Artificial Intelligence BSc(Hons)

In your first year, you will lay the groundwork for your AI journey. Designed for beginners, this stage introduces the core principles of programming, data structures, algorithms and computational thinking, which form the foundation of intelligent technologies. 

You will get hands on from day one: writing code, exploring data and experimenting with digital tools to bring ideas to life. This is where you’ll build your confidence, curiosity and technical fluency, which forms a strong foundation for creating, questioning and innovating with artificial intelligence. 

Modules

Principles of Computing

In this module, you'll build a strong foundation in computing, mathematics, statistics and technical communication, applying core computer science concepts and algorithms to solve practical problems. You'll explore the history of computing and the diverse voices that have shaped the field, while examining challenges such as algorithmic bias and the ethical impact of AI. You’ll develop the technical skills and critical awareness to approach AI systems confidently and creatively. 

Development Foundations

In this module, you’ll gain a solid foundation in the principles, terminology, roles and tools used to develop digital products and services. Through small-scale team projects, you’ll practice prototyping, pitch your ideas and develop project management skills, all while contributing to a professional, inclusive and collaborative studio environment that mirrors real-world development. 

Digital Creativity

In this module, you’ll explore digital media formats such as text, images and sound, experimenting with and transforming existing content into new interactive experiences. You’ll integrate your work with game engines and digital technologies to bring it to life, while considering ethical and legal issues such as intellectual property, licensing and the responsible use of AI-generated content to ensure your creations are both innovative and accountable.  

Individual Programming Project 

In this module, you’ll refine your programming skills by developing a structured project focused on object-oriented solutions, with the opportunity to explore AI applications such as computer vision. You’ll build confidence with system interfaces, apply disciplined software engineering methods and practice designing and refactoring architectures. You’ll also consider ethical issues including safety, accessibility, sustainability and the wider impact of supply chains. 

Data Fundamentals 

In this module, you’ll learn the fundamentals of the data science life cycle, including how to formulate questions, collect and clean data, explore and visualise information, make statistical inferences and predictions, and communicate insights to inform decision making. You’ll also develop awareness of the responsibilities and legal considerations of working with sensitive or personal data, ensuring your AI projects are ethical and compliant. 

Sustainable Logic Architectures 

In this module, you'll explore the wider computing ecosystem and the responsibilities that come with building within it. You'll apply computing fundamentals in ways that are ethically informed and environmentally aware, considering how design decisions affect sustainability, fairness and long-term impact. Working in teams alongside Software Engineering and Robotics students, you'll gain early experience of the transdisciplinary collaboration that defines professional AI practice. 

Your second year is where you start to specialise as an AI developer. You’ll deepen your technical skills and computational practice through hands-on experimentation and interdisciplinary projects. You’ll explore ways to design, train and deploy intelligent systems, combining coding, data analysis and machine learning to create responsive and innovative AI solutions. 

You’ll also develop critical awareness of how AI technologies impact society and culture, considering ethical, inclusive and sustainable approaches to design and deployment. Throughout this stage, you’ll build your analytical and research skills, connect theory with practice and work with others to solve complex technical problems. This will prepare you for advanced AI projects in your final year. 

Modules

Computational Mathematics

In this module, you’ll learn core mathematical principles that underpin artificial intelligence, including linear algebra, geometry, trigonometry, 3D transformations and calculus, applying them to data processing, modelling, and simulation. You’ll also develop secure coding practices through defensive programming, whilst considering cryptography and data protection to gain the skills to build intelligence systems that are both powerful and resilient. 

Algorithms & Optimisation

In this module, you’ll develop your computing skills with a focus on designing and analysing algorithms. You’ll learn strategies for writing efficient, optimised code, applying techniques for profiling and resource management and considering sustainability in your solutions. By understanding how to maximise performance and extend the lifecycle of computing hardware, you’ll build AI systems that are both effective and responsible. 

