Postgraduate Diploma in SCADA/Protection and Service Continuity
Online 800-hour Postgraduate Diploma in SCADA/Protection and Service Continuity. 8 modules covering IEC 60870-5-104 (telecontrol over TCP/IP), IEC 61850 (substation communication) and ETAP. Assigned tutor and open enrolment.
Postgraduate Diploma in SCADA/Protection and Service Continuity — studying from the United Kingdom
Civil and infrastructure engineering is a major employment sector in the United Kingdom, with significant activity in transport, water, energy and urban regeneration. Rail projects such as HS2 and ongoing network upgrades by Network Rail create demand for engineers in track, signalling, structures and systems. Smart city initiatives in cities including Manchester, Glasgow and Milton Keynes apply digital technologies to mobility, utilities and public services. Major contractors and consultancies including Balfour Beatty, Arup and AECOM employ civil and rail professionals across the country.
Fees for the United Kingdom: £1,070 (Pound sterling), with instalments and employer sponsorship available.
Relevant bodies in the United Kingdom
Typical roles
Questions from the United Kingdom
Which UK professional bodies are relevant to civil and rail engineering qualifications?
The Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE), the Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET) and, for rail, bodies such as the Permanent Way Institution and the Institution of Railway Signal Engineers are relevant in the UK. Chartered status is handled through the Engineering Council. SEIUM's qualifications are private and not accredited by these bodies, so you should confirm with ICE or the relevant institution how your study would be treated.
Do UK civil, rail and smart city employers recognise online private qualifications?
UK infrastructure employers, including consultancies, contractors, rail operators and local authorities, generally recruit based on competence, professional registration and project experience. A private qualification can add to your profile, but employers decide its relevance. Practical experience and progress towards professional registration usually carry more weight.
How does online study fit with a UK working schedule, and what about funding?
Online study lets you keep working in the UK, and no student visa is needed to study from home. Fees are payable in instalments, and some employers support job-related training, which is common practice in general terms but varies by employer. Each programme has a defined number of hours and an assigned technical tutor. Review the hours and funding options before enrolling.
Take the controls.
Run a real engineering trade-off from this field. Move the sliders, watch the model react in real time and beat the challenge.
What you will be able to do
Describe the architecture of railway electrification and its substations.
Design SCADA and telecontrol architectures for traction power.
Set electrical protection for traction systems.
Apply cybersecurity measures to railway control systems.
Design redundancy solutions to ensure service continuity.
Diagnose faults from event logs and oscillographic records.
Plan the modernisation of a telecontrol and protection system.
Who it's for
- Railway telecontrol engineer looking to specialise in SCADA/Protection and Service Continuity.
- Traction protection specialist looking to specialise in SCADA/Protection and Service Continuity.
- OT cybersecurity engineer looking to specialise in SCADA/Protection and Service Continuity.
- Traction substation manager looking to specialise in SCADA/Protection and Service Continuity.
- Power control centre technician looking to specialise in SCADA/Protection and Service Continuity.
- Electrification maintenance engineer looking to specialise in SCADA/Protection and Service Continuity.
- Engineering or science graduates looking to join railway infrastructure managers.
