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Accessibility statement
Qualification dates
StartEnd
03 Oct 2026Jun 2027
Designing, building and testing software systems can be a complicated process. This module aims to provide you with an understanding of software engineering concepts and a view of practical software development. It follows a disciplined approach to developing software systems to meet specified requirements. You’ll become familiar with techniques to support the work of the developers and the dialogue between software engineers and an organisation’s stakeholders. You’ll also develop a good understanding of the different approaches to and practices of software development, including those followed by agile methods.
Comparing traditional approaches with agile processes and practices, you will learn about well-known software development processes, their phases, activities and techniques. This will help you develop a critical understanding of the diversity of contexts of organisations, problems, and development teams, allowing you to use your judgement in a real situation.
By studying this module, you will:
You will be equipped to apply your knowledge to the design of a wide range of software systems, from small systems in a single organisation (which still need to interact with a range of other services online) to those working in large-scale distributed environments based on coalitions of systems.
This module builds on study skills and subject knowledge acquired from study at OU levels 1 and 2.
You'll need some basic knowledge of object-oriented concepts and programming, sufficient to follow the meaning of short passages of code written in the Java language.
You should also be able to:
You’ll get help and support from an assigned tutor throughout your module.
They’ll help by:
Online tutorials run throughout the module. While they’re not compulsory, we strongly encourage you to participate. Where possible, we’ll make recordings available.
Course work includes:
Some TMAs involve a collaborative exercise.
We regularly review the assessments in our modules, so we may update the examination method used for this module to an in-person exam or a remotely invigilated (proctored) exam. When we are making such a change, we will make it clear on this page. If we need to make a change after you have registered, we will notify you as soon as possible. If you have additional requirements, we will support you to complete your assessments.
You’ll have access to a module website, which includes:
We also provide physical:
The OU strives to make all aspects of study accessible to everyone, and this Accessibility Statement outlines what studying TM354 involves. You should use this information to inform your study preparations and any discussions with us about how we can meet your needs.
To find out more about what kind of support and adjustments might be available, contact us or visit our Disability support website.
Software engineering (TM354) starts once a year – in October.
It will next start in October 2026.
We expect it to start for the last time in October 2027.
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