Artificial Intelligence 

In this module, you’ll explore the core techniques of artificial intelligence, learning computational methods for solving problems that traditionally require human intelligence. You’ll study rule-based systems, search and planning algorithms, constraint satisfaction and symbolic reasoning, applying these concepts to build AI systems in simplified domains such as game agents. You’ll develop a practical understanding of foundational AI methods, their strengths, limitations and applications. 

Embedded Systems 

In this module, you’ll explore how embedded systems are designed, built and operated. You’ll work with sensors, actuators, circuits and mechatronic components, focusing on real-time processing and hardware interfacing. You’ll also develop skills in input and output, analogue-to-digital conversion, timers, interrupts, serial communication, IoT networks and edge computing, collaborating with others to solve complex, AI-focused engineering challenges. 

Machine Learning 

In this module, you’ll explore the concepts, tools and frameworks of machine learning, applying state-of-the-art techniques to real-world problems. You’ll study different methods to train intelligent systems (e.g., supervised learning, unsupervised learning, reinforcement learning), exploring techniques such as classification, regression, clustering and neural networks. You’ll also work through the full machine learning process, from preparing data to evaluating and refining models. Through a hands-on project, you’ll build and interpret models, understand user behaviour and reflect on the ethical implications of algorithmic decision-making in areas such as games, health and education. 

Responsible AI: Ethics and Society 

In this module, you’ll explore AI as both a technical tool and a cultural force, examining its impact on fairness, accountability and sustainability. Through case studies and creative inquiry, you’ll tackle issues such as bias, authorship and the environmental cost of computation, reflecting on how working with intelligent systems is reshaping responsible creativity and decision-making. 

On this course, you’ll be encouraged to engage with industry. Between your second and final year of study, you have the opportunity to study a professional placement year within industry, putting what you’ve learnt into practice.  

Professional placement year (optional) 

You can choose to take an optional professional placement year after your second year on a three-year programme, or after your third year if you’re studying for a degree with an Integrated Foundation Year.   

You’ll be responsible for finding your own placement, with support from the Employability team.   

Choosing this option will enhance your industry experience and skills while studying.   

How you’ll study during your professional placement year 

You’ll spend time working in a professional context, as part of a business or organisation. This can be in one role, or up to three and must be for a minimum of 24 weeks.   

You’ll develop in-demand workplace skills, deepen your insight into industry and grow your network of contacts, all of which could help you get ahead in your career after graduation. 

Throughout this year, you’ll develop a portfolio of work that includes critical self-reflection on what has been learned from the experience. You’ll be required to evidence your experiences, the skills you’ve learned and your professional growth. 

In your final year, you’ll start with Computational Creativity, exploring procedural content generation and AI-driven techniques for building interactive, adaptive, or generative systems. 

You’ll also undertake an individual research and development project under the guidance of a specialist, giving you the chance to create a substantial AI artefact, apply scientific methods and generate insights that can inform future AI development. 

Alongside this, you’ll take part in the Digital Innovation and Major Collaboration projects, moving your projects from ideation to production environments. Working in multi-skilled teams, you’ll plan, design and deliver a significant project with real-world impact, while developing your own intellectual property and professional portfolio. 

Modules

Research & Development: Proposal 

In this module, you’ll design and plan your own major research and development project in artificial intelligence. You’ll identify a topic of interest, review existing research, define a hypothesis and plan how to test it through data collection and experimentation. Alongside this, you’ll begin prototyping a substantial AI solution while considering the ethical implications of your work. 

Digital Innovation

In this module, you’ll bring your knowledge of AI to explore how technology can drive innovation in the digital economy. Working collaboratively, you’ll experiment with ideas, form teams, and develop projects that fuse creativity with technical and enterprise skills. Through hands-on pre-production work, you’ll design concepts, plan milestones, and prepare your projects as if for real-world release, considering branding, intellectual property, and business strategy before delivering a professional pitch that showcases your vision, expertise, and entrepreneurial mindset. 

