Advanced Computing MSc

About the Course

As a subject, Computing is continuously evolving. Its impact on society is such that the way in which people and organisations communicate, trade, socialise and learn has changed significantly over the course of only a few years. The advances made in the field of Computing are particularly evident in specific areas such as mobile applications, location-based services, cloud architectures, mapping via satellite imagery, bio-informatics and linked data initiatives by governments and the private sector.

With the growth in the demand for specialised Computing graduates, it is becoming increasingly necessary for Master’s graduates to be capable of integrating their specialist skills within project teams that require a diverse set of roles. It's not uncommon nowadays for complex software systems to have sophisticated requirements whose solution may involve a set of many specialist areas. Hence this programme aims to develop the future generation of software engineers and architects, knowledge engineers, enterprise architects, sensor network engineers and R&D specialists for applications such as pharmaceuticals and biomedicine, data analysis, business intelligence and marketing, medical applications, security and multimedia.

The programme challenges students to investigate and explore novel areas of Advanced Computing, embedded within one of the internationally leading research groups from the Department of Information Systems and Computing, so as to specifically prepare them to work and succeed in research environments (eg industrial R&D and academic research) where innovation, critical thinking and creativity are fundamental.

Aims

By the end of the course, you should be able to:

• Develop a critical understanding of concepts, issues, tools and techniques relating to a specialist area of Advanced Computing.
• Develop research skills that can be applied in both academic and industrial projects involving specialist areas of Advanced Computing.
• Develop the technical knowledge and skills required to manage, design and implement software-based artefacts for specialist technologies, individually and in teams.

Enquiries

If you have any questions, or require further information, please contact:

The Postgraduate Admissions Secretary
Department of Information Systems and Computing
Brunel University
Email cs-msc-courses@brunel.ac.uk
Tel +44 (0)1895 265939
Fax +44 (0)1895 269728
Web www.brunel.ac.uk/siscm/disc

Related Courses

• Computer Communication Networks MSc
• Distributed Computing Systems Engineering MSc

Special Features

This is a demanding, high quality and ultimately very rewarding course for which we are seeking the most able and committed students.

Students will work closely with a research centre or group at the leading Information Systems and Computing department in UK (rated top for research power – RAE 2008). This will offer exceptional opportunities to work alongside some of the leading researchers in Europe in a specialist branch of Advanced Computing. This will culminate in an individual project undertaken in Term 3.

This is underpinned by small (4-6 members) group project work where students will work collectively with an Academic Member of Staff to solve an open-ended and challenging software problem during Term 1. Overall there is an emphasis on developing strong technical skills which are reinforced during Term 2. At this stage students can make an informed choice regarding an Advanced Computing specialism.  These may include:

• Artificial Intelligence
• Business Systems
• High Performance Computing
• Image Processing
• Intelligent Data Analysis
• Pervasive Informatics
• Semantic Technologies and Ontology Engineering
• Software Engineering
• Systems Biology

Course Content

The course will cover the following areas:

Group Software Development Project
This will take place in Term 1. This is intended as an intensive, group activity to develop a software-based solution addressing a challenging and open-ended real world problem or need. Specifically you will gain (i) practical exposure of the complete software development process for a non-trivial product or service (ii) an understanding of state-of-the-art development processes, support tools and infrastructure (iii) improved ability to work effectively with others from varying backgrounds to accomplish a shared goal.

Advanced Computing and Software Technology
This aims to develop a critical understanding of advanced technology (computers,devices and networks) and associated software architectures, platforms and development frameworks - focusing specifically on their interplay in the context of software development and usage.  This will cover large scale distributed computing architectures and platforms; software as a service; pervasive architectures; software development tools and techniques and future web technologies.

Advanced Data Analysis and Management
This will cover topics such as data quality and pre-processing; descriptive and inferential statistics; predictive models and forecasting; significance, confidence, effect size and evaluation; meta-analysis; data management and practical applications.

