Network science is a scientific field that studies complex networks such as communication networks and the Internet, telecommunications and computer networks, social networks, cognitive and semantic networks, and various aspects of information and communication services in a networked environment. It is an interdisciplinary field that, in addition to technical aspects, explores the physical, social, and economic phenomena of interconnecting people, computers, devices, and things. With the constant development of communication networks and distributed systems, network science has become one of the most propulsive areas affecting overall technological, social, and economic development.
Students will gain theoretical and practical knowledge and skills necessary for the research, development, and implementation of networks, systems, and services, with an emphasis on identifying, formulating, and solving complex problems in the fields of communication networks, distributed systems, and networked services. They will study models of local, access, and core networks; multi-service, intelligent, broadband networks and the Internet; network and information traffic planning and optimization, and network management. Students will acquire knowledge related to computer architectures, operating systems, and programming languages, as well as knowledge of formal specification languages, modeling languages, data processing and management in networked systems, multimedia services, electronic commerce, and social networks, and self-learning systems. Topics cover communication protocols, communications security and privacy, virtual/augmented reality and environments, network mobility, mobile networks, and software agents. Software engineering focuses on networked systems, while project management and research and development management focus on the network services market.
Students enrolling in this study program are expected to have basic prior knowledge in the fields of communication networks, computer architectures, and programming languages.