This research Master's programme focuses on technology and the applications of virtual reality, computer graphics, imaging and computer vision. Students learn alongside world-leading researchers specialising in virtual reality, augmented reality, 3D modelling, visualisation, interfaces, gaming and social. They will partake in UCL's multidisciplinary tradition, sharing ideas and resources across UCL Engineering and beyond.
Students will learn how to analyse, engineer and evaluate a broad range of virtual reality and augmented reality systems. They will discover how to analyse the requirements for interfaces, such as type of system, role of application tasks and perceptual requirements. They will learn how to develop for advanced immersive systems as well as how to validate and evaluate those systems.
Students undertake modules to the value of 180 credits.
The programme consists of an individual dissertation (75 credits), a group research project (30 credits), four optional modules (45 credits), and two transferable skills modules (30 credits).
Core modules
All of the following modules must be taken.
If the cohort is not large enough to run the Group Project, students will take a second individual research project instead.
Optional modules
Students choose four optional modules (45 credits in total) from the following list.
One of the transferable skills modules must be Researcher Professional Development or Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice.
It is also possible for students to select other advanced taught or research modules, with approval.
Please note that registration on optional modules is subject to demand and cannot be guaranteed.
*Indicates transferable skills module. At least one of these transferable skills modules must be taken.
Dissertation/report
All students will undertake an individual research project (75 credits) which culminates in a dissertation of 10,000 - 12,000 words and a 15-minute oral presentation.
Teaching and learning
The programme is delivered through a combination of lectures, lab practicals and tutorials, and is assessed through examinations, presentations, dissertation and coursework.
We equip our graduates for jobs in organisations including creative media companies, global IT companies and 3D graphics and product design specialists. We expect graduates to be able to develop state-of-the-art systems that fulfil a broad range of application needs.
Many of our alumni work in the various media industries across London. A significant number have founded their own successful start-up companies.
With virtual reality and associated technologies being relatively new, industry needs individuals with a broad ability to design and evaluate systems. VEIV and UCL provide a multidisciplinary environment where students can specialise in a particular area, but also get a broad understanding of the various ways that novel immersive technologies are being analysed and developed.
The Virtual Reality MRes is run by UCL’s Virtual Environments, Interaction and Visualisation (VEIV) Centre. This centre has been a world leader in computational capture, rendering and simulation for the past 15 years.
VEIV has access to UCL’s exceptional virtual reality facilities, including a full range of consumer AR & VR equipment, motion capture systems, a large CAVE projection room system and haptic robots.
MA Virtual Reality (VR) explores both the practical and theoretical implications of emerging virtual reality technologies. The course will help to position you at the forefront of setting narratives and developing a critical language of how virtual reality can be applied across a vast range of media products.
MA Virtual Reality will equip you with the technical resources and specialist guidance needed to test and develop virtual experiences across a range of media platforms including 3D computer animation, 360-degree filmmaking, games and interactive AR applications.
You’ll experiment with new approaches to the use of these technologies, as well as explore the design and conceptualisation pipeline for these virtual experiences.
The course is delivered across four terms, starting in September and finishing in December the year after. Incorporating a summer break, this is a one-year full-time course (45 taught weeks), delivered over 15 months.
Term 1
1.1 Creative VR Project Portfolio (40 Credits)
1.2 Designing Immersive Experiences (20 Credits)
Terms 2 and 3
2.1 Critical Practice and Exploration (40 Credits)
2.2 Collaborative Unit (20 Credits)
Term 4
3.1 Final Major Project and Thesis (60 Credits)
Serious games and virtual reality represent a large, and actively growing, industry – the application of modern games technology in a wide range of areas around medicine, training, education, security and beyond. While educational games already represent a multi-billion dollar global industry, the recent growth in virtual reality has seen predictions that this market will grow to $150 billion dollars by 2020 (Techcrunch, April 6, 2015).
The MSc provides students with the skills to become a key part of this explosive growth, and potential to become key innovators in this exciting and rapidly developing area. The MSc offers students with prior programming/scripting experience the transferable skills to design, develop and analyse games and simulations for a range of application areas and to conduct interdisciplinary research in the serious applications of games technology, particularly in healthcare, education and training.
As Virtual Reality and interaction technologies approach mainstream adoption, new opportunities for the application of immersive games technologies in engineering, medicine and in the home are putting games at the forefront of innovation worldwide.
