Program Overview

Our MSc Applied Data Science is a conversion course specifically designed for students with a background in humanities, social sciences, life sciences and business studies who want to be part of our fast-growing digital economy. The course will build upon your undergraduate degree in the humanities, social or life sciences, giving you postgraduate-level skills in essential data science methods with various applications, covering case studies and applications of AI and data using a balance of methods and practical application.

The course introduces you to programming with the R language and as well as text analytics. Relational databases and SQL are developed and used for relevant applications from humanities, life sciences, linguistics, marketing and social science. The course encourages statistical thinking by data visualisations and guides you to develop your creativity within a scientific framework.

You cover topics such as:

• Using R for statistical modelling and decision making
• Linear and generalised linear models are used for experimental and observational data
• Artificial intelligence
• Deep and statistical learning
• Applied statistics
• Information retrieval
• Digital economy
• Survey sampling

The leading department on this course, our Department of Mathematical Sciences, is genuinely innovative and student-focused. Our research groups are working on a broad range of collaborative areas tackling real-world issues. The Department of Mathematical Sciences and our School of Computer Science and Electronic Engineering are working together with other departments across the University to deliver optional modules and summer projects with Essex Business School, the Department of Language and Linguistics, the School of Life Sciences, the School of Philosophy and Art History, and the Department of Psychology. Our course also benefits from many Knowledge Transfer Partnerships which support students through placements and an interdisciplinary outreach culture.