Artificial Intelligence and Data Science

Dealing with data is one of the biggest challenges that society faces – but it also offers huge opportunities. From autonomous vehicles to medical systems, data science and AI is penetrating nearly every industry. Employers in both public and private sectors rely more heavily on data in their decision making than ever before, and these are all solved by rigorously applying mathematical modelling in combination with Artificial Intelligence (AI) techniques to ever growing data sets.

A shortage of a suitably skilled workforce has been identified by the Government Operational Research Service (GORS) and other bodies. And with the demand for AI skills and data science continuing to grow, now is the perfect time to study this area and set yourself up for a successful career.

On this degree, you will study the mathematical foundations of data analysis combined with the practical elements of performing that analysis and extracting useful meaning from the data. You will also learn the mathematical foundations of AI and how to construct AI systems and models.

Industry connections

The University has strong connections with industry. We collaborate with local and international companies on a wide range of projects, having previously worked with Rolls-Royce, JCB, Bentley Motors, Alstom, CERN, Toyota and Bloc Digital.

This course is also linked to our East Midlands Institute of Technology (EMIoT), so you can benefit from the industry connections this centre provides. The EMIoT’s initiative is to deliver world class, research orientated, employer-led learning focusing on clean growth and digital delivery.

You have the option to take an internship and a placement year between years two and three. This will give you substantial experience in industry as well as insight into the careers available to you once you graduate. You may also gain confidence and improve your success and progression in your future job roles.

You can get chance to work on live projects and case studies, which bring a sense of real-world learning to your learning experience.

Research active academics

Many of the teaching staff are active in research, and this knowledge is brought back into the classroom. Their research is conducted in our Data Science Research Centre to produce relevant and internationally leading research.

You can also carry out your own research project and can also apply for our Undergraduate Research Scholarship Scheme (URSS), where you could gain funding to complete a research topic in an area of interest.

Flexibility

You will cover the fundamentals of computing in your first year where you can gain an essential foundation of knowledge. At the end of this year, you will have the option to transfer to any one of the following courses:

• BSc (Hons) Computer Games Programming
• BSc (Hons) Computer Science
• BSc (Hons) Cyber Security
• BSc (Hons) Information Technology

In your second year, you will study specialist modules specifically for your chosen degree, with your final year offering further options to tailor your studies to an area of your interest.

Please note that our modules are subject to change - we review the content of our courses regularly, making changes where necessary to improve your experience and graduate prospects.

This course encourages and enables students to become resourceful and independent learners and can equip you with the skills to generate innovative and technically-efficient solutions to real-world problems.

You will be taught in a range of methods including:

• lectures
• seminars
• case studies
• multidisciplinary and inclusive projects
• small group work
• peer learning
• practicals
• expert guest lecturers

How you will be assessed

We use a variety of assessment methods during this course, and this includes:

• coursework
• portfolios
• assignments
• case studies
• live projects
• oral and graphic presentations
• teamwork projects
• computer testing
• examinations

You can graduate with the skills to adapt to the challenges faced by modern companies and government services. The programme provides analytical and computational problem-solving skills – along with a theoretical/computational tools – to abstract, model, critically evaluate and solve problems utilising information for better decision-making processes and solution outcomes.

You could work for organisations like government services, logistics, manufacturing and health care, in roles such as:

• operations research analyst
• data analyst
• production planner
• data scientist
• data engineer
• data architect
• machine learning engineer
• business intelligence engineer

Contextual offers may apply to students who meet certain criteria.

Further information about our fees and support you may be entitled to

Additional information about your studies

Teaching hours

Like most universities, we operate extended teaching hours at the University of Derby, so contact time with your lecturers and tutors could be anytime between 9am and 9pm. Your timetable will usually be available on the website 24 hours after enrolment on to your course.

Course updates

The information provided on this page is correct at the time of publication but course content, costs and other individual course details do change from time to time and are updated as often as possible, so please do check these pages again when making your final decision to apply for a course. Any updated course details will also be confirmed to you at application, enrolment and in your offer letter.

If you are thinking about transferring onto this course (into the second year for example), you should contact the programme leader for the relevant course information as modules may vary from those shown on this page.