NCI Course Details

The programme gives you the Mathematics, programming and problem-solving skills required to exploit data in addressing real-world problems. You will also develop your problem solving, teamwork, critical thinking and communication skills.

Graduates of this course can identify, clean, integrate, select, transform, and mine different types of datasets with consideration of ethical, privacy and data protection issues, in order to summarise and present new knowledge; design, implement and document algorithmic solutions that demonstrate use of processes, methodologies, tools and techniques that solve known problems; and utilise statistical analysis, modelling, data mining and machine learning tools and techniques to analyse datasets.

Join us at one of our upcoming CAO Open Day events were you will have the opportunity to chat to lecturers, experience the NCI campus and attend sample classes to get a taste of our CAO courses.

Click on the links below for more information:

• Saturday, November 23rd - 10am-1pm
• Saturday, January 25th 2025 - 10am-1pm
• Saturday, May 10th 2025 - 10am-1pm
• Saturday, June 28th 2025 - 10am-1pm

Year 1

Semester 1

• Computational Thinking
• Discrete Mathematics
• Programming Concepts
• Introduction to Data Science & Artificial Intelligence
• Web Design & Development

Semester 2

• Computer Architecture
• Introduction to Data Modelling and Databases
• The Computing Industry
• Introduction to Programming
• Operating Systems

Year 2

Semester 1

• Advanced Databases
• Data Programming
• Object Oriented Programming
• Web Application Development
• Statistics I

Semester 2

• Innovation and Business Entrepreneurship
• Data Mining and Machine Learning
• Data Visualisation
• Linear Algebra
• Statistics II

For information on the modules taught on this course view our module descriptors.

This two-year Higher Certificate course is run over four semesters with continuous assessment held throughout the course and examinations at the end of each semester.

On completion, you will receive a QQI Higher Certificate in Data Science at level 6 on the National Framework of Qualifications.

This course will be particularly appealing to students who are unsure about enrolling in a degree programme initially and see the Higher Certificate as a progression route to a degree at a later stage. The course is for school leavers, mature students and graduates of QQI level 5/6 programmes.

Upon successful completion of the Higher Certificate in Data Science, graduates can gain entry directly into year three of the BSc (Hons) in Data Science at NCI. 

This course will equip you with the technical computer science and data science skills to build a successful career as a technician in the areas of computing, data management and data analysis.

According to a Higher Education Outcomes Report released by the CSO, ICT graduates in 2010 had the highest median earnings 10 years after graduation compared to other sectors based on the analysis of the destinations of students who graduated between 2010 and 2019 .

Minimum entry requirements are a grade of O6/H7 or above in five subjects. A minimum of grade O4/H7 must be obtained in Mathematics. A minimum of grade O6/H7 must be obtained in English or Irish. These requirements are subject to QQI validation and will be confirmed in the coming weeks.

For applicants whose first language is not English, please note the English language entry requirements.

Mature applicants, applicants with a disability or those applying through the DARE or HEAR access schemes can find out more information on the application process.

Applicants from a PLC/further education course must meet the CAO points requirement, have a full level 5/6 award, and achieve one distinction. The distinction must be held in one of the following modules: B20029 or C20139 or C20174 or C20175 or N33029 or 4N2138 or 5N0554 or 5N0556 or 5N16654 or 5N1833 or 5N18396 or 5N2066 or 6N3395 (or H5 in LC maths or NCI Maths Qualifying Exam).

Please note that exams can be scheduled during the morning, afternoon or evening Monday to Saturday.

NCI strongly advises that all students should have access to a suitable laptop for their course. A student Laptop Loan Scheme may be available for certain eligible students.

The College recommends the following laptop requirements for students joining this course:

Processor:

Intel 7th (or higher) generation processors (Core i-3, i-5, i-7,i-9-7x)
or AMD Ryzen 3rd generation processors, running at 2.0GHz and above (Intel Atom/Celeron or AMD Athlon/Sempron Processors may cost less, but may not meet your requirements)

Random Access Memory (RAM):
8 GB minimum

Solid State Drive (SSD) Capacity:
256 GB minimum

Wireless Card:
802.11 a/b/g/n compliant with Bluetooth Capability (incompatibilities have been noted with the Qualcomm Atheros Wireless Adapters and software device drivers)

Graphics Card:
Direct X9 or later

Supported Operating Systems:
Windows 10 Home/Pro

2024 CAO Points Guide :* 200

*For each course we have given a guideline based on our points over the past 3 years. This is a guide only, points vary each year.

The CAO course code is NC105.

Students must obtain a minimum of 5 passes and a full award and meet the CAO points requirements to apply for this Level 6 course.

Visit our QQI Applicants page for further information.

Did you know you can apply for a Sports Scholarship at NCI?

Watch this video to hear from our current sports scholars Stephen Achukwu (basketball) and Adam Leonard (football):

This course qualifies under the Free Fees Initiative and the Student Grant Scheme.

The fees for this course for international students is €5,500 per year.

For domestic students applying through the CAO, this course applies under the free fees initiative. For further information, please see Free Fees Initiative.