Security and Resilience: Science and Technology

Program Overview

This Master's program in Security and Resilience: Science and Technology equips students to address global security needs. It focuses on emerging technologies, cyber and physical threats, and qualitative and quantitative research methodologies. Graduates are prepared for careers in industry, government, academia, and entrepreneurship in the security and resilience sector.

Program Outline

Security and Resilience: Science and Technology (MSc) Program Details

Degree Overview:

This MSc program delves into the science and cutting-edge technologies that underpin global security. It aims to equip students with a broad range of skills to address the growing need for security and resilience across industry, government, and academic sectors. The program focuses on:

• Emerging and disruptive technologies: Examining how these technologies drive both challenges and solutions to security.
• Cyber and physical threats: Analyzing threats in critical national infrastructure sectors like finance, transport, energy, space, and healthcare.
• Qualitative and quantitative research methodologies: Developing skills in research methods with a focus on human cognition and behavior.
The program's broad focus provides a foundation for a range of career trajectories in a world of ever-changing security concerns.

Outline:

Program Structure:

The program is structured around core modules, optional modules, and a long summer project.

Core Modules:

• Key Concepts: Security in Context: Evaluates security threats and risks in a broader societal context, focusing on physical threats, detection, and mitigation measures in key sectors.
• Behavioural Science and Security: Examines how behavioral science research informs security, considering different threat actors, their aims and targets, and the role of media in managing both positive and negative potential.
• CBRNE: The Physical Threat Space: Explores the history and underlying science of CBRNE and environmental security, evaluating the threat posed by various entities.
• Infrastructure and Transport Security: Focuses on the security of critical national infrastructure and transport systems, introducing key concepts and analyzing security vulnerabilities.
• Behavioural Research Methods: Examines procedures related to commonly used behavioral research methods and emphasizes research ethics.
• Cyber-Physical Systems Security: Covers fundamental concepts and tools to understand security risks to cyber-physical systems, focusing on critical infrastructure systems and industrial control systems, and how to protect against these risks.
• Sensors: Electronic and Natural: Explores the principles of environmental sensing, highlighting point and standoff detection/sensor systems.
Covers various detection technologies, including structure-based, chemistry-based, and function-based sensors.
• Short Project: An individual research project completed with the guidance of an academic supervisor.
Industry-sponsored projects are available.

Optional Modules:

Students choose two optional modules from the following:

• Global Challenges Security Entrepreneurship: Develops core entrepreneurial skills by creating a solution to a real-world problem from industry and government partners.
• Introduction to Shock Physics: Introduces the area of materials behavior under ballistic, explosive, and impact loading through real-world examples.
• Short Project: Undertakes a short project and produces a critical review in the form of an extended discussion document, white paper, technical review, or theory-oriented study.
• Other departmental modules: Optional modules from other departments may be available at the discretion of the Programme Director, including Physics, Mathematics, Computing, and Civil and Environmental Engineering.
• Network and Web Security: Provides a broad knowledge of network and web security from the network to the application layer, understanding underlying principles and techniques.

Long Summer Project:

A three-month, full-time long project consisting of original scientific research with an academic supervisor. Studies are relevant to areas explored throughout the academic year. Industry-sponsored projects are available.

Assessment:

Assessment Methods:

• Independent project (four months)
• Oral examinations
• Problem sheets
• Practical work
• Short group projects
• Written examinations

Assessment Breakdown:

• Coursework: 20%
• Practical: 10%
• Examinations: 70%

Teaching:

Teaching and Learning Methods:

• Computational exercises
• Laboratory work
• Lectures
• Individual project work
• Virtual learning environment
• Online discussions
• Workshops and case studies

Faculty:

The program is delivered by the Department of Physics and the Institute of Security Science and Technology.

Careers:

Career Paths and Opportunities:

Graduates are well-positioned for career paths in:

• Industry
• Academia
• Government
• Entrepreneurship
Skills learned in the program are highly sought after by companies in the security and resilience sector, which employs over 100,000 people in the UK.

Other:

• Industry Connections: The program benefits from connections with multiple government departments in the UK and internationally.
• Entrepreneurial Support: Access to the Enterprise Lab and Advanced Hackspace helps students build their entrepreneurial potential.
• Start-up Examples: Several recent start-ups launched at the College work within cyber security, next-generation armor, and facial recognition.

• Home fee – Full-time MSc: £15,350 total fee.
• Home fee – Part-time MSc: £7,675 per year.
• Home fee – Full-time PG Dip: £12,280 total fee.
• Home fee – Part-time PG Dip: £6,140 per year.
• Home fee – Full-time PG Cert: £7,675 total fee.
• Home fee – Part-time PG Cert: £3,838 per year
• Overseas fee – Full-time MSc: £35,600 total fee.
• Overseas fee – Part-time MSc: £17,800 per year.
• Overseas fee – Full-time PG Dip: £28,480 total fee.
• Overseas fee – Part-time PG Dip: £14,240 per year.
• Overseas fee – Full-time PG Cert: £17,800 total fee.
• Overseas fee – Part-time PG Cert: £8,900 per year.