BSc (Hons) Cybersecurity

Overview

Cybersecurity at Durham trains defenders and ethical hackers in a controlled campus lab environment. You will configure firewalls, analyse malware samples, and conduct penetration tests under faculty supervision. Modules span cryptography, secure software development, digital forensics, and security governance. Capture-the-flag competitions and industry certifications (CompTIA Security+) are integrated into the curriculum. BSc (Hons) Cybersecurity is taught as one award, not a list of unrelated modules. The published length is 3 years full-time, and the credit total is 360. Students move from Computing & Networking Foundations through Computing & Networking Foundations; Programming for Cybersecurity (Python & C); Information Security Fundamentals; Discrete Mathematics & Logic for Cyber; Linux Administration & Shell Scripting; Web Technologies & Application Security, and finish on Honours Cybersecurity Project & Dissertation. Each course has a question, a method, and a submission. In this field, students map one named system, write a threat model, and specify the controls that would stop the most likely path. Reading is control catalogues, incident write-ups, and a short technical standard. The artefact a marker expects is a defensive design with a test plan and a statement of residual risk. The award is built so that a graduate can do the following in practice: Harden systems and networks against common attack vectors Conduct authorised penetration tests with documented findings Analyse security incidents using forensic procedures Teaching assumes the student can read a source, attempt a problem before the seminar, and revise after feedback. Attendance at live seminars is part of the design. The capstone or final course must use the methods of the earlier courses; a project that ignores them does not pass. The pages for each course name the topics that are examined. Those topics are the syllabus. A brochure line is not a substitute for them.

The Cyber Range lab simulates enterprise networks for red-team/blue-team exercises each semester.

Who This Programme Is For

• ✦Computing students passionate about security
• ✦IT professionals seeking formal security credentials
• ✦Students aiming for MSc Cybersecurity or CISSP pathways

Programme Structure & Delivery

Learning Outcomes

• ✦Harden systems and networks against common attack vectors
• ✦Conduct authorised penetration tests with documented findings
• ✦Analyse security incidents using forensic procedures
• ✦Advise organisations on risk management and compliance

Career Pathways

• ✦Security Analyst
• ✦Penetration Tester
• ✦SOC Analyst
• ✦IT Auditor
• ✦Further Study (MSc Cybersecurity)

Curriculum