforcement using our immersive crime scene house and moot courtroom – you’ll learn to gather digital evidence, how to be an ‘expert witness’, and you will see what it’s like to be cross-examined in a legal setting. We also provide additional networking events to help emulate the working environment while you learn.

Careers and Employability

Graduate careers

Career opportunities for those with a digital forensic qualification continue to grow with many roles offering an interesting, challenging and rewarding environment to work in. From implementing digital forensic policies and law enforcement investigations to corporate investigations and incident response capabilities - there are a variety of opportunities throughout the digital forensic industry. Graduates could also consider a computing research degree or computing PhD.

Possible career paths

Studying our MSc Digital Forensics will open different career pathways in the cyber industry. Our graduates have become security analysts, incident response analysts, SOC analysts, and digital forensic investigators in various areas, including law enforcement, government intelligence agencies and private technology companies. You will stand out to employers as you will hold a degree from USW – the first university in Wales to be awarded a Gold Standard Centre of Excellence in Cyber Security Education by the UK’s National Syber Security Centre and still one of only 13 universities to hold the award across the UK.

Careers support

You will be supported by our staff throughout your time on the course - with your studies, the technology, developing your skills and looking at your future career in the industry. As a USW student, you will have access to advice from the Careers and Employability Service throughout your studies and after you graduate.

This includes one-to-one appointments from faculty-based Career Advisors, in person, over the phone, or even Teams and through email via the “Ask the Question” service. We also have extensive online resources for help with considering your career options and presenting yourself well to employers.

Industry partners

You will have the opportunity to work with multiple companies who are at the forefront of cyber security during your time on this course. Tarian RCCU (Regional Cyber Crime Unit), South Wales Police, Gwent Police, EX1 Forensics, JTOL, Gwent Police, Harper Shaw Investigation Consultants Ltd, and Virgin Media are just some of the companies our students learn alongside. Through our staff’s incredible industry links, you will enjoy a range of guest lectures and resources from cyber specialists within the industry.

ENTRY REQUIREMENTS

Typical qualification requirements:

The entry criteria below reflect our standard entry requirements for the course. However, all applications received by the University are reviewed holistically and individually.

This course is designed for graduates with a minimum 2:2 Honours degree or equivalent. Entrants should be graduates in a computing or related area and have very good IT skills.

Additional Requirements:

Applicants may be invited to an interview with the course leader or relevant member of the course team to determine suitability for the MSc course.

How to apply

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 72 overall and a minimum of 18 in reading, 17 in listening, 20 in speaking and 17 in writing 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.

Contextual Admissions Policy

Fees and Funding

UK Full-time Fee

£10,800

per year*

International Full-time Fee

£16,900

per year*

UK Part-time Fee

£1,200

per 20 credits*

Further Information

Studying at university is one of the most significant investments you'll ever make. Whilst you’re studying, you’ll have two main financial obligations – tuition fees and living costs. There’s lots of financial help available from the University of South Wales and external funding sources, that may provide loans (which have to be paid back) and grants, scholarships and bursaries (that don't).

*Full-time fees are per year. Part-time fees are per 20 credits. Once enrolled, the fee is anticipated to remain at the same rate throughout the duration of your study on this course except as described below.

Please be aware that we may increase the maximum fee for home students on full-time undergraduate courses only where the Welsh Government increases the permitted level of inflation of fees. Fees for all students (including part-time, postgraduate and international students) may be amended in accordance with our applicable Fees and Debt Management Policy. We will ensure that students are given clear, intelligible, unambiguous and timely information about our courses and costs in good time, ahead of the next academic year.

Fees and Funding Scholarships and Busaries Alumni Discount

Additional Costs

As a student of USW, you’ll have access to lots of free resources to support your study and learning, such as textbooks, publications, online journals, laptops, and plenty of remote-access resources. 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 travel, memberships, experience days, stationery, printing, or equipment.

How to apply

There is an online application process for this course. Please choose the application form for your preferred start date and mode of study (i.e. full-time or part-time).

International admissions

Please see our international admissions advice for further information about how to apply as a prospective international student.

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.