Institute of Technology Carlow has today launched a BSc in Cybercrime and IT Security, which is now open for applications through the CAO for this September.
IT Carlow’s Cybercrime and IT Security course is the first-of-its-kind in Ireland and, in response to the global talent gap for tech talent, seeks to ensure that Ireland remains a tech hub in the face of increased risk of cyberattacks.
“One of the biggest factors in meeting industry needs is higher education and training,” said Dr Patricia Mulcahy, president of IT Carlow. “In order to capitalise on the opportunity to become a global cyber hub, we must ensure Ireland has a talent pool of cyber professionals. This degree programme will deliver for the digital technology sector, nationally and internationally.”
Undergraduates starting on the course this September will work through a syllabus that includes advanced programming, software engineering, networking, cybercrime legislation, computer forensics, reverse engineering and malware analysis, and penetrating testing (ethical hacking).
The programme also includes a six-month industry placement.
The course, available at Level 7 (CW227) and Level 8 (CW258), has the seal of approval from cybersecurity industry experts, indicating that it may be a relatively safe bet when it comes to graduate employment.
According to Laurence Conroy, GM of CipherTechs EMEA: “When we studied the planned programme for this new degree course at IT Carlow, it was apparent that graduates would achieve specialised in-depth expertise in the essential areas of proactive cyber threat detection and mitigation… [It] will be an ideal template for the security analysts and engineers of the future that we would like to hire.”
Furthermore, with Gartner estimating global IT security spend will climb to $170bn by 2020, it’s safe to assume that job opportunities in that area will be numerous.
Graduates will be qualified to seek roles in ethical hacking, secure application development, secure network management and digital forensics.
Applications for the programme are now open via the CAO. Graduates with a relevant BSc are eligible to apply for advanced entry. Mature applicants will be assessed on an individual basis, and may be interviewed.
Update (15 June at 10.18am): While there are other degree courses in Ireland that also focus on digital forensics and cyber security – IT Blanchardstown’s BSc in Computing in Digital Forensics and Cyber Security (BN120) and WIT’s BSc in Computer Forensics and Security (WD161) – the course in IT Carlow is the only one to focus specifically on cybercrime, and the only one to look at cybercrime legislation and malware analysis.