What you'll work with
- IEC 60870-5-104 (telecontrol over TCP/IP)
- IEC 61850 (substation communication)
- IEC 62443 (cybersecurity of industrial control systems)
- EN 50633 (protection of traction power supply systems)
- EN 50122-1 (protection against electric shock in fixed installations)
- EN 50163 (supply voltages of traction systems)
- Directive (EU) 2022/2555 (NIS2)
8 modules · 800 h
1.13 kV DC, 1,5 kV DC and 25 kV AC traction systems1.2Architecture of a traction substation1.3Transformers, rectifiers and DC switchgear1.4Autotransformers in 2×25 kV systems1.5Overhead contact line, feeders and sectioning1.6Return current and stray currents1.7EN 50163 standard on supply voltages1.8Autotransformer and paralleling posts1.9Basic load and voltage drop calculation1.10Workshop: reading the single-line diagram of a substation
2.1Functions of energy telecontrol2.2Remote terminal units (RTUs) and bay controllers2.3IEC 60870-5-104 and DNP3 protocols2.4IEC 61850: GOOSE, MMS and data model2.5Control centres and command posts2.6Communication networks and catenary fibre2.7Real-time and historical databases2.8Alarms, events and sequence of events2.9Operator interface and mimic diagrams2.10Laboratory: configuring a simulated IEC 104 link
3.1Short circuits in DC and AC overhead lines3.2Distance protection at 25 kV3.3di/dt and ΔI protection in direct current3.4Overcurrent and maximum voltage protection3.5Protection of transformers and rectifiers3.6Earth fault detection on structures3.7Auto-reclosing tests and line tests3.8Coordination and selectivity between substations3.9Multifunction relays and parameterisation3.10Practical: setting the protection of a feeder
4.1Threats to railway OT systems4.2IEC 62443: zones, conduits and SL levels4.3CENELEC TS 50701 for rail4.4Industrial segmentation and DMZ4.5Remote access management and maintenance personnel4.6Passive monitoring and anomaly detection4.7Patch management on legacy systems4.8NIS2 Directive for railway operators4.9Incident response in the control centre4.10Case study: risk analysis of a telecontrol system
5.1N-1 criteria in traction power supply5.2Degraded operation with a substation out of service5.3Redundancy of SCADA servers and communications5.4Uninterruptible power supply and auxiliary services5.5Contingency plans and operating modes5.6RAMS indicators under EN 501265.7Supply availability and MTBF5.8Restoration after overhead line incidents5.9Coordination with the control centre5.10Workshop: contingency plan for a substation outage
6.1Oscillographic records and COMTRADE6.2Trip analysis and root causes6.3Fault location on overhead lines6.4Power quality and harmonics6.5Electromagnetic interference under EN 501216.6Correlation of SCADA and signalling events6.7Technical incident report6.8Lessons learned and continuous improvement6.9Operational data analysis tools6.10Practical: diagnosing a spurious trip
7.1Preventive maintenance of circuit breakers and relays7.2Secondary injection tests7.3Thermography and oil analysis7.4Condition-based maintenance7.5Migration of legacy telecontrol systems to IEC 618507.6Equipment obsolescence management7.7Commissioning and FAT/SAT testing7.8As-built documentation and configuration management7.9Electrical safety in work: isolation and permits to work7.10Case study: renewal plan for a telecontrol system
8.1Definition of the line and service requirements8.2Substation and feeder architecture8.3Communication network design8.4SCADA system specification8.5Protection study and selectivity8.6Zone-based cybersecurity analysis8.7Continuity plan and degraded operation8.8Testing and commissioning plan8.9Report and presentation8.10Final review with the tutor
How you'll learn
Fully 100% online training on the SEIUM campus, with downloadable material, recorded classes and an assigned technical tutor. No fixed timetable: students progress at their own pace within the intake, making it easier to combine with work.
Each module combines theory, guided reading of the original standard and applied exercises. The working software is ETAP, DIgSILENT PowerFactory, SCADA platforms (WinCC OA), Wireshark, MATLAB/Simulink, in free, academic or evaluation versions. Tests are studied using real protection selectivity test procedures, fault record analysis, redundancy tests and telecontrol switchover tests. Assessment is continuous, module by module, plus the final integrating project.
Build it end to end
Your final project follows the real engineering workflow, step by step, reviewed by your tutor.
Describe the architecture of railway electrification and its substations.
Design SCADA and telecontrol architectures for traction power.
Set electrical protection for traction systems.
Apply cybersecurity measures to railway control systems.
Design redundancy solutions to ensure service continuity.
Where this takes you
Requirements
- Prior technical training or professional experience in the sector. A university degree is not required.
- Internet connection and a computer capable of running the programme's software.
- Sufficient Spanish to follow technical standards documentation.
Ready to start?
Send your application today. Our admissions team replies within 72 hours with your study plan and funding options.
Frequently asked questions
The programme totals 800 hours spread over 6 to 8 months. That is between 10 and 15 hours per week on average, compatible with a full-time job.
You work with ETAP, DIgSILENT PowerFactory, SCADA platforms (WinCC OA), Wireshark and MATLAB/Simulink. Free, academic or evaluation versions are used, and the tutor indicates the free alternative where one exists.
SEIUM's own diploma upon passing continuous assessment and the integrating project. It is in-house training, not an official Ministry qualification.
Yes. Modules passed in a course or postgraduate diploma in the same area are recognised in the higher-level programme. Check the recognition policy when you enrol.
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