About the Course

Overview

Few people will have remained oblivious to the explosive growth in digital speech/audio/video and data transmission over the past few years. The long term future of digital communications lies with the use of mobile, as opposed to fixed, terminals. The aim of the course is to reflect recent significant advances in mobile communications in the wider context of the rapidly developing digital communications industry. Students will gain competence in the theory and practice of Mobile Digital Technology such that they will be able to design and develop appropriate software/hardware and have an appreciation of more general network planning considerations involved in mobile and wireless communications systems. They will thus be able to take advantage of the undoubted long-term employment prospects in these areas.

This is an advanced MSc course in the rapidly expanding area of Mobile Communications and Networks. This course is concerned with the concepts, applications, design, development and deployment of mobile communication systems and networks. Students will develop a detailed knowledge and critical understanding of the core skills in mobile communications and networks and use a significant range of principal and specialist skills, techniques and practices in the domain of mobile communications and networks.

This is a hardware-oriented course in mobile communications and networks and is aimed directly at electrical engineering graduates. This course is concerned with the use and application of engineering principles in the specification, design, development and deployment of mobile communications.

Course Structure

The MSc Mobile Communications course structure contains of the following modules, with a choice of modules available in the Semester 2:

• Semester 1

• Digital Signal Processing (M)

• Research Methods Critical Analysis and Project Planning (M)

• Digital Design (M)

• Networks and Communications (M)

 

• Semester 2

• RF Mobile Communication Systems (M)

• Project Phase 1 (M)

• Principles of Mobile Communications (M)

• Software Engineering 2 (O)

• Network Applications (O)

 

• Summer

• Masters Dissertation

(M) Mandatory module, (O) Optional Module

Duration

Normally 1 year, with part-time participation possible, typically over 2 years.

Entry Requirements

A First or Second Class Honours Degree in an engineering discipline or in the physical or chemical sciences. The degree can be from a British or overseas university. Different degrees, together with relevant industrial experience, will be considered.

Employment and Industrial Links

Graduate Destinations

The course will provide graduates of a calibre capable of developing and implementing creative solutions to the problems encountered in mobile communication systems and networks.

Industrial Project Opportunities

A few examples of companies that have offered project placements are
Rohde & Schwarz UK Ltd and Selex Sensors and Airborne Systems.

Professional Recognition

This course is accredited by the Institution of Engineering and Technology.

About the Course Director

Dr Cheng-Xiang Wang is a lecturer in the Department of Electrical, Electronic and Computing Engineering at Heriot-Watt University. He has published over 100 papers in refereed journals and conference proceedings in the area of Mobile Communications and Networks. There are mainly two research groups in the department associated with the subject area of the course. While the Research Group in Microwave Engineering deals with hardware aspects, the Signal and Image Processing Group deals with algorithm design and implementation, information analysis, system modelling, and network protocol aspects of mobile communications.