The MSc Big Data is a taught advanced Masters degree covering the technology of Big Data and the science of data analytics. You’ll gain practical skills in big data technology, advanced analytics and industrial and scientific applications.

The course will teach you how to collect, manage and analyse big, fast moving data for science or commerce. You’ll learn skills in cutting-edge technology such as Data Analytics, R, Hadoop, NoSQL and Machine Learning. At the same time, you’ll delve into important maths and computing theory, and learn the advanced computational techniques you need to develop your career in data science.

Our MSc has been developed in partnership with global and local companies who employ data scientists. Since the course was launched in 2012 we have developed a great relationship with employers who are looking for the skills that we teach.

Course objectives

The syllabus for the MSc Big Data includes:

• Mathematics and Statistics for Data Science
• Representing and Manipulating Data in Python
• Relational and Non Relational Databases
• Commercial and Scientific Applications
• Machine Learning
• Cluster Computing
• Dissertation Project of Your Choice

On this Masters course you’ll gain:

• An understanding of the issues of scalability of databases, data analysis, search and optimisation
• The ability to choose the right solution for a commercial task involving big data, including databases, architectures and cloud services.
• An understanding of the analysis of big data including methods to visualise and automatically learn from vast quantities of data
• The programming skills to build solutions using big data technologies such as MapReduce and scripting for NoSQL, and the ability to write parallel algorithms for multi-processor execution

Work placements

The course features a substantial summer project, generally in partnership with a company or technology provider

Course structure

Mathematical Foundations

This course will equip students with some basic mathematical knowledge and problem-solving skills.

Statistics for Data Science

The course is intended to give students:

• a basis for the analysis and interpretation of quantitative information
• an understanding of the basic ideas underlying statistical methods at an introductory level
• an understanding of how to overcome problems when analysing big data sets

Relational and Non-Relational Databases

After covering relational databases and SQL, this course takes you through the various NoSQL databases, including document stores like MongoDB, column stores like Cassandra and graph databases such as Neo4j. You'll learn to pick the right database for your application and how to build, search and distribute the data in them.

Machine Learning

You'll learn the practicalities of big data analytics with techniques from data mining, machine learning, statistics, and data visualisation. You’ll explore how we’re training computers to understand the present and predict the future with data from finance, marketing and social media. You’ll learn how to apply machine learning techniques such as neural networks and decision trees to practical problems.

Cluster Computing

This course covers distributed data processing with Hadoop and MapReduce in addition to the use of Condor for distributed computation.

Scientific and Commercial Applications

With guest lectures from science and industry, this course presents a set of case studies of Big Data in action. You'll learn first-hand how companies are using big data in fields such as banking, travel, telecoms, genetics and neuroscience.

Please note that for those interested in a January start, the duration of the course will be 21 months. For example, students starting in January 2023 will graduate in November 2024. This decision was made to allow students to learn flexibly and enhance other skills during the summer months when teaching is not available.

Teaching

There’s a real mix of practical technology sessions taught in labs and workshops along with lectures, seminars and tutorials teaching you the Big Data theories.

You’ll carry out a project using a Big Data technology of your choice. With support from our staff, you’ll choose a specialist topic and become a real expert. You'll start with an in-depth analysis of the topic and its technology. Then you'll build a solution that will showcase your skills to employers and give you the knowledge to win a high-level, high-salary job.

We have a programme of invited speakers from industry giving you the opportunity to ask questions of people who are doing data science every day. Recent participants include MongoDB, SkyScanner and HSBC.

Big data skills are in high demand. You will have opportunities with data-driven companies from a wide variety of sectors and command a salary that’s typically higher than the IT average. As a graduate in Big Data you’ll be able to work in a wide range of sectors, such as digital technologies, energy and utilities, financial services, public sector and healthcare.