Computational Creativity

In this module, you’ll explore how machines can simulate, enhance or generate creative behaviour across domains such as art, music, literature and design. You’ll investigate what it means for a system to be perceived as creative, experimenting with modern AI techniques including generative transformers, adversarial networks and diffusion models. Through hands-on workshops and critical reflection, you’ll design and evaluate your own generative systems, exploring how computational creativity can both inspire and challenge human imagination. 

Research & Development: Dissertation 

In this module, you’ll continue your major individual research and development project, building your prototype into a fully realised AI solution. Under the guidance of a specialist, you’ll conduct your research, analyse and visualise results and present your findings in a written dissertation. You’ll also demonstrate your final artefact, reflecting on its impact, ethical considerations and opportunities for future development. 

Major Collaboration

In this module, you’ll combine your skills and experience to deliver a substantial collaborative project. Working in multi-skilled teams, you’ll design and develop a project of your choice, with opportunities to focus on applications such as games, interactive experiences, apps or immersive environments. You may build on your previous work in Digital Innovation or respond to new briefs from researchers, industry partners or external stakeholders. 

If you choose the Integrated Foundation Year pathway, you'll study five core modules in your foundation year. These are all designed to help you explore the foundational elements of your subject. You'll gain relevant technical skills, learn to experiment and take risks, develop an understanding of professional practice, have opportunities to work across disciplines and collaborate with other students on live project briefs.

By the time you progress into year one of your degree, you'll have a deeper knowledge of your subject, a clear understanding of your strengths, and develop a practical and technical skillset and the confidence to excel in your chosen subject.

Modules

Explore

You'll begin your foundation year by working collaboratively with others to explore themes of the future. You'll take risks, experiment through play and be supported to break through barriers.

Technique

You'll take subject-specific workshops and develop essential technical and practical skills in your area of study. You'll also enhance your analytical and organisational abilities.

Apply

You'll work with your peer group to think beyond discipline by addressing a societal or global issue. You'll then showcase your work to your peers and deliver and accompanying evaluation of your process.

Industry

You'll enhance your creative and practical skills in your subject specialism by responding to typical industry briefs, underpinned by focused research and experiments. You'll also gain industry insights through guest lectures and workshops.

Launch

You'll develop your unique identity in your specialism through the production of a self-initiated body of work. Your final project will be the bridge to your next year, fully supported by evaluative reviews and critical analysis of the work you have created.

If you apply for and enrol onto a degree with an Integrated Foundation Year, you’ll have the option to switch onto a five-year version including a placement year. That means you’ll complete the first three years of your course before completing a placement in industry in your fourth year and returning to Falmouth for the fifth year of your programme. 

For starting your studies in 2027

UK applications: 13 January 2027 (for equal consideration)

International fee payers

International fee payers can apply throughout the year. But we recommend applying as early as possible, to make time for visa and travel arrangements.

We consider all applications on their own individual merit and potential and welcome applications from all subject backgrounds, whether you've specialised in STEM, the arts or humanities. Find out more about our Entry Requirements here.

Course routes & entry requirements

BSc(Hons) three year degree

• Minimum 104 UCAS Tariff points
• GCSE Mathematics Grade 4 (C)

BSc(Hons) four year degree with professional placement

• Minimum 104 UCAS Tariff points
• GCSE Mathematics Grade 4 (C)

BSc(Hons) four year degree with Integrated Foundation Year 

• Minimum 80 UCAS Tariff points

Check how many points your qualifications are worth

At Falmouth, we'll consider the equivalency of your specific qualifications against our entry requirements and support you through your application journey.

View our International Entry Requirements

Language requirements

For applicants whose first language is English we require you to have or be working towards GCSE English Language Grade 4 (C), or equivalent. 

If English is not your first language you will need to meet the same standard which is equivalent to the IELTS Academic 6.0 overall score, with at least 5.5 in Reading, Writing, Speaking and Listening. We accept a range of in country equivalencies and approved tests.  

If you need a student visa to study in the UK, you may need to take a recognised language test. You can read our English Language Requirements for more information.

