Post Graduate Diploma in Automotive Cybersecurity

The global automotive Cybersecurity market size was valued at USD 2.0 billion in 2021 and is expected to reach USD 5.3 billion by 2026, at a CAGR of 21.3% during the forecast period 2021-2026, according to a MarketsandMarkets report. Automotive cybersecurity is becoming increasingly important with the rise of connected and autonomous vehicles.

The cybersecurity in an automotive vehicle has its unique set of challenges. The long lifespan of an automobile exposing itself to the hackers, the consequences of a cybersecurity breach, the complexity of the cyber-physical systems and the real-time response requirements limit the adoption of traditional cybersecurity methods in this context. It requires specialized knowledge and skills to address the challenges of automotive cybersecurity, which is what the program offers.

The Post Graduate Diploma in Automotive Cybersecurity is a two-semester program designed for working professionals , who are aspiring for rapid career progression in the high-growth area of Automotive Cybersecurity systems and wish to stand out in highly competitive work- places by acquiring prestigious Master’s-level qualification from a premierinstitution.

 

Study without

Study without

Career Break

Easy EMI Option With

Easy EMI Option With

0% Interest & 0 Down Payment

Admissions Open

Admissions Open

Last date to apply is March 17, 2025

Fees per semester

Fees per semester

INR 63,500

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Programme Highlights

  1. The Post Graduate Diploma in Automotive Cybersecurity programme is a Work Integrated Learning Programme (WILP) spanning seven semesters. BITS Pilani's Work Integrated Learning Programmes are approved by the University Grants Commission (UGC).
  2. Attend live-lectures from anywhere over an online technology-enabled platform. These live lectures would be conducted by faculty mostly on weekends or after business hours enabling working professionals to pursue the programme along with their jobs..
  3. Program promoted by the Telangana Mobility Valley as a part of a State-wide development initiative
  4. Programme and curriculum developed by senior faculty and researchers in this field, Labs to develop working competence
  5. Campus immersion to interact and work with faculty experts and research scholars in their labs
  6. Faculty led industry scale projects for working professionals
  7. Program designed to suit working professionals with no industry experience
  8. Blended learning with live instructor led lectures complemented by digital content
  9. Technology enabled learning offering flexibility to learn at one's own phase (within the semester calendar)
  10. Continuous formative assessments in addition to the end-semester summative assessment
  11. Students may study from home/anywhere and can take the program in addition to other formal educational/employment programs.
  12. Participants who successfully complete the programme will become members of an elite & global community of BITS Pilani Alumni.

Programme Curriculum

  • Introduction to Autotronics
  • Automotive Networks and Communications
  • Embedded Network Security
  • Automotive Security
  • Ethical Hacking
  • Cyber Security and Cyber Laws
  • Network Security
  • Elective 1
  • Elective 2
  • Elective 3
  • Software Engineering for Secure Systems
  • Cloud and IoT Security
  • AI and ML for Cyber Security
  • Cryptography
  • Information Security Project
  • Network Security Project
  • Cyber Forensics and Incident Handling
  • Blockchain Technology

Choice of Electives is made available to enrolled students at the beginning of each semester. A limited selection of Electives will be offered at the discretion of the Institute.

For detailed programme curriculum, download the brochure.

Download Brochure

 Labs

Training graduates in automotive cybersecurity requires a combination of theoretical knowledge and practical skills. To provide students with hands-on experience, the following lab infrastructure is made available to the students:

Automotive hardware and software

Students are provided access to actual vehicles and vehicle components, such as engine control units (ECUs), electronic control modules (ECMs), and infotainment systems. They also have access to automotive software, such as automotive operating systems and diagnostic tools.

Cybersecurity testing tools

Students have access to various cybersecurity testing tools, such as network sniffers, penetration testing tools, and vulnerability scanners. These tools are necessary for identifying and testing vulnerabilities in automotive systems.

Simulation environments

Creating simulation environments for automotive cybersecurity is essential for training students in a controlled and safe environment. Simulated environments help students practice and develop their skills in a risk-free environment.

