Key information 2023/24
One term:
Duration - 15 months: 3 months pathway + 1 year degree
2023/24 Pathway Tuition Fee - £8,695.00
English Language Requirement - IELTS 6.0 overall with 5.5 minimum in all components
Start Dates - September, April and June
Two term:
Duration - 18 months: 6 months pathway + 1 year degree
2023/24 Pathway Tuition Fee - £11,495.00
English Language Requirement - IELTS 5.5 overall with 5.5 minimum in all components
Start Dates - January April and June
The Pre-Masters programme is designed for those students who do not qualify for direct entry to a postgraduate degree at Edinburgh Napier University.
The Pre-Masters Programme will equip you with the advanced skills you need to complete your postgraduate study at Edinburgh Napier University. You can study this over one or two terms depending on your academic qualifications and English language level.
Available Progression Degrees
Students can progress onto:
- MSc Computing
- MSc Computing (Web Development)
What will you study
Alongside core modules, you will study subject-specific modules that will equip you with a foundation of knowledge for your chosen field of study.
Common modules across all IIM pathway routes
English and Skills for Masters Studies
The module stresses the critical importance of English language competence in all four language skills areas within an academic context and provides English language preparation for continuing academic study on the later stages of a taught masters programme. Apart from the formal language required for masters study, the module focuses on the advanced study skills required, for example, taking responsibility for your studies as an independent learner, becoming a reflective learner and developing your ability to research effectively, think critically, write and present appropriately and abide by good academic practice.
30 Credits
Introduction to Postgraduate Studies in the UK
The aim of the course is to introduce you to the structure, demands and expectations of postgraduate study across a range of subject disciplines in the UK. There is an emphasis on the development of advanced academic skills of particular relevance to study at postgraduate level and students are introduced to learning strategies that will be of benefit with particular emphasis on the VLE and the role of IT, the Internet, specialist sites and journals that may be accessed digitally. Students will be helped to become more reflective and self-evaluative and to develop group working and team building skills.
Postgraduate Progression Project
This module enables you to engage in a substantial piece of individual research and/or product development work focused on a topic relevant to your subject discipline. The topic may be drawn from a variety of sources including: – prior work experience, discussions with peers’ research groups or a subject of personal interest. The project topic will be assessed for suitability to ensure sufficient academic challenge and can be satisfactorily supervised by an academic member of staff. Students will also be supported in considering whatever ethical issues may be raised by their choice of research topic and method. Selecting an appropriate topic and project managing the research and reporting processes are key elements in the assessment of your work.
Course specific modules
Technical And Communication Skills
The aim of the module is to develop your ability to communicate effectively and appropriately within a technical and professional context. This is achieved through a focus on how more advanced communication skills may be developed and an appreciation of how specialised vocabulary and technical language may be deployed both in studies and within professional activities. The module has a language and skills development focus but also aims to engage you directly with your specific field of study in Computing. This is achieved by putting language and skills acquisition firmly in a context of your keenness to study effectively in the future.
15 credits
Programming In Java
This module provides you with an introduction to software development, assuming no prior programming experience on your part as you learn to develop, run and debug programmes. The module focuses on the foundational algorithmic constructs of sequence, selection, and iteration, through the use of flowcharts/pseudocode and their implementation in the Java language. Fundamental data structures such as arrays are introduced. Students are introduced to the idea of choosing a data structure appropriate for purpose. The module further introduces the principles of object-oriented software development, including objects, classes, properties, methods, and inheritance. Best practice is covered throughout the module including strategies to make code readable and to facilitate code reuse.
15 credits
Computer Systems
The primary aim of the module is to familiarise you with the basic operating principles of modern computer systems. This includes understanding the basic components of a computer, how data is represented and operated on, and how programs are executed at a low level. As modern computers gain much of their utility from networked resources, it is important that you are provided with a basic understanding of how computers communicate with each other. Finally, the module covers basic Operating Systems concepts which allow computing resources to be utilised effectively, with some discussion on the role of security in modern computing.
15 credits
Programming For Interactive Media and Design
This module aims to provide an introduction to computer programming for interactive media applications. You will design, write, test and debug programs. You also learn the essentials of computer programming: variables, data types and data structures and programming constructs such conditionals, loops and functions. You are also introduced to the basics of object-oriented programming. These programming fundamentals will be used to develop interactive applications to process digital images and to implement animations.
15 credits