PhD Data Science at University of Essex

Programme overview

PhD in Data Science in the School of Mathematics, Statistics and Actuarial Science at Essex, which has taught data science since 2014 and runs Knowledge Transfer Partnerships with data-driven companies. Supervision covers areas including artificial intelligence, supervised and unsupervised learning, deep learning, information retrieval, optimisation, statistical learning and the mathematical foundations of data science.

Department: School of Mathematics, Statistics and Actuarial Science | Duration: 3-4 years full-time | Intake: January 2027 | Study mode: full-time; part-time | Location: Colchester, England, United Kingdom

What you will study

A PhD of at least three years: wide reading in year 1, then developing original results in years 2 and 3 and writing them up; the thesis is defended at a viva before two examiners, at least one external.

Career pathways

Former research students have become academics at institutions such as Bristol, Cambridge and Nottingham, or postdoctoral fellows, research impact officers and lecturers at Essex; others have joined the Met Office, the Ministry of Defence and companies in the City of London.

Official programme page

Application information

Entry requirements

Good honours degree and a Masters degree in a relevant subject; a well-developed research proposal is essential. An interview (including by video) may be required, and acceptance is subject to research expertise in the department. International applicants: IELTS 6.0, or equivalent, with at least 5.5 in all other components. Research degrees have no application deadline; applicants are encouraged to contact a potential supervisor or the Graduate Administrator and to submit a brief research proposal before applying. Applications are normally answered within four weeks.

Intake: January 2027

Duration: 3-4 years full-time

Explore more study programmes

Engineering