Advanced Computer Science MSc

If you're ready to specialise and push the boundaries of what's possible with technology, the Advanced Computer Science MSc at the University of Sussex is designed to give you a deep, research-led, and practical advantage. This programme allows you to dive into the most current and complex areas of the field, from advanced data science and machine intelligence to secure systems and human-centred computing. You'll be based in our Future Technologies Labs, a £12 million state-of-the-art facility that provides a world-class environment for innovation and hands-on experimentation with the technologies of tomorrow.

Your learning is built around applying advanced theory to solve real-world problems, supported by exceptional resources:

• Specialist Research Laboratories: You will have direct access to our suite of specialist labs, including the Interact Lab for practical work in human-computer interaction and ubiquitous computing, and the AI Research Lab, equipped for work in intelligent systems and machine learning.

• Industry-Standard & Research Software: You will gain hands-on experience with the tools that drive innovation. This includes data science and deep learning platforms like Python with TensorFlow and PyTorch, professional development environments, and specialised software for areas such as network security and data visualisation.

• Research-Led Group Projects: You'll be taught by active researchers from groups like the Data Science Research Group and the Cognitive and Language Processing Research Group. A core part of your experience will involve collaborative projects, tackling challenges that mirror the cutting-edge work happening in our research centres.

• Substantial Individual MSc Project: The programme culminates in a significant individual research project. This is your opportunity to work deeply on a specialist topic of your choice, often supervised by one of our research experts, to create a substantial and impressive piece of work for your professional portfolio.

• High-Performance Computing (HPC) Resources: For projects requiring significant computational power, such as processing large datasets or running complex simulations, you will have the opportunity to utilise the School's High-Performance Computing resources.

• Extensive University Resources: You will have full access to the University’s Library, which offers an extensive collection of computing databases, e-journals, and academic texts, alongside 24/7 access to the specialist facilities in the Future Technologies Labs.

Graduates of Sussex’s MSc Advanced Computer Science typically move into roles such as Systems / Software Engineer, Cloud / Mobile / Web Specialist, Machine Learning / Data Science Engineer, or R&D / Innovation roles. Because of its strong research orientation and focus on advanced technologies, many alumni are well-prepared either to take high-tech industry roles or to go into further research.

Progression & Future Opportunities:

Here are the concrete ways Sussex supports you, what benefits the programme gives, and what your post-graduation outcomes tend to look like:

• University Services that Help Students to Employ:

  • The Career Lab helps you explore possible career paths, connect with employers, and build essential professional skills. It also offers insight visits, internships and consultancy-style projects. 

  • Sussex offers one-to-one coaching with a Faculty Careers Consultant: support for CVs, interviews, goal setting. 

  • For entrepreneurship or building your own projects, there are initiatives like StartUp Sussex and Ideas Lab. 

  • Strong lab and computing facilities: specialist teaching computer labs, media tech labs, where you can work with industry-standard equipment, mobile/cloud computing, and sometimes spin-out or start-up company connections (e.g. Student / spin-out companies like InCrowd and Player Research). 

• Employment Stats & Salary Figures:

  • Sussex reports that 91% of its postgraduates in this programme had completed some form of work experience by the end of the course (2023/24). 

  • The programme equips you for roles requiring specialization in current technologies (cloud, systems design, software engineering, mobile/web, etc.). While Sussex doesn’t publish detailed salary breakdowns for this exact course, roles in those areas in the UK typically offer competitive salaries that increase with experience.  

• University–Industry Partnerships:

  • Industry connections are integrated: Sussex has partnerships and connections with spin-out companies (e.g. InCrowd, Player Research) which gives exposure to real-world projects and potentially job or collaboration openings. 

  • Modules are kept up-to-date, and the department is involved in research hubs (for example Sussex AI, Sussex Centre for Consciousness Science) which often collaborate with external partners. This means what you learn is more likely to align with what employers and research institutions need. 

• Long-Term Accreditation Value:

  • The course description refers to “mix of accreditations, industry partnerships and employer connections” as part of the employability boost. 

  • Also, Sussex’s research performance is very strong: 100% of research impact in Computer Science & Informatics was assessed as world-leading or internationally excellent in REF 2021. That brings long-term reputation value to your degree. 

• Graduation Outcomes:

  • Graduates leave with deep technical skills in areas including software design, system design, machine learning, image processing, web applications/services, network science, human-computer interaction, and cloud/mobile computing. 

  • Because of the strong emphasis on both foundations and advanced topics, plus real-world or research exposure, many graduates are in good shape to take higher responsibility roles early or to contribute to innovation in their companies/sectors. 

Further Academic Progression:

If you complete the MSc Advanced Computer Science at Sussex and want to go further, here are logical paths:

• PhD / Research Degrees: Sussex is active in advanced computing research (AI, networks, HCI, etc.). If you enjoy research, you can apply for doctoral supervision in these fields.

• Specialised Postgraduate Certificates / Short Courses: After the MSc, you could specialize further via certifications or short-courses in subfields like quantum computing, deep learning / ML ops, image processing, etc.

• Industry Research / R&D Roles: This degree gives a strong base for roles in R&D departments of tech firms, laboratories, or innovation teams that work closely with universities.

• Professional Recognition & Continuous Learning: Depending on your country, the course credentials + your work experience will help you achieve professional certifications or Chartered status in relevant computing / IT bodies.

• Academic / Teaching-linked Roles: If you are inclined to academia, you could also consider roles like teaching assistant, lab instructor, or post-graduate researcher, either at Sussex or elsewhere.