BSc Honours in Data Science

at National College of Ireland

This honours degree will equip students with the skills to apply computing and analytical science in the pursuit of discovering new information by identifying patterns in data.
 

The course is practical in nature, providing you with knowledge of the way data science can solve real problems and facilitate business decisions based on evidence. It also incorporates work placement in a company, which will significantly improve your skills and enhance your employability. Due to the shortage of suitably qualified data science professionals in Ireland and internationally, this degree offers exceptional job prospects for graduates.
 

As a graduate of this course you will be able to:
 

• Understand how data can be valuable and can help solve business problems and facilitate business decisions.

• Apply data transformation, modelling, mining and machine learning techniques to analyse and derive new knowledge and insight from data.

• Design and implement data science algorithms and applications that solve real-world problems.

• Effectively visualise and communicate the results of data analysis to support business decision-making.
   

Adopt appropriate professional, ethical, legal, security and privacy principles in the construction and implementation of data science solutions.

• Stage 1 / Semester 1

• Core Subject

• Module Code    Title

• H6CMPTHNK    Computational Thinking

• H6DISMTHS    Discrete Mathematics

• H6IDS    Introduction to Data Science

• H6PSPC    Problem Solving & Programming Concepts

• H6TCI    The Computing Industry
   

• Stage 1 / Semester 2

• Core Subject

• Module Code    Title

• H6COMPSYS    Computing Systems

• H6IDMD    Introduction to Data Modelling and Databases

• H6PROG1    Programming I

• H6STATS1    Statistics I
   

• Stage 2 / Semester 1

• Core Subject

• Module Code    Title

• H6ADA    Advanced Databases

• H6DV    Data Visualisation

• H6PROG2    Programming II

• H6STATS2    Statistics II
   

• Stage 2 / Semester 2

• Core Subject

• Module Code    Title

• H6DMML    Data Mining and Machine Learning

• H6ITPM    IT Project Management

• H6LA    Linear Algebra

• H6PROG3    Programming III
   

• Stage 3 / Semester 1

• Core Subject

• Module Code    Title

• H7AML    Advanced Machine Learning

• H7DA    Data Architecture

• H7SDA    Scalable Data Analytics
   

• Group Elective 1

• Module Code    Title

• H7AI    Artificial Intelligence

• H7DWBI    Data Warehousing & Business Intelligence
   

• Stage 3 / Semester 2

• Group Elective 2

• Module Code    Title

• H7ACI    Academic Internship

• H7WP    Work Placement
   

• Stage 4 / Semester 1

• Core Subject

• Module Code    Title

• H8DSP    Data Science Project
   

• Group Elective 3

• Module Code    Title

• H8NNPA    Neural Networks & Prescriptive Analytics

• H8SDA    Strategic Data Analysis

• H8SMSOA    Systems Modelling, Simulation & Optimization for Analytics

• H8TA    Text Analytics
   

• Stage 4 / Semester 2

• Core Subject

• Module Code    Title

• H8DGSE    Data Governance, Security and Ethics
  ​​​​​​​

• Group Elective 4

• Module Code    Title

• H8HA    Healthcare Analytics

• H8IOTRTA    IoT Real Time Analytics

• H8TSFA    Time Series & Financial Analytics

Minimum entry requirements are a grade H5 and above in two higher level subjects together with a minimum of O6 in four other subjects. A minimum of grade H5 must be obtained in Mathematics. A minimum of grade O6 must be obtained in English.
 

For applicants whose first language is not English, please note the English language entry requirements.
 

Mature applicants, applicants with a disability or those apply through the DARE or HEAR access schemes can find out more information on the application process. 
 

Please note that exams can be scheduled during the morning, afternoon or evening Monday to Saturday.
 

Alternative Maths Exam

NCI will be offering a mathematics qualifying exam for students who would like to pursue the BSc (Honours) in Data Science. This provides prospective students a second chance or an alternative way to meet the required mathematics standard of H5 in Leaving Certificate Maths for the BSc Honours in Data Science.
 

The certificate of your English language standard must have been issued within 2 years of the expected start date of your course.  As a guide, the IELTS English language requirements are as follows:
 

The fees for this course for international students is €10,000 per year.

Graduates from the BSc (Honours) in Data Science will complete a six-month work placement in industry and on graduation can go on to work with a variety of organisations including multinationals, financial services and professional services companies. Related data science roles include data scientist, business intelligence analyst, customer insight lead, risk analyst, knowledge engineer, and data programmer.
 

According to a recent Higher Education Outcomes Report released by the CSO, ICT graduates receive the highest weekly earnings five years after graduating compared to other sectors based on the analysis of the destinations of students who graduated between 2010 and 2016.