Edinburgh Napier University’s School of Computing, Engineering and the Built Environment has been recognised for its contribution to cybersecurity by the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC).

The UK government organisation, which aims to promote and maintain the country’s cyber resilience, has presented SCEBE with a Gold award for its Academic Centre of Excellence in Cyber Security Education (ACE-CSE).  The award acknowledges the key role ENU has played in promoting the advancement of cybersecurity within and outside the University. The ACE-CSE infrastructure aims to enhance the teaching and promotion of the subject.

ENU joins 11 other UK institutions in receiving the gold award, following the creation of ACE-CSE in 2020 – and is one of only two in Scotland.Students working in a computing lab at Edinburgh Napier University's Merchiston campus

In addition to already having a NCSC-certified degree, the universities went through a further rigorous process to gain the recognition. They have to prove to independent assessors that they are developing an influential and growing community of cybersecurity educators, shaping and supporting cybersecurity education and also engaging with industry, government, educators and students.

Dr Matthew Broadbent, who leads the cybersecurity subject area, said:

“This award showcases our work in improving the education and the impact of cybersecurity in our university – both for our students and staff, but, just as importantly, outside our university". 

Rich Macfarlane, who is the Co-Director of the ACE-CSE, said:

"We have innovated in our teaching of cybersecurity for more than a decade, and I strongly believe that we are developing the core skills required within current industry practice". 

Prof Bill Buchanan OBE, who leads in the research related to cybersecurity, and is a co-Director of the ACE-CSE, added:

"We have increasingly strived to integrate our research in order to improve our teaching, and enterprise and innovation are core pillars of this."

Dr Nick Pitropakis, who leads the teaching and learning provision in cybersecurity, said:

"Our cybersecurity education base scales around the world, and we hope we have created a foundation that will support every student in the domain and promote global awareness."