Prepare for a career in data science with this interdisciplinary course investigating human behavioural data.
Year of entry: 2025 (September)
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Upcoming eventsData science is an increasingly attractive career destination for graduates, offering lucrative and fulfilling employment opportunities in a variety of sectors.
The purpose of this course is to 'upskill' psychology graduates (and those from neighbouring disciplines) to prepare for a career in data science, with a particular emphasis on human-related data sets that are common in industry and third sector organisations.
This could include the use of social media data, large-scale customer surveys, game data, neuroimaging data, and census data to address problems relevant to businesses, charities and governments. You'll graduate with a unique set of skills that will allow you to work professionally with such data sets and any that involve human behavioural data.
Based in the Department of Psychology, the course is delivered by an interdisciplinary team of experts in the analysis of human behavioural data, and is embedded in a wider portfolio of data science courses across the institution.
Learn more about our range of data science and analytics Masters courses offered at York.
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We hold a Gold Athena Swan Award for our commitment to improving gender equality in the Department.
Our core modules will introduce you to a wide variety of methods used in the analysis of behavioural data. You'll develop in-depth practical experience with, and knowledge of, different analytical techniques using the statistical language R, which is widely used for work of this nature. These methods will include traditional statistical techniques but also cutting-edge processes for analysing large data sets using AI. Throughout the course, you'll be provided with hands-on experience of working with diverse data sets from psychology, neuroscience, and other behavioural sciences.
You'll also develop an understanding of how to use visualisation techniques to present data in a clear and informative way across a number of professional contexts. You'll study the current thinking on key issues in data governance and ethical collection and use of data. All modules are aimed to take you from the key basics of analysis to more advanced cutting-edge techniques.
Our modules may change to reflect the latest academic thinking and expertise of our staff, and in line with Department/School academic planning.
You'll complete an extended dissertation project, to help build an externally-facing data science portfolio to showcase to potential employers.
Every course at York is built on a distinctive set of learning outcomes. These will give you a clear understanding of what you will be able to accomplish at the end of the course and help you explain what you can offer employers. Our academics identify the knowledge, skills, and experiences you'll need upon graduation and then design the course to get you there.
| Study mode | UK (home) | International and EU |
|---|---|---|
| Full-time (1 year) | £13,300 | £31,900 |
Students on a Student Visa are not currently permitted to study part-time at York.
UK (home) or international fees? The level of fee that you will be asked to pay depends on whether you're classed as a UK (home) or international student. Check your fee status.
Find out more information about tuition fees and how to pay them.
Discover your funding options to help with tuition fees and living costs.
We'll confirm more funding opportunities for students joining us in 2025/26 throughout the year.
If you've successfully completed an undergraduate degree at York you could be eligible for a 10% Masters fee discount.
We are pleased to work with Chevening Scholars to offer funding for our Masters programmes. Chevening Scholarships provide one year of fully-funded postgraduate study in the UK for international (including EU) students. The scholarships are open to early and mid-career professionals who have the potential to become future leaders.
You can use our living costs guide to help plan your budget. It covers additional costs that are not included in your tuition fee such as expenses for accommodation and study materials.
You’ll work with world‐leading academics who’ll challenge you to think independently and excel in all that you do. Our approach to teaching will provide you with the knowledge, opportunities, and support you need to grow and succeed in a global workplace.
Teaching will consist of lectures, seminars, self directed learning, and group tasks. Real-world case examples will be blended with key theoretical and practical skills practice.
As the course progresses, you'll have greater independence with the emphasis being on choice, specialisation, and independent study, all supported by supervisors.
Seminars focus on small group work, discussions and presentations. You will gain knowledge in all aspects of research, from designing and carrying out experiments to analysing, critically evaluating and interpreting results. This experience will equip you with valuable skills that you will apply in your final empirical project.
Through the Virtual Learning Environment, you will have access to teaching materials, including lecture slides and recordings, practical demonstrations and supporting materials.
Our Department is purpose-built with superb teaching and research facilities. We have strong links with the Smart Data Donation Service (SDDS), which holds large-scale human behavioural data about online interactions and behaviour. Some examples include content exposure on video sharing platforms such as TikTok and YouTube, gaming data, and fitness trackers which could be linked to information on people's mental health or psychometrics.
You'll engage with the SDDS within a specialised module on Big Human Data, putting you at the forefront of research and policy surrounding online harms and benefits.
The Department of Psychology is located on Campus West.
Most tutorials, seminars, practical work, staff offices and laboratories are in our bespoke psychology building.
Our beautiful green campus offers a student-friendly setting in which to live and study, within easy reach of the action in the city centre. It's easy to get around campus - everything is within walking or pedalling distance, or you can always use the fast and frequent bus service.
Assessments will be in a range of formats, including those aimed at experts: an empirical dissertation, mock case reports, a 'plan' or 'preregistration' for a hypothetical research study, and reflective reports considering your understanding and changing views on issues you have learned about. You will also communicate to a lay audience in the form of a blog on an important research study linked to the understanding and or treatment of mental health issues.
You'll acquire skills and experience critical to contemporary data science practice, using human-relevant data. You'll build a portfolio of outputs to showcase to potential employers, demonstrating your programming and analysis skills.
You'll have access to the University’s careers service, which includes provision from dedicated careers advisors. On completion of the course, you'll be competitive applicants for a wide variety of data science roles, across industry, government and third sector organisations.
| Typical offer | |
|---|---|
| Undergraduate degree | 2:2 or equivalent in an undergraduate degree in Psychology, or cognate discipline such as a Social Science with a statistical element. |
| Other international qualifications | Equivalent qualifications from your country |
If English isn't your first language you may need to provide evidence of your English language ability. We accept the following qualifications:
| Minimum requirement | |
|---|---|
| IELTS (Academic and Indicator) | 6.5, minimum 6.0 in each component |
| Cambridge CEFR | B2 First: 176, with 169 in each component |
| Oxford ELLT | 7, minimum of 6 in each component |
| Duolingo | 120, minimum 105 in all other components |
| LanguageCert SELT | B2 with 33/50 in each component |
| LanguageCert Academic | 70 with a minimum of 65 in each component |
| Kaplan Test of English Language | 459-494, with 426-458 in all other components |
| Skills for English | B2: Merit overall, with Pass with Merit in each component |
| PTE Academic | 61, minimum 55 in each component |
| TOEFL | 87, minimum 21 in each component |
| Trinity ISE III | Merit in all requirements |
For more information see our postgraduate English language requirements.
You may be eligible for one of our pre-sessional English language courses. These courses will provide you with the level of English needed to meet the conditions of your offer.
The length of course you need to take depends on your current English language test scores and how much you need to improve to reach our English language requirements.
After you've accepted your offer to study at York, we'll confirm which pre-sessional course you should apply to via You@York.
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