If you're a keen programmer - and interested in a career as an application programmer, software engineer or systems developer - our Software Engineering degree could be for you. You'll start by gaining a solid foundation in general computing and software engineering. You’ll then develop your expertise by studying application modelling, programming – both procedural and object-oriented – and design patterns. You'll go on to develop academic and professional skills while implementing all kinds of applications: concurrent, object-oriented, task-based, mobile (Android and iOS) and web. You'll gain experience of Java, C++, and C# and you'll design and develop relational databases and learn to manage large software development projects. If you take our highly recommended sandwich course, you'll spend a year in a paid industrial placement. This could be within the UK, self-employment or overseas. You’ll apply your theoretical knowledge in the workplace and gain valuable, relevant experience. In your final year, you'll be able to demonstrate your mastery of software engineering by completing a final year project in your own area of interest. Our guest speaker series brings in representatives from top companies such as Microsoft and EDF Energy – as well as smaller enterprises. Recent speakers have discussed agile software development, cloud computing, systems security, and working as a software developer in the real world. Industry Guest Lectures. Our labs are equipped with high-spec PCs with development environments for desktop, mobile and enterprise applications. We also have a lab of iMacs for iPhone and iPad development and a variety of mobile devices available for application deployment and testing.

Software Engineers develop software systems in many different contexts. Recent graduates have gained positions developing commercial web applications, on demand platforms for delivering television and radio content, mobile and wireless systems, business systems, and police case management software to name just a few examples. The third year of this sandwich degree is spent on a paid full-time placement in the Computing industry, which may be overseas, and can include self-employment. The placement helps to develop soft skills such as team-working, communication and business acumen, as well as applying and extending technical expertise. Having a year's experience before graduation is invaluable in gaining employment on graduation, often a successful placement will lead to an offer of a permanent position at the same company.