DIPLOMA IN COMPUTING

THE ATHE LEVEL 5 DIPLOMA IN COMPUTING IS A 120-CREDIT OFQUAL REGULATED QUALIFICATION. IT PROVIDES THE CORE KNOWLEDGE, UNDERSTANDING AND SKILLS TO SUPPORT LEARNERS PLANNING TO FURTHER THEIR STUDIES IN COMPUTING. IT IS EQUIVALENT TO THE SECOND YEAR OF A DEGREE PROGRAMME IN COMPUTING AND LEARNERS MAY PROGRESS INTO EMPLOYMENT IN THE SECTOR OR INTO THE FINAL YEAR OF A BACHELOR’S DEGREE.

COURSE SPECIFICATION

QUALIFICATION STRUCTURE

• 1,200 LEARNING HOURS, USUALLY STUDIED OVER AN ACADEMIC YEAR
• ADVANCED LEARNER LOANS AVAILABLE IN THE UK – SEE THE QUALIFICATIONS CATALOGUE
• GRADED ‘ACHIEVED’ OR ‘NOT ACHIEVED’
• DESIGNED WITH SUPPORT FROM UNIVERSITIES
• CAN BE DELIVERED IN THE CLASSROOM BY DISTANCE OR BY BLENDED LEARNING.

MANDATORY UNITS

LEARNERS MUST COMPLETE ALL 10 MANDATORY UNITS. TO SEE THE CONTENTS OF EACH UNIT YOU CAN VIEW THE QUALIFICATION SPECIFICATION.

CYBER SECURITY

LEARNERS WILL DEVELOP AN UNDERSTANDING OF THE IMPORTANCE OF CYBER SECURITY TO ORGANIZATIONS. THEY WILL UNDERSTAND INDUSTRY STANDARDS OF CYBER SECURITY AND BE ABLE TO RECOMMEND IMPROVEMENTS IN SECURITY TO A CLIENT’S NETWORK.

WEB-BASED DEVELOPMENT

LEARNERS WILL DEVELOP AN UNDERSTANDING OF WEB-BASED DEVELOPMENT. THEY WILL RESEARCH DIFFERENT TECHNOLOGIES THAT CAN BE USED TO CREATE DYNAMIC AND INTERACTIVE WEBSITES AND THEY WILL USE THIS RESEARCH TO DEVELOP THEIR OWN WEBSITE. THEY WILL INVESTIGATE E-MARKETING AND SEO TECHNIQUES TO PROMOTE WEBSITES AND THEY WILL SUGGEST APPROPRIATE TECHNIQUES TO SOLVE A BUSINESS PROBLEM. LEARNERS WILL CREATE A BACK END DATABASE TO ALLOW THE DATABASE TO INTERACT WITH THE WEBSITE. THEY WILL CRITICALLY REVIEW THE WEB-BASED SOLUTION AGAINST CLIENT REQUIREMENTS.

INNOVATIVE TECHNOLOGIES IN COMPUTING

LEARNERS WILL DEVELOP AN UNDERSTANDING OF INNOVATIVE DEVELOPMENTS IN TECHNOLOGY AND THEIR IMPACT ON THE COMPUTER INDUSTRY.

SOFTWARE DEVELOPMENT METHODOLOGIES

LEARNERS WILL LEARN ABOUT USING SOFTWARE DEVELOPMENT METHODOLOGIES TO DEVELOP AN INFORMATION SYSTEM.

NETWORK DESIGN

LEARNERS WILL LEARN IT NETWORK DESIGN FUNDAMENTALS AND WILL DESIGN A NETWORK FOR A CLIENT IN ACCORDANCE WITH A DESIGN BRIEF.

DATABASE DESIGN AND DEVELOPMENT

LEARNERS WILL EXTEND THEIR UNDERSTANDING OF DATABASE DESIGN AND DEVELOPMENT. THEY WILL RESEARCH DATABASE MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS AND WILL DESIGN AND IMPLEMENT A COMPLEX DATABASE.

ETHICAL, LEGAL AND REGULATORY ISSUES AND PROFESSIONAL RESPONSIBILITIES IN IT

LEARNERS WILL DEVELOP AN UNDERSTANDING OF ETHICAL, LEGAL AND REGULATORY ISSUES AND PROFESSIONAL RESPONSIBILITIES RELATING TO WORKING IN IT.

STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT INFORMATION SYSTEMS

LEARNERS WILL DEVELOP AN UNDERSTANDING OF THE IMPORTANCE OF INTEGRATING ORGANISATIONAL STRATEGY WITH INFORMATION SYSTEMS AND THE TOOLS AND TECHNIQUES THAT CAN BE USED TO ANALYSE STRATEGY. THEY WILL ANALYSE BUSINESS PROCESSES AND RECOMMEND IMPROVEMENTS.

MANAGING A COMPUTING PROJECT

LEARNERS WILL FIND OUT ABOUT DIFFERENT PROJECT MANAGEMENT TOOLS AND TECHNIQUES THAT CAN BE USED WHEN MANAGING A COMPUTING PROJECT. THEY WILL USE TOOLS AND TECHNIQUES TO PLAN, IMPLEMENT AND REVIEW THEIR OWN COMPUTING PROJECT.

COMPUTING RESEARCH METHODS

LEARNERS WILL DEVELOP AN UNDERSTANDING OF DIFFERENT COMPUTER-BASED RESEARCH METHODS. THEY WILL PLAN THEIR OWN RESEARCH AND CARRY OUT A RESEARCH PROJECT BASED ON AN AREA OF INTEREST WITHIN COMPUTER SCIENCE.