Overview

Data now drives decision-making across nearly every sector, from finance to healthcare, making the ability to extract meaningful insight from it one of today's most sought-after skills. The BSc Data Science at the University of Exeter equips students with exactly this expertise, developed in close collaboration with industry partners including IBM, the Met Office, and South West Water to reflect real workplace practice. The course is delivered by active researchers within Exeter's Institute for Data Science and Artificial Intelligence, and the university is a partner of the Alan Turing Institute. Teaching blends core mathematics and computer science with applied data science and its wider social context, and students carry out research projects in every year of the degree using real-world datasets under academic supervision. Students can also opt for a four-year variant including a paid industrial placement, gaining a full year of practical experience before returning to complete their final year. This degree suits those who enjoy problem-solving and want a strong technical grounding for careers spanning data analysis, machine learning, and research.

What You'll Learn

Programming, object-oriented design, and data structures and algorithms

Discrete and computational mathematics for computer science

Machine learning fundamentals and their theoretical foundations

Database theory and design, and software development practices

Statistical modelling, inference, and the ethical and social context of data science

Team-based project work solving substantial, real-world problems

Advanced machine learning techniques, including probabilistic modelling

Data science methods for large-scale, distributed and cloud-based systems

An individual literature review and final year project

Learning Outcomes

By the end of the course, students will be able to draw on a strong and progressively developing understanding of mathematics, computer science and data science, from foundational programming and statistical theory through to advanced machine learning and large-scale data analysis, and will be equipped to critically evaluate data-driven approaches and apply them to genuine real-world problems. Extensive project work throughout the degree, including a substantial team project and individual research using real datasets, builds practical technical skills alongside communication, teamwork and project management abilities valued by employers. Students will also complete an individual literature review and final year project, working under academic supervision to specify, design, implement and evaluate a substantial piece of work, while optional modules in areas such as computer vision, high-performance computing or Bayesian statistics allow them to specialise in a direction suited to their own interests and career goals.