| Qualifications |
Duration |
Start dates |
Application period |
PhD
(MPhil also available) |
Full-time: 3–4 years
Part-time: 6–8 years |
February and October |
January to April |
Qualifications
PhD (MPhil also available) |
Duration
Full-time: 3–4 years
Part-time: 6–8 years |
Start dates
February and October |
Application period
January to April |
Computational Social Science research targets the enhancement of critical societal issues through the use of Artificial Intelligence solutions. This research aligns to the core values of The Open University, and has contributed to urgent and vital topics, such as misinformation detection, online radicalisation and extremism, crisis management, and climate change.
In the last few years, our research on Computational Social Science has attracted funding for five European projects (HERoS, Co-Inform, Trivalent, DecarboNet and COMRADES), and has led to the publication of more than 100 scientific articles. Among the technologies developed, CREES (Crisis Event Extraction Service), an advanced Artificial Intelligent method that identifies crisis events in social media streams, is being used by various humanitarian organisations.
Entry requirements
Minimum 2:1 undergraduate degree (or equivalent). If you are not a UK citizen, you may need to prove your knowledge of English.
Potential research projects
- Artificial Intelligence and the impact of the gender data gap
- Bias in financial AI models
- Online harm
- Online misinformation
- Role of social media in disaster situations
Current/recent research projects
Potential supervisors
Fees and funding
| UK fee |
International fee |
| Full-time: £4,786 per year |
Full-time: £15,698 per year |
| Part-time: £2,393 per year |
Part-time: £7,849 per year |
Some of our research students are funded via a Doctoral Training Partnership; others are self-funded.
For detailed information about fees and funding, visit Fees and studentships.
To see current funded studentship vacancies across all research areas, see Current studentships.
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