AI Ethics and Society (Research)

Artificial intelligence (AI) technology is rapidly developing and is increasingly being applied across sectors, posing significant ethical and societal challenges. The MSt in AI Ethics and Society is devoted to developing leaders who can tackle the hard AI questions that are most relevant for the workplace today, such as issues of privacy, surveillance, justice, fairness, algorithmic bias, misinformation, Big Data, responsible innovation, and more.

The MSt in AI Ethics and Society is an academically rigorous part-time programme, drawing together a community of students from a rich mix of professional backgrounds including business, management, policy, technology, design, consultancy, law, communications, and others. The programme will provide students with the critical skills, knowledge and analytical abilities needed to identify and address ethical challenges as they arise in practice from the application of AI.

The MSt AI Ethics and Society is developed and taught by the University’s Leverhulme Centre for the Future of Intelligence (LCFI), a global research centre at the forefront of AI Ethics and impact research, in partnership with the Institute of Continuing Education. As the programme is run by a specialist research centre, rather than a department, the curriculum is uniquely multidisciplinary, informed by up-to-the-minute research developments, and incorporates experts from diverse areas, including philosophy, machine learning, computer science, policy, law, and more. See http://lcfi.ac.uk/education/master-ai-ethics/

We are delighted to announce that our Master of Studies in AI Ethics and Society has won the 2022 CogX award for 'Best Course in AI'.

Course delivery: We plan to deliver our postgraduate and MSt qualifications in-person in the academic year 2023-24.

Applications for the 2023-25 cohort closed on 31 March 2023 and we are unable to consider or accept any late applications. The next application round for the 2024-26 intake is due to open in autumn 2023.

Year 1
Module 1: The Nature and History of AI

Aims: To provide students with theoretical, academic and practical understanding of how artificial intelligence has been developed, used and understood historically across different traditions, and how it is being applied in society today.

Key areas:

● The technical foundations of AI and the current capabilities and status of the technology

● Current applications of AI across a range of domains and sectors

● The history of AI and its relationship to other disciplines and technologies, including the history of computing and administration

● The nature and measurement of intelligence, and comparisons between human, animal and artificial intelligence

Module 2: Ethical and Societal Challenges

Aims: To provide students with a comprehensive understanding of key ethical and societal challenges raised by AI, through engagement with the contemporary critical literature and case studies.

Key areas:

● Critical discussion of the following themes:

• Privacy

• Fairness and equality

• Safety

• Accountability

• Human dignity and autonomy

● The relationship between the near- and long-term challenges of AI

● Comparison of different global perspectives

Module 3: Theories and Methods

Aims: To increase rigor and depth in understanding and analysing the ethical and societal challenges of AI by introducing students to foundational knowledge, theories and methods in established academic disciplines.

Key areas:

● Theories and methods from the following disciplines:

• Philosophical ethics

• The history and philosophy of science

• Literary and cultural studies

• Social and behavioural sciences

• Futures studies and foresight methods

• Critical design studies

Year 2
Module 4: Governing AI

Aims: To critically engage with a range of practical approaches to navigating the ethical and societal challenges of AI, including those found in policy, regulation, law, ethics principles, and social action.

Key areas:

● Comparison and critical analysis of current AI policy initiatives worldwide

● Overview and critical discussion of different codes of practice and principles for AI ethics, and their implementation

● Critical discussion of methods for ethical impact assessment

● Critical discussion of methods for ethical design

● The role of activism and civil society

Module 5: Dissertation

Aims: To enable students to apply and develop their learning from Modules 1-4 through an innovative, independent research project in an area relevant to the course, topic and scope to be agreed with the supervisor.

Assessment
Assignments on the MSt are divided into two components: the essays, taken as a group, and the dissertation.

Students are expected to submit academically rigorous, properly referenced assignments. Guidance on academic writing is offered through the Course Guide and VLE, wider University resources - including within Colleges - and within the first module.

As students enter the MSt with differing levels of experience of academic writing, it is expected that students will seek to develop these skills independently as needed, thereafter throughout the programme.

The modules are assessed as follows:

● Module 1: 2,000 word essay (8% of final grade)

● Modules 2, 3 and 4: 4,500 word essay each (14% each of final grade)

All summative assessment is compulsory. Students will receive continual formative feedback throughout the course using a variety of strategies and techniques, including evidence of regular reflection.

In the second year (module 5), students will write a 15,000 word dissertation which accounts for 50% of the final grade.