PhD Data Science

Program Overview

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Our PhD Data Science is an advanced research degree within our Department of Mathematical Sciences and we have staff members available to act as supervisors across a number of areas within data science. Possible areas of research include: artificial intelligence, classification/supervised learning, clustering/unsupervised learning, data science education, deep learning, industry 4.0, information retrieval, mathematical foundations of data science, multidimensional scaling, optimisation, and statistical learning. If you’re interested in doing a data science research degree at Essex get in touch with our Department to discuss potential research areas. Our staff are strongly committed to excellence in research and excellence in education. Our Department of Mathematical Sciences (DMS) and our School and Computer Science and Electronic Engineering (CSEE) have introduced undergraduates and postgraduate courses in data science since 2014. The University of Essex is a leading institution worldwide on Data Science Education. DMS has strong track record on Knowledge Transfer Partnerships (KTP) with data-driven industries, for example: Profusion, Mondaq, MSXI and Ocado. DMS has two research groups: Data Science and Mathematics. 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. Here are a few examples:

• Our data scientists carefully consider how not to lie, and how not to get lied to with data. Interpreting data correctly is especially important because much of our data science research is applied directly or indirectly to social policies, including health, care and education.
• We do practical research with financial data (for example, assessing the risk of collapse of the UK’s banking system) as well as theoretical research in financial instruments such as insurance policies or asset portfolios.
• We also research how physical processes develop in time and space. Applications of this range from modelling epilepsy to modelling electronic cables.
• Our optimisation experts work out how to do the same job with less resource, or how to do more with the same resource.
• Our pure maths group are currently working on two new funded projects entitled “The Calabi problem for smooth Fano threefolds” and “Stability of Brunn-Minkowski inequalities and Minkowski type problems for nonlinear capacity”.
• We also do research into mathematical education and use exciting technologies such as electroencephalography or eye tracking to measure exactly what a learner is feeling. Our research aims to encourage the implementation of ‘the four Cs’ of modern education, which are critical thinking, communication, collaboration, and creativity.

You can start this course in either October, January or April, part-time or full-time. Why we're great.

• Our degree is jointly delivered by our Department of Mathematical Sciences and our School of Computer Science and Electronic Engineering.
• Our data science courses benefit from the Institute of Analytics and Data Science (IADS), the Institute of Social and Economic Research (ISER) and the UK Data Archive, all based at the University of Essex.
• Our department is ranked 31st for research power in the Research Excellence Framework 2021.

Our expert staff

Our Department of Mathematical Sciences has an international reputation in all areas of mathematical sciences including; statistical learning, artificial intelligence, classification/supervised learning, clustering/unsupervised learning, data science education, actuarial science, mathematical statistics, operational research, applied mathematics, pure mathematics, and mathematics education. We encourage PhD students to meet with their supervisor regularly. While undertaking your research within our Department, joint supervision across other Essex departments and schools is possible. Your PhD should lead to publications in academic journals. Our PhD students have had papers accepted and published in journals such as: Advances in Data Analysis and Classification ; BMC Bioinformatics ; Ecology ; Journal of Physics A: Mathematical and Theoretical ; Mathematical Modelling of Natural Phenomena ; and The North American Journal of Economics and Finance .

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Specialist facilities

The Department of Mathematical Sciences is based in the University’s state-of-the-art STEM Centre. Research students have a dedicated work space and PCs, with access to software such as MATLAB, Gap, SageMath, Python and R. All University of Essex research students have access to our innovative and unique scheme, Proficio. Postgraduate research students are automatically enrolled on Proficio, which provides a variety of training courses, and a fund of up to £2,500 per student for conference attendance and relevant external training courses.

