Frequently asked questions

MOOC?

Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) are as the name says they open, free, and online. You do not have to care about course fees, not on this MOOC anyway. You do not have to care about commute as you can do it where you are as long as you have Internet connectivity. You do not have to care about schedules, well you have a start and end dates but between them it is upto you when you do the tasks.

Is the course series free?

The MOOC portion is free. The two exams carry the standard open university fees, and are free for University of Helsinki students.

How many students can attend?

There is no limit how many students can take part.

How many hours of work should I be prepared to put in?

This will vary from person to person. But students should expect to spend 2-10 hours per week on the course.

Are there any prerequisites for registering?

No, there are no formal requirements. But a basic understanding of coding, networks, and cyber security are needed to follow some of the course material. You are of course welcome to register without this background knowledge, but you’ll need to put in extra time learning these things if you want to complete all parts of the course.

I want to learn more about cyber security, but I’m not looking to become a cyber security specialist. Will parts of the course still be useful for me?

Yes! Thanks to digitalization, cyber security is an issue that cuts across different industries and professions, so the knowledge and skills people learn in the course can be applied in a wide variety of careers. The first exam course focuses on a big picture.

What’s a good language to learn if I don’t have any coding experience?

The MOOC courses require Python knowledge. The first project can be done in any language, but Python is strongly recommended.

Generally speaking, Java and Python are both easy for beginners to learn, and fairly common. On the other hand, C/C++ can teach you more about how computers actually work, which can be useful for certain types of programming. So if you’re learning from scratch, you should consider what kind of work you want to do after the course ends.

What kind of topics does the MOOC cover?

The MOOC addresses a range of topics that people need to know about to work in cyber security. These topics include: introductions to cyber security and operational security, web software development, types of vulnerabilities that are typical to web software, how such vulnerabilities are discovered and then mitigated, advanced topics such as secure software architectures and cryptography.

Grading?

The grading is passed/failed.

Why isn’t my project graded yet?

While the programming exercises and puzzles are graded automatically, the project reports need to be peer-reviewed and verified by staff. The verification is done regularly, see detailed descriptions on the relevant course page.

What does it take to get passed?

It depends on the course part. To pass an individual course certain amount of points need to be earned. The point thresholds are given in each course.

How do I show someone I have passed a course part / get ETCS?

You should register the course. Read carefully these instructions.

Can I get the ECTS registered in my home university if I do not study in Finland?

It is possible and it has been done. Sometimes extra paper work is needed. It really depends on the University in question. We suggest discussing with your local study counselor beforehand.

Can I get an extension to the deadlines or can I get some extra work to make up the lack of doing the tasks on time?

This pops up regularly and the answer is no. No extensions, No extra work.

Is it possible for me to catch up if I join the course after it begins or miss part of it?

Yes. The course consists of different modules, and they can be taken independently. So if you miss one module or don’t finish it for some reason, you can still take the others.

Is there going to be a CTF again?

CTF is done yearly during Period IV.