Explore the opportunities from an online bachelor's degree in data science and analytics. Students develop high-value skills in analysis, modelling and statistics.
An online Bachelor of Data Science or similar degree can set you up for job success. Graduates come away with the foundation skills for an interesting and rewarding career as an analyst or data scientist.
You can major in data science and analytics in an information technology or computer science program. The best degrees provide solid preparation for a career working with big data. Students develop technology skills broadly while building key strengths in technical analysis.
Why a Bachelor's in Data Science Is Worth It
Getting a degree in data science is one of the single most powerful ways to boost your value in the job market. Analysis skills are in demand whether you work as a technical specialist or as a bridge between technology and business leaders.
Useful skills
By learning analytics, you acquire the ability to extract human-level information and insights from data. This is an amazing skill to possess.
To keep pace with the explosion of big data in all industries, universities have introduced numerous analytics programs in recent years. Students are learning how to find patterns, predictions, stories, and meaning in large, complex information sets.
Not just data analysis
What you can do with a data science degree is broader than many people imagine.
The value of data comes not from the difficulty or brilliance of the computations performed, but in how information and insights influence human decision-making. Professional roles and opportunities for people skilled in analysing data extend into communication, advisory and leadership fields.
Data Science and Analytics Degrees
The best degrees in analytics/data science train students to become data scientists. The programs offer hands-on experience in data-centric problem-solving, complemented by general IT and computer studies. Australia's leading distance education universities offer the degrees entirely online.
Deakin - Bachelor of Computer Science (Data Science)
Deakin University's Data Science Major covers topics such as data mining, machine learning, deep learning, software architecture and scalability, natural language processing, and AI. The program equips students with the knowledge and practical skills to design and develop innovative software solutions to solve complex problems. Students have access to specialised labs and facilities, industry-based learning opportunities, and a minimum of 100 hours of hands-on experience. The course is accredited by the Australian Computer Society (ACS).
UNE - Bachelor of Computer Science (Data Science)
The online Bachelor of Computer Science (Data Science) from the University of New England is designed to build strong programming, technical, mathematical, and problem-solving skills that are broadly in demand. The degree includes core subjects that will provide students with a solid programming, mathematical, and software engineering background. You will have the opportunity to participate in a team project and develop solutions to real-world computing problems. The Data Science major covers topics such as statistical machine learning, distributed computing, and computational science.
Learning Outcomes
An undergraduate program with a data concentration covers essential skills, such as using programming languages and big data analytical tools, performing statistical analysis through R language, and predictive modelling methods.
Additionally, you'll learn how to structure data for problem-solving and present it visually. These skills can be further honed as a professional analyst.
To become job-ready, consider studying business intelligence and analytics as part of any computing or IT degree. The analytical skills most sought after by employers include dataset management, statistical analysis, and data visualisation.
Best Degrees for Data Science
Something aspiring data scientists should be aware of is that you don't have to do a data science bachelor degree to enter this field. In fact, the discipline is usually studied at a postgraduate level by graduates from different backgrounds.
The best degree to become a data scientist is a Master of Data Science. Other postgraduate study options include the relatively short Graduate Certificate of Data Science or Graduate Certificate of Data Analytics, which are normally four subjects. A graduate diploma (8 subjects) is another good choice.
A specialist master's degree is ideal because it allows you to efficiently develop the practical skills required in practice. Postgraduate courses avoid dwelling on the theory or foundation knowledge that is taught in undergraduate computing degrees. The focus is on applied skills development.
To qualify for a master's program, it is generally sufficient that you hold a maths-heavy bachelor degree or have gained equivalent professional experience. The best closely-related undergraduate degrees for a career in this field include Business Analytics, Computer Science, Information Technology, and Mathematics and Statistics.
Careers Opportunities – Job Ad Snippets
Snippets from jobs ads. Random sample.
Junior Data Analyst (Internship) – Hello Fresh
This role is a fantastic opportunity for a recent graduate or someone part way through their studies with a numerical and analytical background. On a daily basis, you will responsible for extracting and analysing data, drawing actionable insights to enable decision-making on the key questions facing all areas of operations.
Data Insights Analyst – HotelsCombined
We are looking for a passionate insights analyst who is commercially minded and approaches work with a ‘start-up’ attitude. Working within our Product team, this is a great opportunity to put your deep data and analytical talents to use and have some fun along the way. In this role you will discover actionable insights into user behaviour, enabling us to continually improve our core products.
Data Scientist / Analyst – Airservices Australia
A typical application is the analysis of aircraft delays into major airports, to identify causal factors and provide intelligence on where to invest efforts to reduce delay and deliver tangible outcomes for our airline customers.
Data Analyst – Domain
As an analyst in our SEO (search engine optimisation) team, you will leverage your deep experience in data analysis and mining to drive significant organic search traffic and user engagement growth for our network of websites.
Data Analyst – Energy Strategic Partners
In this role, you will be responsible for tracking and analysing trends and performance of each supplier in areas such as pricing and products, as well as reporting internal supplier KPIs e.g. Sales performance, supplier mix and quality metrics such as go-live and compliance levels.
Data Scientist – Nearmap
Want to do petabyte scale deep learning and ship product to real customers? At Nearmap, we're growing our team, and we’re after a data scientist / machine learning engineer who’s got enough experience to just come in and get stuck into it.
Data Scientist – Allianz
You will use your analytical and machine learning skills to help the business make smarter decisions to improve processes. Apply data mining techniques, doing statistical analysis and creating predictive modelling that can be used to drive and improve business processes.
Data Scientist – Westpac Group
We are looking for Data Scientists. Through the application of data mining, predictive analytics and machine learning techniques they will support teams across the bank. The ideal candidate is adept at using large datasets and streaming data to find opportunities to help optimise portfolio performance, identify customer needs and test the effectiveness of different courses of action.