Data acquisition and analysis tools

Students gain access to tools that enable them to collect and analyze data from automotive systems. These tools can help students understand how systems operate, identify patterns and anomalies, and identify potential threats.

Networking infrastructure

A network infrastructure that mimics real-world automotive networks is provided for training students in automotive cybersecurity. Students understand how these networks operate and identify vulnerabilities and threats within them.

Cybersecurity policies and procedures

Training in automotive cybersecurity include knowledge of cybersecurity policies and procedures. Students understand the importance of complying with regulations and standards related to cybersecurity in the automotive industry.

Overall, the lab infrastructure for training graduates in automotive cybersecurity provides students with practical, hands-on experience in a safe and controlled environment. The infrastructure include hardware, software, simulation environments, data storage and analysis tools, networking infrastructure, and policies and procedures.

Mode of Learning

The Mode of Learning is based on a powerful educational approach called Work Integrated Learning. For detailed description of work integrated learning Click here

Key Benefits of BITS Pilani WILP

1) Can pursue the programme without any career break and along with the job.

2) The programme curriculum is highly relevant to sectors, industries and organisations they work for

3) In addition to the institute, the learning experience of working professionals in the programme is also supported by the employer organisation and Industry Mentors.

4) Effective use of technology to deliver a range of learning interventions at the location of the working professional such as faculty contact sessions, asynchronous learning materials, remote, virtual and cloud labs, Learner support, peer to peer collaboration etc. 

5) Contact sessions with faculty take place mostly over weekends or after business hours and are conducted over a technology platform that can be accessed from anywhere. 

6) Mid semester and End semester examinations for every semester are conducted mostly at designated examination centres distributed across the country (for details refer to link mode of examinations) 

7) Learners can access engaging learning material which includes recorded lectures from BITS Pilani faculty members, course handouts and recorded lab content where applicable.

EXPERIENTIAL LEARNING

Experiential learning opportunities that can help build the skills and competencies listed in the document include:.

  • Hands-on experience with automotive systems to assess their vulnerabilities through lab exercises and internship opportunities.
  • Participation in competitions or challenges related to automotive cybersecurity to develop skills in threat modeling, risk assessment, penetration testing, and vulnerability analysis.
  • Learning about and implementing automotive cybersecurity standards and regulations through classroom instruction or practical projects.
  • Collaborating with cross-functional teams on real-world projects to gain experience in secure software development practices, effective communication, and problem-solving skills.

These are just a few examples, and there may be other experiential learning opportunities that can help build the skills and competencies required for automotive cybersecurity.

CONTINUOUS ASSESSMENT

Continuous Assessment includes graded Assignments/ Quizzes, Mid-semester exam, and Comprehensive Exam.

CASE STUDIES AND ASSIGNMENTS

Case Studies and Assignments: Carefully chosen real-world cases & assignments are both discussed and used as problem-solving exercises during the program

Mode Of Examination

Mode of Examinations applicable for students admitted in Batch starting in Oct/Nov 2024:

Semester 1, 2 have Mid-Semester Examinations and Comprehensive Examinations for each course. These examinations are mostly scheduled on Friday, Saturday or Sunday. Students need to appear in person for taking the examinations at the institution’s designated examination centres as per the examination schedule, Instructions, rules and guidelines announced before every examination. 

Students can take their examination at any of our 36 designated examination centres in India at the following locations:

South Zone: Bangalore, Chennai, Hyderabad, Mysore, Vijayawada, Visakhapatnam, Kochi, Thiruvananthapuram, Hosur, Madurai, Kancheepuram, Coimbatore

North Zone: Delhi NCR, Gurugram, Noida, Faridabad, Jaipur, Chandigarh, Lucknow, Bhilwara, Udaipur, Pilani

West Zone: Mumbai, Thane, Pune, Ahilya Nagar, Goa, Ahmedabad, Vadodara, Surat, Indore, Nagpur

East Zone: Kolkata, Guwahati, Jamshedpur, Bhubaneswar

For International Students: 

  • In addition to the above locations, the institution also has a designated international examination centre, located in Dubai.
  • To facilitate the learning of international students, applying from any other location except India and Dubai, the mode of examinations will be online, which can be availed by meeting the requirements of the institute.
  • To know more about the requirements for online examinations, Click here
  • Indian students, who are temporarily based out of India, can also avail of online examinations on request by meeting the above-mentioned requirements of the institute.

