A high-profile computer crime degree certificate course at Melbourne University Private (MUP) has closed its doors to new enrolments as a result of the tertiary institution falling on hard times.

A fully privatized private offshoot of the Melbourne University, MUP is to be shut down after incurring substantial losses resulting from declining international student numbers. The institution was set up in 1997 and will cease operations over the coming months.

Pitched at law enforcement and corporate security and risk professionals, the MUP graduate certificate in e-crime investigation boasted the personal recommendation of Victorian Police Commissioner Christine Nixon in a glowing online testimonial.

"This innovative E-Crime Investigation Course offers a definitive opportunity for the private sector, regulatory bodies and law enforcement agencies to build a greater understanding of electronic crime investigation and management. Victoria Police is committed to providing all Victorians with a more safe and secure online environment... it is informative and useful and I recommend it to everyone involved with computers," Nixon spruiks on the course"s Web site. While conceding the closure of MUP was unfortunate, the university"s vice-chancellor Glyn Davis said that staff and students would not be left out of pocket.

"We will meet every commitment to our students, to make sure they complete the courses they"re enrolled in, they can get the degrees that they set out to get," Davis told ABC Radio.

MUP also offered graduate courses in technology commercialization.