Studying AI and Cognitive Science at University
Artificial Intelligence and Cognitive Science - or a combination of
the two - are amongst the most exciting and valuable subjects you
can study at university. This page is intended to give you some
idea of why you might want to choose these subjects for your
undergraduate degree, what kind of future such a degree might
qualify you for and where you should look for further information.
Why study AI or CogSci?
- An interesting and practical degree When choosing a
course at university, many people are torn between the
academic approach - what subject really interests me?
- and the practical approach - what subject will
provide a good basis for my career? AI and CogSci are
two of the few subjects that can easily fill both
these criteria.
- Depending what course you study, you will have the opportunity to
explore a wide range of theoretical and practical fields ranging from
philosophical approaches and theory of mind to much more technical
subjects and you can often have a lot of freedom to choose the
subjects that interest you most.
- At the end, even if you have
chosen some of the more abstract options, you will still have a
degree that contains a signficant practical component and that is
highly rated by employers.
- Changing the world AI technology is behind a
large numbers of advances that are changing the way we
live our lives. Studying AI gives you an insight into
how these changes are occuring and what might be
happening next and put you in a perfect position to
become involved in these changes yourself.
- Job Prospects A degree in AI is one of the best
qualifications you can have for a technical career and
you will learn valuable programming skills. If you want
to go into a completely different field, AI is a good
general degree as it demonstrates a broad eduction,
analytical skills and an enquiring mind.
How can I learn more?
- Where can I study these subjects? Many univeristies have
some form of AI or CogSci available. These are often found in the
computer science department (AI) or the phsycology department
(CogSci). A few universities have seperate AI or CogSci departments
or Informatics departments, which typically comprise AI, CogSci and
Computer Science. In many universities, you can study these subjects
individually, combined with each other, as part of a different degree
(e.g., taking a few AI courses in a Computer Science degree) or as a
joint degree with many other unrelated subjects. The approach to
these subjects and the possible combinations with other subjects may
differ greatly between universities and you are recommended to look
into what is on offer carefully before applying. See our courses page for help finding an appropriate
undergraduate or postgraduate course. Once you have
found a course and a university you might be interested in, you are
recommended to contact the department for more information.
- What kind of work is being done in these subjects? You can
visit our demo page (add link) to experiment with a
few examples of the projects that are being developed in
the field and the kinds of things you might get involved
in if you choose to study this subject.
- Women in AI Computer related subjects are often thought of
as being very male dominated and, for that reason,
girls are often put off applying to such courses.
However, there are excellent opportunities for women
in these subjects and many women have achieved very
senior positions and great success in the field. Most
courses have a good gender balance and the varied nature
of the subjects mean that there is a wide scope for
varied interests: these subjects are not dominated by
stereotypical male geeks!
- Our AI Bites
Factsheets give a brief introduction to various
topics in Artificial Intelligence.
Conact Us If you would like to find out more or would like
information on open days you can attend, please
contact us (add my committee email address). If there
are several people at your school who are interested
in the subject, we may be able to come and visit you
to talk to you about it and to show you some demos.
However, due to the limited resources of the society,
this is not always possible.
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