Pursuant to consolidation Act 778 of August 7, 2019 on Universities (the University Act), the following is established. The programme also follows the Examination Policies and Procedures incl. the Joint Programme Regulations for Aalborg University.
The Master’s programme is organised in accordance with the Ministry of Higher Education and Science’s Order no. 2285 of December 1, 2021 on Full-time University Programmes (the University Programme Order) and Ministerial Order no. 2271 of December 1, 2021 on University Examinations (the Examination Order). Further reference is made to Ministerial Order no. 35 of January 13, 2023 (the Admission Order) and Ministerial Order no. 1125 of July 4, 2022 (the Grading Scale Order).
The programme is offered in Copenhagen.
The Master’s programme falls under the The Technical Faculty of IT and Design, Aalborg University.
The Master’s programme falls under the Study Board of Electronics and IT.
The Master’s programme is associated with the Civil engineering corps of external examiners.
Applicants with a legal right of admission (retskrav)
Applicants without legal right of admission
Bachelor’s programmes qualifying students for admission:
Assessment of qualifications obtained from other technical or natural science bachelor educations will emphasize qualifications in computer engineering, software engineering, computer science, electronics and mathematics corresponding to a total of 60 ECTS credits. Equivalent qualifications can be accepted, although for the emphasized topics certain specific minimum requirements apply:
- Mathematical competences at BSc level equivalent to at least 10 ECTS, covering subjects such as linear algebra, discrete mathematics, algorithms and data structures, probability, and statistics, cryptography, calculus, vector calculus, dynamical systems, optimization, feedback control.
- Computer science, computer engineering, or electrical engineering competences at BSc level equivalent to at least 20 ECTS, covering subjects such as computer architecture, object-oriented or functional programming and modelling, software engineering, system design, system development, distributed systems, analogue and digital electronics, signal processing, embedded programming, software architectures, requirements engineering, application development, web programming, user experience, and human-machine interaction.
- Competences at BSc level equivalent to at least 10 ECTS, covering one or more of the following areas: distributed systems, embedded systems, IoT, cloud computing, machine learning, data bases, communication technologies, computer networks, secure communications, cyber security.
As a prerequisite for admission to the master’s programme, students must have completed a bachelor programme in technical sciences, a bachelor of engineering programme or a bachelor in natural science.
All applicants must prove that their English language qualifications is equivalent to level B (Danish level) in English.
The Master’s programme entitles the graduate to the Danish designation Civilingeniør, cand.polyt. i cybersikkerhed. The English designation is: Master of Science (MSc) in Engineering (Cyber Security)
The Master’s programme is a 2-year, research-based, full-time study programme. The programme is set to 120 ECTS credits.
The Study Board can approve that passed programme elements from other educational programmes at the same level replaces programme elements within this programme (credit transfer).
Furthermore, the Study Board can, upon application, approve that parts of this programme is completed at another university or a further education institution in Denmark or abroad (pre-approval of credit transfer).
The Study Board’s decisions regarding credit transfer are based on an academic assessment.
The Study Board’s possibilities to grant exemption, including exemption to further examination attempts and special examination conditions, are stated in the Examination Policies and Procedures published at this website: https://www.studyservice.aau.dk/rules
The rules for examinations are stated in the Examination Policies and Procedures published at this website: https://www.studyservice.aau.dk/rules
In the assessment of all written work, regardless of the language it is written in, weight is also given to the student's formulation and spelling ability, in addition to the academic content. Orthographic and grammatical correctness as well as stylistic proficiency are taken as a basis for the evaluation of language performance. Language performance must always be included as an independent dimension of the total evaluation. However, no examination can be assessed as ‘Pass’ on the basis of good language performance alone; similarly, an examination normally cannot be assessed as ‘Fail’ on the basis of poor language performance alone.
The Study Board can grant exemption from this in special cases (e.g., dyslexia or a native language other than Danish).
The Master’s Thesis must include an English summary. If the project is written in English, the summary can be in Danish. The summary is included in the evaluation of the project as a whole.
