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Computing and Mathematical Sciences research

Birkbeck has been teaching and researching computer science since 1957, making it one of the oldest computing departments worldwide. Having a long-established reputation in data management and computational intelligence, we have evolved into a world-leading centre in algorithms, artificial intelligence, databases, data science, knowledge representation, and verification.

Our research is organised into three research groups: Algorithms, Data Science and Artificial Intelligence, and Logical Methods, and two research centres: Birkbeck Institute for Data Analytics and Birkbeck Knowledge Lab.

In REF 2021, almost all (91%) of our research activity in computer science was judged as being internationally excellent, with 50% being world-leading, which ranks us 23rd among 90 computer science departments in the UK. More specifically,

  • 55% of our research outputs were judged as being world-leading, 41.7% as internationally excellent and 3.3% as internationally recognised;
  • 66.7% of our impact cases studies were judged as world leading and the remaining 33.3% as internationally excellent;
  • 50% of our research environment was assessed as internationally excellent and the remaining 50% as internationally recognised.

From 2023, the department will be moving forward under the name of the School of Computing and Mathematical Sciences, as we expand to include mathematicians and statisticians who will contribute to the Algorithms and Data Science and Artificial Intelligence research groups, and bring programmes in mathematics and statistics into our teaching portfolio.

Research groups

Research centres

Research impact studies

More information