IT & computing sector

Machine learning is having a substantial effect on many areas of technology and science; examples of recent applied success stories include robotics and autonomous vehicle control, speech processing and natural language processing, neuroscience research, and applications in computer vision.

A machine learning specialist is expected to hold a master’s degree in computer science or a related field. With this being said, you may also be considered for a specialist role with a degree in a non-related field if you possess practical machine learning experience from internships or work experience.

Therefore, it is important that you can display capability in machine learning by developing a portfolio of projects you have completed on GitHub, and by participating in open-source projects. Provided you show a potential employer your command of the field in practice then they will look past the absence of a specific degree - unless they are particularly focused on certain aspects of the field that are only covered in depth in academic environments.

 

Informatics describes the practice of information processing and the engineering of information systems; as an academic field it is an applied form of information science. The field considers the interaction between humans and information alongside the construction of interfaces, organisations, technologies and systems. As such, the field of informatics has great breadth and encompasses many subspecialties, including disciplines of computer science, information systems, information technology and statistics.

Since the advent of computers, individuals and organisations increasingly process information digitally. This has led to the study of informatics with computational, mathematical, biological, cognitive and social aspects, including study of the social impact of information technologies.

Throughout your degree you may use systems that develop and improve methods for acquiring, storing, organising and analysing data sets, to provide specific results, such as GIS systems (e.g. ArcGIS) and statistics packages (e.g. SPSS.) Informatics careers take these approaches to a whole new level, utilising ‘big data’ sets to inform strategic decision-making and the delivery of tailored services.

Informatics and data are used by many organisations to provide targeted information and tailored experiences, with several items appearing in the news concerning the use of such data. Indeed, this has influenced the development of new guidance such as General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR), to protect members of the public regarding the use of their information.

Although careers featuring the word “Informatics” may be limited (e.g. NHS Clinical Bioinformatics), it may be helpful to think of opportunities more broadly, including titles such as Data Analyst and Business Analyst.

Environmental roles

A wealth of environmental data is gathered continuously and requires people to make sense of it and use it effectively. The Met Office has its own Informatics Lab, combining scientists, technologists, and designers to make environmental science and data useful, building prototypes to test new technologies, techniques and designs.

IT roles

IT roles include analyst programmer; business analyst; computer games developer; e-commerce developer; information architect; interaction developer; IT manager; management consultant; mobile app engineer; online marketing analyst; project manager; quality assurance lead; software engineer; user experience architect; video production manager; web application developer. In addition, roles such as cyber security specialist relate to the use of data.

Logic and Mathematical Informaticist

Test new operating systems, encoding and decoding of private information, as well as researching data implications on artificial intelligence and bioinformatics.

Social Informaticist

Studies the interdisciplinary effects of information technology, ranging from its design and usage to its many effects. They use the critical thinking methods of psychologists, historians, and anthropologists in the exploration of cultural and social contexts of IT.

Security Informaticist

They are responsible for designing, implementing, and managing the security of programmes and take economics, legislation, and social behaviour into consideration when it comes to making programmes for privacy and security.

Music Informaticist

Explores the new applications of music as data in different forms: audio, performance, graphical, or symbolic. They deal with music search, synthesis of music, music source operation, music composition for games, optical music recognition, audio signal-to-score, score following, and music analysis.

Complex Systems Analyst

An informaticist who specialises in discovering and understanding the different parts of the system and how they interact with each other. This interdisciplinary field combines the studies of physics, maths, biology, computer science and social sciences.

Many of our graduates from University of Birmingham have gone on to pursue careers in the IT and computing sector.  

Read, watch and listen to graduate stories.

IT & computing events

If you have questions and want to find out more about pursuing a career in IT & computing, have a chat with one of our Careers Advisers. 

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LinkedIn Learning has over 13,000 courses to enhance your CV and stand out from the crowd when thinking about a career in IT and computing.

University of Birmingham students get free access to LinkedIn Learning.

An increasing number of organisations offer work experience and internships involving statistics and data analysis.

FDM Group is a professional services provider with a focus on IT and is also the UK’s leading IT graduate employer. FDM’s business model is both unique and robust, bringing people and technology together. (Although it focuses on IT, only approximately 10% of its graduate workforce have an IT background; successful applicants span a wide range of disciplines including Biosciences, Geography and Geology and are trained to become IT consultants once recruited). In addition to recruiting over 1,000 new graduates annually, FDM offers a number of internships and placements, including a year-long data analysis role, created to enable the company to identify and act upon significant trends in their graduate recruitment.

Successful internship applications require applicants to demonstrate competency using standard data packages such as Excel. It isn’t satisfactory to tell the employer that you can use the programme – what can you do with it? Consider what evidence you can provide to demonstrate your abilities. For example, how might you have used it during your studies to assist with project data? If you lack some crucial knowledge, remember that a range of digital and technology skills courses  are available through the University.

You may be eligible to apply for work experience bursaries through The University of Birmingham. For more details visit the internship funding pages. 

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