At the School of Simulation and Visualisation we already have years of experience working on a wide range of serious games based projects for industrial, medical, heritage and education clients, building on our research and our expertise in 3D modeling and animation, motion capture technology and software development. We are pleased to be able to share our experience and expertise with this MSc.
Programme Structure:
Stage 1
Core Research Skills for Postgraduates
Games Programming
Serious Game Design and Research
School of Simulation and Visualisation Elective: Choose one from
Interactive Heritage Visualisation
Applications in Medical Visualisation
Stage 2
Motion Capture & Interaction
Audio for games & interactive applications
Serious Games Development
GSA Elective
Stage 3
MSc Research Project
Entry Qualifications:
You should have a Honours degree or equivalent professional practice in any of the following disciplines:
Computer science, computer graphics, computer programming, software development, mathematics, or physics
Computer games programming, game development, game design, game art, 3D modeling and animation, interactive systems
High calibre graduates from other disciplines may be considered if they are able to demonstrate an interest and ability in the field of serious games development.
IELTS 6.0 for overseas applicants for whom English is not their first language.
Scholarships and Funded Places:
Information on career development loans and financial support can be found in the fees and funding pages.
For many people regular physical exercise is not carried out a sufficient level to stay healthy and maintain a basic level of fitness. This project will examine if augmenting a conventional exercise routine with recreational virtual environments, will increase the intrinsic mo tivation with a group of users.
Building on research in VR/AR platforms with 3D 6 Degrees of Freedom accurate low latency controllers where users’ physical movement can be tracked ,the game /experience will lead the user through a number of predefined physical activities over a specific time period.
The user’s movements and other biometric data are collated and assessed in the context of the user’s perception of exertion and motivation to continue to carry out the exercise. We hope to gain an understanding of the links between differing VR/AR experiences and motivation to carry out physical exercise.
This project will use a mixed methodology. A pilot study will be carried out on usage of the new the new system.
Through knowledge creation, application and transfer, this project will deepen our understanding of the factors determining motivation for physical exercise in a VR/AR environment. In line with the IT Carlow’s strategic research objectives, the outputs will be disseminated through publication in peer-reviewed journals and at conferences.
Accredited by the British Computer Society
Speech and language technology graduates are in demand, in areas like machine translation, document indexing and retrieval, and speech recognition. Our world-leading language and speech research staff will help you to develop the skills you need.
Our courses give you experience of how real-world projects work. We consult with big employers to ensure that you develop the skills and the personal qualities they’re looking for.
You’ll learn about the issues that matter in global business and industry. Our graduates go into academic and industrial research, the software industry, banking and finance. They work for companies such as Logica, IBM, Hewlett Packard, PWC, Vodafone, the BBC and HSBC.
Our challenge is to use computation to understand all kinds of systems: computer systems, living systems and cognitive systems. Our research areas include robotics, machine learning, speech and language processing, virtual reality, computational systems biology and software verification and testing. It’s work that makes a difference to people’s lives.
We have our own high-performance network so you can access our advanced computing facilities. There are labs for teaching smaller groups, wi-fi coverage throughout the department, and you can connect your own laptop to the network. Mobile devices and tablets are available for you to borrow for project work.
We also use specialised equipment: an immersive virtual reality facility, robotics hardware and an acoustic booth for speech processing research.
We use lectures, tutorials and group work. Assessment is by formal examinations, coursework assignments and a dissertation.
Accredited by the British Computer Society
If your first degree is in another subject but you want a career in computing, this course is for you. It will give you a solid grounding in software systems engineering and current topics in internet computing.
Our courses give you experience of how real-world projects work. We consult with big employers to ensure that you develop the skills and the personal qualities they’re looking for.
You’ll learn about the issues that matter in global business and industry. Our graduates go into academic and industrial research, the software industry, banking and finance. They work for companies such as Logica, IBM, Hewlett Packard, PWC, Vodafone, the BBC and HSBC.
Our challenge is to use computation to understand all kinds of systems: computer systems, living systems and cognitive systems. Our research areas include robotics, machine learning, speech and language processing, virtual reality, computational systems biology and software verification and testing. It’s work that makes a difference to people’s lives.
