Pre-Masters in Law and Social Science (3-Terms), Leading to Master of Data Science (Digital Humanities) Study Group - Durham University International Study Centre - Queens Campus, UK

Pre-Masters in Law and Social Science (3-Terms)
The Pre-Masters in Law and Social Science prepares you for a choice of progression degrees at Durham University. When you have completed the programme and achieved the required grades, you can progress to a range of postgraduate degrees at Durham University.

Who is this programme for?

This programme is for international students looking to study a Masters degree in law or social sciences at Durham University.

• Explore a wide range of topics through one of five distinctive routes: Anthropology, Archaeology, Geography, Law and Politics.
• Improve your academic and English language skills needed for entry to your chosen Masters degree.
• Gain the opportunity to progress to a large number of impressive postgraduate degrees at this world-renowned university.
• Develop your ability to critically analyse the strengths and weaknesses of a range of research methods.
• Engage in a new, culturally exciting community and enjoy studying abroad in the UK.

What will you study?
You will study core modules, which cover general skills, and designated modules that relate to your progression degree. This means your Pre-Masters programme will be tailored to the specific needs of your chosen degree.

Core modules

• Academic English Skills
• Advanced Academic Writing and Critical Reading
• Extended Research Project
• Globalisation*
• Research Methods for Social Science

When you complete the Pre-Masters in Law and Social Science, and achieve the required grades, you can progress Master of Data Science (Digital Humanities) at Durham University.

Leading to: Master of Data Science (Digital Humanities)

The Master of Data Science (Digital Humanities) is a course with a hard-core of data science, intended to provide Masters-level education rich in the substance of data science for students who hold a first degree in the Humanities. All around us, massive amounts of increasingly complex data are being generated and collected, for instance, from mobile devices, cameras, cars, houses, offices, cities, and satellites. Business, research, government, communities, and families can use that data to make informed and rational decisions that lead to better outcomes. It is impossible for any one individual or group of individuals to keep on top of all the relevant data: there is simply far too much. Data science enables us to analyse large amounts of data effectively and efficiently and as a result has become one of the fastest growing career areas.

Previously, data science was the province of experts in maths and computer science, but the advent of new techniques and increases in computing power mean that it is now viable for non-experts to learn how to access, clean, analyse, and visualize complex data. There is thus a growing opportunity for those already in possession of knowledge about a particular subject or discipline, and who are therefore able to grasp the full meaning and significance of data in their area, to be able to undertake data analysis intelligently themselves. The combination of primary domain knowledge with an expertise in extracting relevant information from data will give those with this ‘double-threat’ a significant employment advantage.

Core modules:

The Master of Data Science (Digital Humanities) degree is comprised of the following core modules:

• Introduction to Computer Science (optional under certain conditions)
• Introduction to Statistics for Data Science
• Machine Learning
• Programming for Data Science
• Introduction to Mathematics for Data Science (optional under certain conditions)
• Digital Humanities: Theory and Practice
• Research Project.

Examples of optional modules

• Ethics and Bias in Data Analytics
• Text Mining and Language Analytics
• Data Exploration, Visualization, and Unsupervised Learning
• Strategic Leadership
• Qualitative approaches to Digital Humanities.