Social Data Science

University of Oxford has opted into the TEF and received a Gold award.

The information provided on this page was correct at the time of publication (October 2020). For complete and up-to-date information about this course, please visit the relevant University of Oxford course page via www.graduate.ox.ac.uk/ucasThe multidisciplinary DPhil in Social Data Science provides opportunity for highly qualified students to undertake cutting- edge research focused on using unstructured heterogeneous data about human behaviour in a theoretically informed manner, thereby advancing our understanding of social processes.Social traces - often generated digitally from, for example, social media, communications platforms, devices, sensors/wearables, and mobile phones - offer a way to accumulate new large-scale data, in addition to existing archives and repositories that have been converted to digital formats. Such data can be put to work helping us understand old and new foundational problems of crucial interest to the social sciences, industry, and policy-makers including social, economic and political behaviour, interpersonal relationships, market design, group formation, identity, international movement, ethics and responsible ways to enhance the social value of data, and many other topics.The growing field of social data science involves developing the science of these social data: creating viable datasets out of messy, real world data; and developing the tools and techniques to analyse them to tell us something about the world, through explanation, prediction and the testing of interventions. In this way, social data science offers a data science where the data relates to individual and social behaviour and a theoretically informed social science with generation and analysis of real-time transactional data at its centre.Over the course of the three to four years, you are expected to produce an important and original piece of scholarship that will make a significant contribution to the dynamic area of Social Data Science. On completion, you will have the qualities and transferable skills necessary to excel in teaching, research, policymaking or business.The DPhil programme at the Oxford Internet Institute (OII) is also available on a part-time basis. The part-time programme is spread over six to eight years of study and research. The part-time degree offers the flexibility of part-time study with the same high standards and requirements as the full-time DPhil programme. The part-time DPhil also provides an excellent opportunity for professionals in high tech industries to undertake rigorous long-term research that may be relevant to their working life.

Some 140 countries have attendees at Oxford and some 60% of the total student body is from outside the UK. There are various programs available for international students to help with orientation and integrating with life in Oxford as well as to help with legal matters such as immigration and visas. They can also help with practical matters such as dealing with finances and accessing health care with the National Health Service (NHS). Student life is filled with many traditions as befits a university of Oxford's age. One of these are the balls, held by the colleges with a formal dress code as well as smaller events regularly during the year. The Oxford University Student Union or OUSU, represents students and is their voice in debate about the university as well as organising student life organisations. There are a large number of sports available outside the classroom and many of these are of a high standard. The Boat Race is a famous example of a rowing race with nearby Cambridge University that is watched by up to 10 million TV viewers each year. There are also student newspapers and a radio station as well as performing arts groups. There are also student societies open to students who aren't studying the subject to learn something new and different.