A laptop is not required for the completion of the program. 

However, if you have your own laptop, then that is definitely more convenient than using the university computers. You will have greater flexibility regarding the software installed, as well as dedicated access to the machine.

If you decide to rely on computers that are available on campus in computer pools and barns, you need to consider the following:

• Computer pools may be used for classes during the day or evening. Thus, you may not be able to find a computer available at the time you want to use it.
• Not all computer pools are open 24 hours a day
• Applications on the computers cannot be modified by students. If you need a particular application (e.g. Oracle VirtualBox), then you need to find a computer that has that software installed.
• There is no guarantee that all computers in every computer pool have the software that you want (for example, there are differences between software installed on computers at the Mawson Lakes campus compared with those at the City West campus).
• Data entered on computers does not persist after you log out. Thus, there is the need to save your output to a USB stick or external hard drive before you log off a computer. There is network storage available; however, that storage is for your documents (should you wish to save them), the storage may not be sufficient to house a 6 GB virtual machine which you will need to use in some of the courses.

If you are able to buy a new laptop for the program, then you should get one which will last for a few years. We do not recommend any particular brand or model, but there is some basic functionality you will need. Note that most of the major vendors will have discounted academic pricing, plus there is also this link for UniSA students (https://i.unisa.edu.au/askit/students/hardware-offers/).

We recommend the following:

• Processor: Minimum 2.6 Ghz Intel Core i7 (or equivalent) (i5 are not suited to data intensive processing).
• RAM: 16 GB or more.
• Storage:
  • Minimum size: 512 GB.
• Operating System:
  • Recommended: Linux.

The most important feature is memory (RAM). 4 GB RAM is definitely NOT sufficient, to run the Cloudera virtual machine for example. 8 GB RAM is a minimum; 16 GB RAM is recommended. Similarly, when doing data analysis, we need to be able to load files into memory. 16 GB is no longer considered a large file.

Yes...

...but not in every course. The textbooks are listed in the course outline document. It's best to wait until the first class to find out how much a textbook will actually be used on a week by week basis. You can then make a decision whether to purchase your own copy. Most courses cover topics that are quite specialised so there isn't a single book that matches the course content exactly.

All courses have a dedicated website in learnonline, which is the University’s online learning platform (you're here now!) and course study materials such as references and digital texts will also be made available there.

For some courses, yes - check your course outline

There are only a handful of courses with exams in the post graduate data science program, and those are mostly in year one of Master of Data Science. If there is a formal exam for your course, it will be centrally scheduled during the official exam period and held at a central examination venue. Alternative arrangements are made for external students.

The exam timetable is published in Week 8 and course specific exam information and exam preparation resources are made available by course coordinators shortly thereafter.

Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, in semester one of 2020, exams in all courses at UniSA were held online.

Yes

All courses in the program are available in two study modes, face-to-face and online through an external offering. However, if you are an international student, you should check with UniSA International as there are some restrictions. You can contact an international student advisor at the following email address: InternationalSupport@unisa.edu.au

There is no timetable for an external (online) offering

External students are free to study at their own pace using course resources made available to them by the course coordinator, as long as they adhere to assessment schedule set for the course. All courses have at least one online forum for communicating with the course coordinator and other students throughout the semester. In most cases there will also be some synchronous online sessions for external students, however arrangements for these will vary depending on course content as well as external students’ needs. Your course coordinator will advise you of those arrangements in the Course Outline and through the course learnonline website.

No

Working knowledge of fundamental concepts of statistics and probability is essential for Data Science. If you have not done much maths before, you should enrol in maths electives. If you have an IT background, enrolling in IT electives will do little to expand your knowledge and skills or prepare you for data analytics courses later in the program. You should choose electives that complement rather than replicate your current background. Contact the Program Director for advice on choosing your electives and follow that advice!

Don't worry - take some mathematics

Any student who successfully completes all semester one courses, including whichever two electives they chose with the advice of the Program Director, can proceed to enrol in semester two courses, regardless of their choice of electives. This exemption from pre-requisites is normally based on professional experience or equivalent knowledge and applies to:

• INFS 5100 – Predictive Analytics
• INFS 5102 – Unsupervised Methods in Analytics.

Contact the Program Director if you are unsure about this and follow their advice.

NOTE: This is intended to work in tandem with the point above about choosing mathematics electives. i.e. if you have previous experience in IT then take the mathematics electives and use your IT experience for exemption from the pre-requisites of the second semester courses.

No

There is no compulsory internship component within the program. Students are welcome to pursue internship opportunities outside of the university, or with research centres within the university. The Program Director will typically advise students of any internship opportunities they hear about. It is then up to the students to apply as well as look for opportunities on their own. High achieving students (GPA of 5.5 or higher) may also be able to secure an internship with an industry client, following successful completion of their capstone project.