Computing with Data Science and Big Data
Learn to turn data into decisions. Getting it, cleaning it up, spotting the pattern, and explaining it to a manager who does not understand the technical side. Every company now has more data than it knows what to do with.
- Three ways to start: straight into year one, straight into year two, or — if you have already done part of a course like this — just the final year.
- Coding, statistics and charts — the whole job, not one bit of it.
- Works anywhere: hospitals, banks, shops, football clubs, government.
- You are taught how to explain your findings. That is what gets people promoted.
- The government pays your course fees. Nothing to pay upfront.
- Aged 21 or over? Your work and life experience counts, not just school grades.
Jobs this leads to
Roles graduates typically go into.
What you'll study
- Data analytics tools
- Statistical modelling
- Machine learning basics
- Data visualisation
- Hands-on projects
A full year-by-year module list for this degree is available from your adviser — ask when you speak to them.
What these words mean
Plain English for the terms used on this page.
- Foundation year
- An extra year at the start. It gets you ready for degree work. It means you can do a degree even with no A-Levels. You do the same degree as everyone else — it just takes one year longer.
- Final year only (top-up)
- Already done an HND, or a couple of years of something similar? You do not start again from the beginning. You join for the last year, do that one year, and come out with the full degree.
- Straight into year one
- You skip the extra first year and start where everyone else starts. This is for people who already have the grades, or enough work experience to count instead.
- Hons
- You will see BA (Hons), BSc (Hons), BEng (Hons) or LLB (Hons). The Hons part just means it is a full degree. The letters in front only tell you the subject area.
- Exemptions
- Some jobs, like accounting, need extra exams after your degree. An exemption means you do not have to sit some of them, because your degree already covered it. Fewer exams and less to pay.
- Student Finance
- The government pays your course fees. You pay nothing upfront. You can also borrow money to live on. You only start paying it back once you earn over a set amount, and it comes out of your wages a little at a time. Earn under that amount and you pay nothing.
How you can start
- Year 1 direct entry
- Year 2 direct entry
- Final-year top-up
What it costs you
Nothing up front
Your tuition is paid by a Student Finance loan, straight to the university. You don't pay anything to start, and you pay nothing to us — we're paid by the universities.
You can also apply for a maintenance loan of up to £14,000 per year (more in london) to live on while you study.
Over the full 3 years
- Tuition, borrowed and repaid later
- up to £28,605
- Maintenance, if you take the full amount
- up to £42,000
- Paid by you up front
- £0
These are maximums, and they are loans rather than grants — you repay a percentage of what you earn above the government threshold, and anything still outstanding after the write-off period is cancelled.
You only start repaying once you are earning above the government threshold, and repayments are a percentage of what you earn above it — not a fixed bill. Thresholds change and depend on your loan plan, so check the current figures on gov.uk before you decide.
Where you can study this
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