We have our own high-performance network so you can access our advanced computing facilities. There are labs for teaching smaller groups, wi-fi coverage throughout the department, and you can connect your own laptop to the network. Mobile devices and tablets are available for you to borrow for project work.
We also use specialised equipment: an immersive virtual reality facility, robotics hardware and an acoustic booth for speech processing research.
We use lectures, tutorials and group work. Assessment is by formal examinations, coursework assignments and a dissertation.
Accredited by the British Computer Society
Turn your fascination with how things work into a successful career in business or industry. We’ll give you an advanced education in the most up-to-date aspects of computer science and software engineering, informed by our wide-ranging research interests. Innovative project work will teach you how to apply your knowledge in the real world.
Our courses give you experience of how real-world projects work. We consult with big employers to ensure that you develop the skills and the personal qualities they’re looking for.
You’ll learn about the issues that matter in global business and industry. Our graduates go into academic and industrial research, the software industry, banking and finance. They work for companies such as Logica, IBM, Hewlett Packard, PWC, Vodafone, the BBC and HSBC.
Our challenge is to use computation to understand all kinds of systems: computer systems, living systems and cognitive systems. Our research areas include robotics, machine learning, speech and language processing, virtual reality, computational systems biology and software verification and testing. It’s work that makes a difference to people’s lives.
We have our own high-performance network so you can access our advanced computing facilities. There are labs for teaching smaller groups, wi-fi coverage throughout the department, and you can connect your own laptop to the network. Mobile devices and tablets are available for you to borrow for project work.
We also use specialised equipment: an immersive virtual reality facility, robotics hardware and an acoustic booth for speech processing research.
We use lectures, tutorials and group work. Assessment is by formal examinations, coursework assignments and a dissertation.
Accredited by the British Computer Society
We teach you how to build robust, effective software systems, and how to critique and evaluate the latest software engineering techniques.
Through project work, you’ll learn how to apply your knowledge in the real world.
Genesys Solutions is unique: an IT company run by students, with its own premises next to the department. As a student on this course you can join the company to work on software projects for real clients in a real business environment.
Our courses give you experience of how real-world projects work. We consult with big employers to ensure that you develop the skills and the personal qualities they’re looking for.
You’ll learn about the issues that matter in global business and industry. Our graduates go into academic and industrial research, the software industry, banking and finance. They work for companies such as Logica, IBM, Hewlett Packard, PWC, Vodafone, the BBC and HSBC.
Our challenge is to use computation to understand all kinds of systems: computer systems, living systems and cognitive systems. Our research areas include robotics, machine learning, speech and language processing, virtual reality, computational systems biology and software verification and testing. It’s work that makes a difference to people’s lives.
We have our own high-performance network so you can access our advanced computing facilities. There are labs for teaching smaller groups, wi-fi coverage throughout the department, and you can connect your own laptop to the network. Mobile devices and tablets are available for you to borrow for project work.
We also use specialised equipment: an immersive virtual reality facility, robotics hardware and an acoustic booth for speech processing research.
We use lectures, tutorials and group work. You can also learn on the job in our student- run software engineering and consultancy business, Genesys Solutions. Assessment is by formal examinations, coursework assignments and a dissertation.
Prepare for a career in social work with a course that is well connected with social work and social care service providers in the region. As a result of these connections, you get the benefit of supervised practical work in a range of social work settings.
Placements and work experience
Practical work experience is at the heart of this course. We have a 100% record of placing students in quality-audited placements. You spend 170 days putting what you’ve learned into practice in real working situations, such as • social work teams • family centres • primary care practices • hospitals • mental health settings • women's refuges and a range of family support services for vulnerable people.
These placements take place with our partners in local authority, private and voluntary agencies across South Yorkshire and the North East Midlands. Previous students have worked in statutory local authority social work teams, NHS mental health units, youth offending teams working with the police, and charities including the NSPCC, Age UK, Barnados, Mind and Women's Aid.
Your placements are supported by 30 specialist skills days. You work with experts, professionals and service users on specific topics such as how to assess risky behaviour, or interventions for safeguarding children. In your final year, we run a workshop with employers on how to apply for jobs in social work.
There are also opportunities to spend time studying abroad. Previous students have attended a summer school in Berlin, gaining new, international perspectives on social work and discovering how it is practised around the world.
