Meet our MA Cyber Crime and Terrorism Graduate, Rebecca
Before coming to Swansea University I sat my A Levels in mathematics, psychology and biology at Ebbw Vale learning zone. I then went on to complete my undergraduate degree in Criminology and Criminal Justice BSc at Swansea University.
I chose to study the Cybercrime and Terrorism MA after focusing on Terrorism studies for my undergrad dissertation, which I found very interesting. I think that the internet has an increasing part to play in terrorism and Swansea are one of the few Universities to offer a course like this. I was pleased that I could stay at the university for another year to do it.
The best thing about the programme was the resources and information the lecturers made available to us. The modules cover a lot of interesting and current topics and we were able to cover them in a lot of detail. The lecturers were always happy to expand on parts or explain something to you.
The course was also very flexible in terms of when I could conduct my research and learn the materials. This meant I still had time to socialise and take part in sport outside of the programme, including continuing to be club secretary at the university’s hockey club.
My advice to somebody considering this programme would be to consider your options and decide which master's degree would best help you achieve your goals after university. For me, I would one day like to work in counterterrorism and apply what I have learnt on this programme to my future career. If you are unsure of what to do after University, I would advise choosing something that is of interest to you, the fact that I enjoyed the learning and topics made the work a lot easier.
Once started, my advice would be not to worry too much about the jump to master's level, but to read over all feedback as it really helped me achieve higher grades in the second semester and in my dissertation.
The staff were always happy to help. They adapted well to the current issues surrounding Covid-19 and always had time to zoom if there was something we were worried about or needed help with. They always kept us informed throughout the year and were very helpful when it came to working on our dissertations.
Since graduating I have been working on a Covid-19 testing site. I have applied for and received an offer for the Police Now graduate scheme in neighbourhood policing due to start this August. I will hopefully become a neighbourhood police officer once all pre-employment checks are complete. I am currently studying their online course and getting ready to start. This involves the core learning, policing legislation and workplace information that has been given to us by the Police Now programme. My focus will be to help tackle community issues and become a trusted face in the area.
I would say that my university programmes have definitely influenced my career choice and given me the confidence/knowledge to apply and receive an offer.