Eligibility Criteria

Employed professionals holding B.E./ B.Tech./ M.Sc./ Integrated First Degree of BITS or its equivalent with at least 60% aggregate marks, and are employed in an industry relevant to the program.

How to Apply

  • Login to our Application Centre to apply for the program Click Here.

 

Points to Note

a) Make photocopies of the documents mentioned in this Checklist.
b) Applicants are required to self-attest all academic mark sheets and certificates.
 

Fee Structure

The following fees schedule is applicable for candidates seeking new admission during the academic year 2024-25.

  • Application Fees (one time) : INR 1,500
  • Admission Fees (one time) : INR 16,500
  • Semester Fees (per semester) : INR 63,500

The one-time Application Fee is to be paid at the time of submitting the Application Form through the Online Application Centre.

Admission Fee (one-time) and Semester Fee (for the First Semester) are to be paid together once admission is offered to the candidate. Thus, a candidate who has been offered admission will have to pay INR 80,000/-. You may choose to make the payment using Netbanking/ Debit Card/ Credit Card through the Online Application Centre. Option to pay fees using an easy EMI with 0% interest and 0 down payment. Click here to learn more.

Semester Fee for subsequent semesters will only be payable later, i.e. at the beginning of those respective semesters.

Any candidate who desires to discontinue from the programme after confirmation of admission & registration for the courses specified in the admit offer letter will forfeit the total amount of fees paid.

For the examination centre at Dubai, in addition to the semester fees, for each semester there will be an examination centre fees of 1000 UAE Dirhams or equivalent per semester out of which 500 UAE Dirhams is to be paid at the time of appearing in Mid-semester examinations at Dubai Centre for that semester and the remaining 500 UAE Dirhams is to be paid at the time of appearing in comprehensive examinations at Dubai centre for that semester.

All the above fees are non-refundable.

Important: For every course in the program institute will recommend textbooks, students would need to procure these textbooks on their own.

Student Speak

FAQs

Meant for engineering graduates with or without industry experience aspiring to venture into the niche domain of cybersecurity.

Post Graduate Diploma in Automotive Cybersecurity from BITS Pilani one of the institutes recognized as Institution of Eminence by the MoE.

Certificate

Yes, you will join the proud alumni network of BITS Pilani and you can participate in all the relevant events organized by the BITSAA.

This program is designed for engineering graduates who do not have any prior working experience in cybersecurity or automotive engineering. The program prepares the engineers for a career in the niche domain of automotive cybersecurity from basics. Thus, it is not a short term training/ skill development program but a comprehensive formal post graduate diploma program.

On an average a student is expected to spend around 25-30 hours per week.

Students can interact with their respective faculty during the periodic contact sessions. In addition to this students can reach out to the faculty and teaching assistants using discussion forums and chats.

A student aspiring to enroll for the program should have a valid engineering degree.

Cybersecurity in general and automotive cybersecurity in particular is a rapidly emerging area with significant skill gaps. Organizations are keen to recruit people who have adequate knowledge in cybersecurity. This program has been designed in collaboration with such organizations to bridge this skill gap. Telangana Mobility Valley as a part of the larger initiative is promoting this program. Considering the above it can be said with fair confidence that students will secure placement on successful completion of the program. The institute will also organize periodic engagements with prospective industries to showcase the student talents.

Such students need to undertake a special course namely Automotive Vehicles. The digital content will be shared by the institute and it will be a self learnt course. There will not be any assessment/ grading for this