Facilities
During the time you spend at university, you are based at our Collegiate Crescent Campus which includes our £13 million purpose-built Robert Winston Building, a newly built Heart of the Campus complex and a learning centre which is open 24 hours and seven days a week. You use specialist facilities including our courtroom, where you learn how to give evidence, and our virtual reality training environment which is used to practise different cases.
Expertise
We are one of the most experienced providers of social work, education in the country, and we have a wide range of expertise. Social work is part of the Faculty of Health and Wellbeing, which enables us to apply specialist knowledge and resources from across a range of health and social care professions.
All our teaching staff are qualified and experienced social workers, or have experience in related professions. You experience a range of different ways of learning, including role play with actors, real-life case studies and virtual reality experiences alongside lectures and seminars,
Many of our lecturers are involved in research in social work and have a well-established reputation in various international projects, including
This course is approved by the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC). After successfully completing the course you are eligible to apply to register with them to practise as a social worker.
We are in a transitional period where the work of the College of Social Work has come to an end and some functions are temporarily hosted by the British Association of Social Work.
This is a full time course that can lead to professional registration as a social worker and therefore requires extensive study.
Taught modules take place on average three days a week. but you will be required to engage in study outside of these times. A large proportion of the course is spent on placement within social care organisations – during these times you are required to attend for five days a week.
Social work programmes provide a combination of practice learning and academic modules, that build together in order to equip you with the range of knowledge and skills you need in order to meet the requirements of this challenging profession. The strategies of teaching, learning and assessment across the 24 months are progressive, so that you gradually develop the abilities to be a self-directed learner. At the beginning of each year there will be an induction period to help you orient yourself to the shape of your studies for that year, and the increasing levels of academic and professional standards expected of you.
Additionally, some of the academic modules contain skills days, which further reinforce that there are strong links between the intellectual abilities you need in order to be a social worker, and the practice skills that are also needed. The programme structure comprises five interrelated elements
Year one modules
Year two modules
You will be able to take advantage of a high demand for qualified social workers in the South Yorkshire and East Midlands regions and nationally in areas such as • social services departments • education and other local authority departments • residential care • housing associations • national and local voluntary organisations • private sector care providers.
You can work in careers alongside other professionals including • nurses • police officers • lawyers • teachers • occupational therapists • doctors • housing officers • a range of care and support staff.
You work with a range of people who require professional support such as • children and young people • parents and carers • people with mental health problems, learning difficulties or physical disabilities • older adults • refugees and asylum seekers.
Forensic Psychology is a challenging profession which involves working with vulnerable people, both offenders and victims. For this reason, the emphasis on this course is on building the skills and attributes which will prepare you for this challenge, underpinning your practice with a sound appreciation of academic research evidence and an understanding of the forensic psychologist’s role in the investigative and legal processes, and the assessment and treatment of offenders.
Core to this is the module The Practitioner Forensic Psychologist which gives you the opportunity to develop and critically reflect upon your emerging skills. For instance, a role-played interview with a mock offender will be videoed, allowing you and your tutors to assess your communication technique and identify the critical incidents in the interview. You will learn how to engage in reflective practice which is essential to maintaining professional competence and integrity, and through practical exercises you will begin to examine your own assumptions and biases that could affect your work. You will also explore the ethical, legal, professional and personal dilemmas which can arise in the settings where forensic psychologists work.This course has a focus on sex offending and you will examine the research evidence on the variety of sexual offenders and offences, and the causes and maintenance of sexual offending. Topics include the prevalence of rape myths, male victims, juvenile offenders, multiple perpetrator sexual offending including leadership, group dynamics and victim resistance, and sexually-motivated murder. Understanding of these issues then shapes the forensic psychologist’s approach to assessing risk and formulating treatment plans.
The course benefits from contributions from visiting speakers who contribute specialist insights from their work in different forensic settings. Regular guest lecturers include a senior investigator whose international work with child victims of sex offenders focuses on how to achieve best evidence in different cultural and legal contexts; and an international investigator with expertise of interviewing victims of torture.Assignments are designed to replicate aspects of a professional forensic psychologist’s workload. For instance, you will use assessment evidence to undertake an offence analysis and, from that, identify treatment targets and develop a case formulation for proposed interventions. Some modules are assessed by a portfolio of material based on practical activities undertaken in seminars, or on field visits to courts and prisons. While some assignments will take a conventional academic format, we also emphasise the importance of acquiring skills of communicating in different registers, including how to convey challenging material to a non-expert audience.