It is assumed that the student can read academic texts and use reference works, etc., in English.
The following competence profile will appear on the diploma:
A Candidatus graduate has the following competency profile:
A Candidatus graduate has competencies that have been acquired via a course of study that has taken place in a research environment.
A Candidatus graduate is qualified for employment on the labour market based on his or her academic discipline as well as for further research (PhD programmes). A Candidatus graduate has, compared to a Bachelor, developed his or her academic knowledge and independence so as to be able to apply scientific theory and method on an independent basis within both an academic and a professional context.
The graduate of the Master’s programme
Knowledge
Skills
Competencies
The programme is structured in modules and organised as a problem-based study. A module is a programme element or a group of programme elements, which aims to give students a set of professional skills within a fixed time frame specified in ECTS credits, and concluding with one or more examinations within specific exam periods. Examinations are defined in the curriculum.
The programme is based on a combination of academic, problem-oriented and interdisciplinary approaches and organized based on the following work and evaluation methods that combine skills and reflection:
In total, 90 ECTS out of 120 ECTS are common for all students. The common part consists of:
Electives: The remaining 30 ECTS can be obtained by choosing elective courses and projects on the 2nd and 3rd semester as described below. Note that elective courses might not be offered if less than 10 students register for the course during the registration period. Students will be offered other options if a chosen course is not offered.
All modules are assessed through individual grading according to the 7-point scale or Pass/Fail. All modules are assessed by external examination (external grading) or internal examination (internal grading or by assessment by the supervisor only).
Electives: The remaining 25 ECTS can be obtained by choosing elective courses and projects on the 3rd semester as described below. Note that elective courses might not be offered if less than 10 students register for the course during the registration period. Students will be offered other options if a chosen course is not offered.
The master’s thesis can be conducted as a long master’s thesis. If choosing to do a long master’s thesis, it has to include experimental work and has to be approved by the study board. The amount of experimental work must reflect the allotted ECTS-credits.
Offered as:
1-professional | ||||||
Module name | Course type | ECTS | Applied grading scale | Evaluation method | Assessment method | Language |
1 Semester
| ||||||
Distributed Systems Security
(ESNCYSK1P2) | Project | 10 | 7-point grading scale | Internal examination | Oral exam based on a project | English |
Fundamentals of Security and Cryptography
(ESNCYSK1K5) | Course | 5 | Passed/Not Passed | Internal examination | Written or oral exam | English |
Network Security
(ESNCYSK1K6) | Course | 5 | 7-point grading scale | Internal examination | Written or oral exam | English |
Dilemmas in Cyber Security
(ESNCYSK1K7) | Course | 5 | 7-point grading scale | Internal examination | Written or oral exam | English |
Security in IoT and Cloud Architectures
(ESNCYSK1K8) | Course | 5 | 7-point grading scale | Internal examination | Written or oral exam | English |
2 Semester
| ||||||
Secure Systems: Attack and Defence
(ESNCYSK2P3) | Project | 15 | 7-point grading scale | External examination | Oral exam based on a project | English |
Hacker Space
(ESNCYSK2K5) | Course | 5 | 7-point grading scale | Internal examination | Written or oral exam | English |
Software Security
(ESNCYSK2K6) | Course | 5 | 7-point grading scale | Internal examination | Written or oral exam | English |
Identity and Access Management
(ESNCYSK2K3) | Course | 5 | 7-point grading scale | Internal examination | Written or oral exam | English |
3 Semester
Option A
| ||||||
3RD SEMESTER PROJECT
CHOOSE 1 PROJECT MODULE
| Project | 15 | ||||
Advanced Topics in Cyber Security
