The Master of Science in Digital Humanities helps graduates from Humanities, Social and Behavioral Sciences programmes to develop digital competencies that will allow them to add digital dimensions to their own domain expertise. It aims to explicitly link these competencies to research questions, case studies and applications related to the domain expertise of the students.
Graduates of this programme will be able to bring their own domain expertise to a significantly higher level of functionality, using digital tools and techniques. Building both on the expertise they obtained from the programme and their prior expertise in Humanities, Social or Behavioral Sciences, graduates will be well placed to open many new digital applications to a much wider community. Moreover, those who wish to move to a professional profile involving more advanced digital competencies, are well prepared to do so.
The programme is organized around a number of clusters of course units. The central clusters are the Application Domains cluster and the Tools for the Digital World cluster. Supporting clusters are the Introductory Digitization Components cluster, the Advanced Digitization Components cluster and the Management Component. The heart of the research activities is situated in the Master’s thesis.
The Master’s Programme is conceived as a one year, international and multidisciplinary advanced master programme (master-after-master). The programme is unique in Flanders and one of only a few in Europe. The programme is firmly framed in an explicit collaboration between the Faculty of Arts, the Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, the Faculty of Social Sciences and the Faculty of Sciences - Department of Computer Science. As such, it is supported by experts in Digital Humanities applications, who supply research expertise for the programme, as well as by experts in digital techniques and tools, who provide a sound technical basis for the students.
Digitization affects in many ways how future scientists in Humanities and Behavioural Sciences will conduct their research. Also, graduates from Humanities and Behavioural Sciences programs enter a professional world in which digitization becomes the standard, be it in publishing, arts, libraries, teaching and many others.
The Master of Science in Digital Humanities program aims to prepare graduates from Humanities and Behavioural Sciences programs for these challenges. It aims to help such graduates to develop digital competencies that will allow them to add digital dimensions to their own domain expertise. It aims to explicitly link this knowledge and these competencies to case studies and applications related to the domain expertise of the students. It will train them to master information structures and functionalities of data, programming structures and technique to produce scripts for digital applications, tools for improving access and interactive use of data and the development of new digital applications. It will train them how to manage projects related to digitization and introduce them to emerging new digital technologies and their applications.
As an advanced master program (master-after master), it is assumed that the students entering this program have already achieved the general academic competencies defined for any master's program. Nevertheless, it is also within the aims of the program to further strengthen these competencies, within the specific context that Digital Humanities offers.
More specifically, graduates understand the basics of Digital Humanities, databases and query languages, scripting languages, the role of IT in management and of some of the emerging technologies in Digital Humanities. They are able to formulate research goals, determine trajectories that achieve these goals, collect and select information relevant to achieve the research goals and interpret collected information on the basis of a critical research attitude. They are able to communicate scientifically. They are able to model a database and use SQL, to use a scripting language, to apply tools for Digital Humanities and to study applications in Digital Humanities. They have the attitudes of valuing and fostering creative, critical and independent thinking, of applying an interdisciplinary and participative approach in innovative development and of striving towards opening the digital world to a broader society.
Academically, researchers in the Humanities, Social or Behavioral Science are confronted with the need to apply digital tools to facilitate and enhance their research. The program enables graduates to enhance their research in the Humanities, Social or Behavioral Sciences through non-trivial uses of digital tools and techniques. This may include modeling and querying databases, accessing data, interconnecting andquerying web resources, extending tools with scripts to provide extra functionality, text-encoding and e-publishing, mining repositories, data visualization, analyzing social networks, adopting, adapting and enhancing e-learning environments, improvingusability of human-computer interaction. As such, graduates are very well placed to take on the challenges that novel research positions require.
Professionally, graduates of the Humanities, Social of Behavioral Sciences enter professional environments where connecting the company’s business with digital tools and techniques has become standard. Here as well, the program enables its graduates to put to use non-trivial digital techniques in their professional occupations, including e-media, publishing, arts, history, culture, music, libraries, e-education or interactions for end-user applications. Thus, graduates who want to pursue a career in the usual sectors for graduates of the Humanities, Social or Behavioral Sciences will be much better prepared to cope with the digital techniques that are currently applied there.
More generally, graduates of this program provide society with professionals and researchers who are able to bring their own domain expertise to a higher level of functionality, using digital tools and techniques. Building both on the expertise they obtained from the program and their prior expertise in Humanities, Social or Behavioral Sciences, are well placed to take part in opening the digital world to a larger community.
Graduates of this program who wish to move to a job profile involving more advanced digital competencies, are prepared to do so and will help to close to gap in an IT-focused labor market. This will require extra training at the company and aims at positions such as project analysts, project managers, service managers.
Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning, Big Data. New technologies and ways of working are changing the way we make decisions.
This programme will take your career to the next level and develop your ability to confidently make high impact businesses decisions that are driven by data.
The programme focuses on two key areas: analysing business data, and solving business challenges analytically. Optional modules allow you to further specialise in areas such as the economic, managerial or finance aspects of the subject.
Furthermore, you will benefit from hands-on experience of a wide range of analytics software such as simulators and mathematical tools.
The programme is studied full-time over one academic year. It consists of eight taught modules and a dissertation.
Example module listing
The following modules are indicative, reflecting the information available at the time of publication. Please note that not all modules described are compulsory and may be subject to teaching availability and/or student demand.
Business analytics students often pursue careers as consultants, researchers, managers, and analysts.
You will get hands-on experience using a wide range of tools in the course. An indicative list of the software tools is as follows:
This programme is run in cooperation with IBM.
The programme’s aim is to provide a high quality education that is both intellectually rigorous and at the forefront of management science research, relevant for problem solving and decision making by managers.
It will respond to the emergent needs of corporations and academia for professionals who are able to work with analytical tools to generate value from available Information depots and take advantage of the vast amounts of data now provided by the modern ICT and ERP systems, which underlie the operations of modern corporations.
The programme will implant understanding of the theoretical base around knowledge management and knowledge work, practical skills and experience in using analytical software tools.
It will allow future professional managers and consultants to cope with an increasingly complex and global operational environment of the modern corporation.
Completion of the programme will provide a sound foundation for those considering continuing their academic development towards a PhD degree in the management disciplines.
The programme is structured in a way that would provide students with a choice between a more quantitative intensive track of modules or a qualitative analytic (business development track) which would reflect students’ personal strengths and preferences and match future career aspirations.
The compulsory modules provide a sound foundation which builds an analytical skillset using relevant statistical and management theories, and supports the development of practical hands-on experience applying the theoretical aspects using real-world data to address corporate challenges and find solutions to actual problems.
The readings in the module will build a sound basis which would allow students to access and understand the academic literature and undertake empirical investigations in the areas of decision modelling and business development.
We often give our students the opportunity to acquire international experience during their degrees by taking advantage of our exchange agreements with overseas universities.
In addition to the hugely enjoyable and satisfying experience, time spent abroad adds a distinctive element to your CV.
Surrey Business School is accredited by the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB) and by the Association of MBAs (AMBA).