At dissertation stage, students use a range of qualitative and quantitative techniques to explore their professional and academic interests via an independent piece of research. EEG, virtual reality equipment, and biomarker measurement kit are available to those wishing to undertake experimental studies. Past and current students have presented their Master’s research at international conferences, on topics including: typologies of solo female sex offenders and solo female murderers; strategies of online grooming; the use of EEG to investigate psychopathy; and football fans’ attitudes towards professional footballers convicted of sexual assault.
Typically, full-time students study two days a week and part-time students study one day a week.
Accredited by the British Psychological Society, you will cover the core areas demanded of Stage 1 registration.
Develop specialist knowledge around the perpetration, investigation and prosecution of sexual offences, as well as the task of the forensic psychologist in assessing and treating offenders.
Make use of our forensic interviewing suite, kit for recording stress biomarkers, as well as cutting edge technology that includes EEG and virtual reality equipment.
The course equips students with skills and practical competencies for a career in forensic settings such as the police, prison and probation services, secure units, special hospitals, the Home Office, or to advance to further academic study and research.
The MSc in Data Analytics is designed for students with a numerate background (for example first degree in Mathematics, Engineering, Physics, Chemistry and other physical sciences) as well as graduates already working in industry.
The programme focuses on managing vast amounts of information and transforming it into actionable knowledge. It teaches the key skills that are required to carry out practical analysis of the types of data sets that need to be interpreted in the modern world. The types of data sets encountered include large data sets as well as structured and unstructured data. The programme makes use of techniques developed within a range of disciplines, including computer science, artificial intelligence, mathematics and statistics.
Our courses give you experience of how real-world projects work. We consult with big employers to ensure that you develop the skills and the personal qualities they’re looking for.
You’ll learn about the issues that matter in global business and industry. Our graduates go into academic and industrial research, the software industry, banking and finance. They work for companies such as Logica, IBM, Hewlett Packard, PWC, Vodafone, the BBC and HSBC.
Our challenge is to use computation to understand all kinds of systems: computer systems, living systems and cognitive systems. Our research areas include robotics, machine learning, speech and language processing, virtual reality, computational systems biology and software verification and testing. It’s work that makes a difference to people’s lives.
We have our own high-performance network so you can access our advanced computing facilities. There are labs for teaching smaller groups, wi-fi coverage throughout the department, and you can connect your own laptop to the network. Mobile devices and tablets are available for you to borrow for project work.
We also use specialised equipment: an immersive virtual reality facility, robotics hardware and an acoustic booth for speech processing research.
We use lectures, tutorials and group work. Assessment is by formal examinations, coursework assignments and a dissertation.
Robotics is on the cusp of an exciting new era as robots become more reactive, intelligent and human-like, as well as finding applications in a range of industries including consumer and healthcare robotics.
We are in the midst of an increase in the pace of technological change and the changes in the coming decade will be a magnitude of order greater than anything that has gone before. A paradigm shift is about to take place that will forever change society; our ability to manufacture novel robots and new artificial intelligence techniques will both change the way we interact with technology and will allow technology to interact with us and our world in a far more nuanced way.
This new MSc Robotics Engineering reflects recent software and hardware technological advances and exposes students to new, much sought-after skills and up-to-date areas of research. Recent technological advances are incorporated into the course by developing novel cross disciplinary approaches and subject areas such as Embedded Systems, Artificial Intelligence and Virtual Reality.
Robotics Engineering covers a wide range of specific topics such as:
The course will include an introduction to Robotics, covering topics such as actuators, sensors and mechatronics, with examples and categorization of robots (from mobile robots to robot arms and interactive robots); robotic applications including biomedical robotics (e.g. for minimally invasive surgery) and robotic rehabilitation, robotic hands (metamorphic hands, grasping and sensing) and industrial robotics; embedded systems and microcontrollers including the Internet of Things; the robot as a computational unit based on sensing, reasoning and action; Artificial Intelligence, navigation and machine learning. You will have the opportunity to develop the hardware and software for a robotic system.
Create your own story at the University of Hertfordshire’s School of Creative Arts!