(ESNCYSK3K6) | Course | 5 | Passed/Not Passed | Internal examination | Written or oral exam | English |
3RD SEMESTER ELECTIVE COURSE
CHOOSE 2 COURSE MODULES
| Course | 10 | ||||
3 Semester
Option B
| ||||||
Project-Oriented Study in an External Organisation
(ESNCYSK3P3) | Project | 25 | Passed/Not Passed | Internal examination | Oral exam based on a project | English |
Advanced Topics in Cyber Security
(ESNCYSK3K6) | Course | 5 | Passed/Not Passed | Internal examination | Written or oral exam | English |
3-4 Semester
Option C
| ||||||
Master's Thesis
(ESNCYSK4P9) | Project | 45 | 7-point grading scale | External examination | Master's thesis/final project | English |
Advanced Topics in Cyber Security
(ESNCYSK3K6) | Course | 5 | Passed/Not Passed | Internal examination | Written or oral exam | English |
3RD SEMESTER ELECTIVE COURSE
CHOOSE 2 COURSE MODULES
| Course | 10 | ||||
3-4 Semester
Option D
| ||||||
Master's Thesis
(ESNCYSK4P8) | Project | 50 | 7-point grading scale | External examination | Master's thesis/final project | English |
Advanced Topics in Cyber Security
(ESNCYSK3K6) | Course | 5 | Passed/Not Passed | Internal examination | Written or oral exam | English |
3RD SEMESTER ELECTIVE COURSE
CHOOSE 1 COURSE MODULE
| Course | 5 | ||||
4 Semester
| ||||||
Master's Thesis
(ESNCYSK4P7) | Project | 30 | 7-point grading scale | External examination | Master's thesis/final project | English |
3RD SEMESTER PROJECT CHOOSE 1 PROJECT MODULE | ||||||
Module name | Course type | ECTS | Applied grading scale | Evaluation Method | Assessment method | Language |
Secure Systems Development
(ESNCYSK3P4) | Project | 15 | 7-point grading scale | Internal examination | Oral exam based on a project | English |
IT Security Governance
(ESNCYSK3P2) | Project | 15 | 7-point grading scale | Internal examination | Oral exam based on a project | English |
Cyber Security Training
(ESNCYSK3P5) | Project | 15 | 7-point grading scale | Internal examination | Oral exam based on a project | English |
3RD SEMESTER ELECTIVE COURSE CHOOSE 2 COURSE MODULES | ||||||
Module name | Course type | ECTS | Applied grading scale | Evaluation Method | Assessment method | Language |
Privacy Engineering
(ESNCYSK3K7) | Course | 5 | 7-point grading scale | Internal examination | Written or oral exam | English |
Advanced Software Security
(ESNCYSK3K8) | Course | 5 | 7-point grading scale | Internal examination | Written or oral exam | English |
Regulation of IT Security
(ESNCYSK3K4) | Course | 5 | 7-point grading scale | Internal examination | Written or oral exam | English |
Enterprise Security and Compliance
(ESNCYSK3K9) | Course | 5 | 7-point grading scale | Internal examination | Written or oral exam | English |
3RD SEMESTER ELECTIVE COURSE CHOOSE 1 COURSE MODULE | ||||||
Module name | Course type | ECTS | Applied grading scale | Evaluation Method | Assessment method | Language |
Privacy Engineering
(ESNCYSK3K7) | Course | 5 | 7-point grading scale | Internal examination | Written or oral exam | English |
Advanced Software Security
(ESNCYSK3K8) | Course | 5 | 7-point grading scale | Internal examination | Written or oral exam | English |
Regulation of IT Security
(ESNCYSK3K4) | Course | 5 | 7-point grading scale | Internal examination | Written or oral exam | English |
Enterprise Security and Compliance
(ESNCYSK3K9) | Course | 5 | 7-point grading scale | Internal examination | Written or oral exam | English |
All students who have not participated in Aalborg University’s PBL introductory course during their Bachelor’s degree must attend the introductory course “Problem-based Learning and Project Management”. The introductory course must be approved before the student can participate in the project exam. For further information, please see Department of Electronics Systems's webiste.
The curriculum is approved by the dean and enters into force as of 1 September 2023.
The Study Board does not offer teaching after the previous curriculum from 2022 after the summer examination 2024.
The Study Board will offer examinations after the previous curriculum, if there are students who have used examination attempts in a module without passing. The number of examination attempts follows the rules in the Examination Order.