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Your future

Many of our former PhD students have gone on to work as academics in prominent institutions across the world, such as the University of Bristol, University of Cambridge, University of Nottingham and many other international universities. Some have also remained at the University of Essex, working as postdoctoral research fellows, research impact officers, or lecturers. Other graduates have joined organisations like the Met Office, the Ministry of Defence, and companies based in the City of London. There is a high demand for data science experts in all sectors of the economy, so our graduates are sought after in the UK and abroad. “The journey of a PhD student is just like a roller coaster, so make sure you take the time to celebrate the wins and reflect on the losses. My PhD involves examining the process of skeletal muscle activation/deactivation by developing novel mathematical methods to extract dynamic information from image data. The most enjoyable aspect of my work is the flexibility it gives me as an individual and being able to deepen my understanding in the field of Bayesian statistics, which I find particularly interesting. In the future I plan to work in the industry as a Data Scientist, on various projects related either to macroeconomics or finance.” Madalina Mihailescu, PhD Data Science student

Program Outline

Course structure

A research degree gives you the chance to investigate an area or topic in real depth, and develop transferable research skills. During your time in the Department you have opportunities to attend conferences, publish papers, and give talks at departmental research seminars. You may also attend some university modules, and will meet with your supervisor typically on a weekly basis. Within our Department, our PhD students are usually encouraged to take our taught module, Research Methods, in the first year of study, so you are well equipped with the necessary skills to undertake effective research. You may also attend some other modules on an informal basis. All our students wishing to study for a PhD enrol on a combined MPhil/PhD pathway. In your second year of study, depending on progress, a decision is made by our Department on whether to proceed with either an MPhil or a PhD. Our full-time research students have a supervisory board to review their progress every six months (or annually if studying part-time). Typically, the board involves your supervisor and one other academic. The recommendations of this are considered by our Departmental Research Students’ Progress Board, which will make decisions on your registration status. If you progress well, you should be confirmed as a PhD student in the first term of your second year of study. We understand that deciding where and what to study is a very important decision for you. We’ll make all reasonable efforts to provide you with the courses, services and facilities as described on our website. However, if we need to make material changes, for example due to significant disruption, or in response to COVID-19, we’ll let our applicants and students know as soon as possible.

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Components

Components are the blocks of study that make up your course. A component may have a set module which you must study, or a number of modules from which you can choose. Each component has a status and carries a certain number of credits towards your qualification.

Status	What this means
Core	You must take the set module for this component and you must pass. No failure can be permitted.
Core with Options	You can choose which module to study from the available options for this component but you must pass. No failure can be permitted.
Compulsory	You must take the set module for this component. There may be limited opportunities to continue on the course/be eligible for the qualification if you fail.
Compulsory with Options	You can choose which module to study from the available options for this component. There may be limited opportunities to continue on the course/be eligible for the qualification if you fail.
Optional	You can choose which module to study from the available options for this component. There may be limited opportunities to continue on the course/be eligible for the qualification if you fail.

The modules that are available for you to choose for each component will depend on several factors, including which modules you have chosen for other components, which modules you have completed in previous years of your course, and which term the module is taught in.

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Modules

Modules are the individual units of study for your course. Each module has its own set of learning outcomes and assessment criteria and also carries a certain number of credits. In most cases you will study one module per component, but in some cases you may need to study more than one module. For example, a 30-credit component may comprise of either one 30-credit module, or two 15-credit modules, depending on the options available. Modules may be taught at different times of the year and by a different department or school to the one your course is primarily based in. You can find this information from the module code . For example, the module code HR100-4-FY means:

HR	100	4	FY
The department or school the module will be taught by. In this example, the module would be taught by the Department of History.	The module number.	The UK academic level of the module. A standard undergraduate course will comprise of level 4, 5 and 6 modules - increasing as you progress through the course. A standard postgraduate taught course will comprise of level 7 modules. A postgraduate research degree is a level 8 qualification.	The term the module will be taught in. AU : Autumn term SP : Spring term SU : Summer term FY : Full year AP : Autumn and Spring terms PS: Spring and Summer terms AS: Autumn and Summer terms

Year 1 This module is for PhD students who are completing the research portions of their theses. View Mathematics - Research on our Module Directory

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Assessment

A PhD (with a minimum period of three years) typically involves wide reading round the subject area in your first year, then gradually developing original results over your second and third years, before writing them up in a coherent fashion. The resulting thesis is expected to make a significant contribution to knowledge. Your PhD is awarded after your successful defence of your thesis in an oral examination (viva), in which you are interviewed about your research by two examiners, at least one of whom is from outside Essex.