Research Methods in Advanced Computing,
This will cover topics such as searching the literature; reading, analysing and synthesising literature; defining a research problem/question; planning a research project; dealing with research ethics, giving oral presentations; writing effectively and organising and writing a dissertation. The module will provide support for students to identify and formulate a research proposal for their individual projects in Term 3.

Individual Project
This will take place in Term 3 and form the culmination of the year's study. It is an opportunity to build expertise in a more focused area that is of interest to you and to the Research Centre to which you are attached. It will showcase your project management and subject specific skills to potential employers, and also serves as valuable experience and a solid building block for those wishing to pursue a PhD, on completion of their MSc. Your work will be individually supervised by a member of academic staff.

Teaching and Learning

The Term 1 Group Research Project is assessed on individual and group work consisting of the development of a substantial software component/system and critical reflection on the work undertaken.

Term 2 assessment is a combination of group and individual work relating to the advanced computing technology modules and the development of individual project proposal. The latter will evolve from the research methods module, seminars and tutorials based on the Specialism and discussions with experienced researchers from the relevant Research Centre. It will be the culmination of Term1 and 2 and form a springboard for the Individual Project in Term 3.

The Individual Project involves original research into a problem area related to the chosen specialism. It includes the development of software and the writing of a final report. The individual projects are proposed (over the course of Term 2) and approved by the Research Centres. Industrial or other external collaboration is encouraged as appropriate.

Employability

As a discipline, Computing is continuously evolving. Examples of the advances made in this field include the growth in mobile applications, location-based services, cloud architectures, mapping via satellite imagery, and linked data initiatives by governments and the private sector.   Examples of employment possibilities that this degree offers are given below.
Theoretical advances in Computing have also enabled, in recent years, progress in algorithmic theory, at the heart of intelligent data analysis and artificial intelligence, that are applied to high impact areas such as security, data mining, business intelligence and robotics. Such advances, coupled with the massive increase in computer processing storage capacity and power, have also enabled historical scientific achievements such as the mapping of the Human Genome.

As computer and software technology increases in power and scope, it will become more and more necessary to have different Advanced Computing specialists who can:

• organise, interpret and model such data (knowledge engineers)
• analyse the data and uncover patterns (intelligent data analysts)
• programme computers to learn from such data (artificial intelligence specialists).

Careers

Graduates of this course will be equipped to pursue careers in their respective areas of specialisation, such as:

• Software engineers and architects (software engineering);
• Knowledge engineers (Semantic Web and ontology engineering);
• Industrial R&D specialists in areas such as pharmaceuticals and biomedicine (systems biology), data analysis, business intelligence and marketing (intelligent data analysis), medical applications, security and multimedia (image processing);
• Enterprise architects and business analysts (business systems);
• Distributed/mobile/cloud application developers and sensor network engineers (pervasive informatics, parallel computing);
• Researchers (initially as PhD students and then as fully fledged researchers).

Fees for 2013/14 entry

UK/EU students: £8,000 full-time

International students: £15,000 full-time

Read about funding opportunities available to postgraduate students

Fees quoted are per annum and are subject to an annual increase.

Entry Requirements

Students will normally be admitted with a minimum of 2(i) or equivalent in single or joint honours degrees that either include some software programming component or where relevant software programming experience has been subsequently acquired.

Interviews will normally be used by the Course Director to assist in the selection process where the applicant’s suitability cannot be determined satisfactorily from the documentation submitted by the applicant, or in cases where applicants are applying on the basis of relevant industrial competence.

English Language Requirements

• IELTS: 6.5 (min 6 in all areas)
• TOEFL Paper test: 580 (TWE 4.5)
• TOEFL Internet test: 92 (R20, L20, S20, W20)
• Pearson: 59 (51 in all subscores)
• BrunELT 65% (min 60% in all areas)

Brunel also offers our own BrunELT English Test and accept a range of other language courses. We also have a range of Pre-sessional English language courses, for students who do not meet these requirements, or who wish to improve their English.