Birmingham City University

B.Sc (Hons) - Computer Forensics with a Foundation Year

With digital forensics playing a critical role in the world of modern criminal investigations, our BSc Computer Forensics course with a Foundation Year will help you develop the practical and professional skills needed by employers in the digital forensics, cybersecurity, and law enforcement sectors.

You’ll have access to our specialist Digital Forensics labs. Plus, laboratories are equipped to industry standards and run the latest software so that you can experience the most current technology and prepare yourself for the working world.

About the Foundation Year

The Foundation Year course option enables you to study for our BSc (Hons) degree over an extended full-time duration of four years by including a Foundation Certificate (year one of four). The Foundation Certificate provides a broad study program that underpins the follow-on degree. In order to progress to the next year of your degree, it is necessary to achieve a pass in all of the modules of the Foundation Certificate.

What's covered in the course?

This computer forensics course is for you if you want to combine a highly rigorous academic qualification with real-life practical work experience that will prepare you to apply your knowledge as a computer forensics expert or forensic investigator.

The multidisciplinary nature of the course will foster the essential skills you require in computer networking, ethical hacking, computer programming, and legal and expert witness roles, complementary to digital forensic investigations. These attributes are not only essential to employers in law enforcement and the digital forensics industry but also serve as broader employability skills.

On graduation, you will be capable of managing a digital forensic case and conducting technical examination and interpretation of digital-based evidence. You will develop as a confident, highly skilled and professional graduate with a meticulous and methodological approach to problem-solving, whether working individually or as part of a professional team.

Our course is well established, with a proven track record of producing skilled and confident graduates who are ready to meet the demands of the digital forensics industry. To ensure the course meets the knowledge and skill requirements for conducting professional digital forensic investigations, the course curriculum has been designed in close consultation with digital forensics experts from the private sector as well as from a number of UK police constabularies.

Motivated by a practice-led, knowledge applied philosophy, you’ll take a hands-on, practical approach to learning digital forensic investigation, computer networking and other essential computing techniques using commercial and open-source forensic tools. We incorporate additional activities such as industrial workshops, practitioner boot-camps, guest lectures and vendor qualification assessments to strengthen the employability driven nature of our course.