Welcome to Artificial Intelligence BSc(Hons). Here you will find information about any pre-course preparation, as well as confirmation of your tuition fees together with any other costs that you might incur throughout your course that are not covered by your student loan.

Tuition fees

Tuition fees for undergraduate students starting in September 2027

Course equipment and costs

Essential

At Falmouth, you can use industry-standard computers and kit on campus, with some IT suites open 24 hours during teaching weeks.

The latest advice about which computers we recommend you buy for your course is available here: https://github.com/Falmouth-Games-Academy/ga-computer-advice#readme

If you have any questions or want us to check your setup, just get in touch with us on games.support@falmouth.ac.uk

It is important that you have a reliable internet connection, as some materials are made available to you through our virtual learning environment. We recommend a fibre broadband connection if available, but a minimum of at least 5Mbps will be suitable for livestreaming content.

Consumable electronics

You must reserve a budget of at least £40 to purchase additional materials and electronic components for your individual creative computing project.

Headset with Microphone

You will need a headset with a microphone for some classes. We recommend purchasing a high-quality headset for your comfort. Manufacturers such as Sennheiser, Razer, HyperX and Corsair are rated highly by our current students. These can cost between £30 - £150.

Webcam

You will need a webcam in some teaching. Manufacturers such as Logitech, Microsoft, and Razer are rated highly by our current students. These can cost between £25 - £100. If you have further questions, need more detailed advice or would like us to check the suitability of a particular model, then please email games.support@falmouth.ac.uk

Pre-course preparation

The course will primarily focus on developing your practical problem solving and programming skills, alongside fundamental knowledge of agile project management, computer science, and mathematics.

There will be considerable emphasis on the challenges and opportunities presented by game development projects and studio-based teamwork. Initially, we will gently introduce the principles of computing to you using Python and C# on Windows. This will ensure that, regardless of your level of prior programming experience, you are afforded the opportunity to develop a firm understanding of computing as a discipline and develop core competencies which are expected of all computing professionals. This forms the foundation that will then enable you to explore the richer, more complex programming constructs available in other languages.

It is important that you join the course with some programming experience, otherwise you will struggle. To this end, if you have never created your own software on the Windows operating system using Python, you should do so in preparation for the course.

Firstly, you will need to setup a suitable development environment. Please download and install:

Python 3: link.falmouth.games/python3
PyGame 2: link.falmouth.games/pygame-instructions
PyCharm Community Edition: www.jetbrains.com/pycharm/download/
You may also need to install Java too as PyCharm is dependent on the Java Virtual Machine for portability. Any recent version will be fine: www.java.com/en/download

We have prepared some videos to show you what to do if you are uncertain how to do the setup: link.falmouth.games/pythonsetup

If you run into difficulties, please feel welcome to contact: games.support@falmouth.ac.uk

Programming Tasks

Once you are setup and ready to get programming, start to work through the activities in Invent Your Own Computer Games in Python: Inventwithpython.com/invent4thed/, games provide an interesting (and fun!) application of the principles of computer science you will encounter on the course. Having some understanding of the complexities of interacting systems will be a great advantage to you when you join us.

When you’re feeling more confident with programming fundamentals, your task is to:

Recreate a simple arcade game (eg, snake, platformer) using pygame and python
Use the following materials for support:

Python 3 Docs: docs.python.org/3/tutorial/index.html
PyCharm Docs: www.jetbrains.com/help/pycharm/meet-pycharm.html
PyGame Tutorials: www.pygame.org/wiki/tutorials
There will be a Programming Olympiad in the first week of formal teaching on the Digital Creativity module which will challenge your Python programming skills.

Understanding Game Engines: Unity

After you have successfully implemented your bot, you should familiarise yourself with the other programming languages and engines that you will be using on the Digital Creativity module:

C#: www.codecademy.com/learn/learn-c-sharp

Unity:

learn.unity.com
learn.unity.com/course/beginner-scripting
learn.unity.com/project/intermediate-gameplay-scripting
Brackeys: link.falmouth.games/ytbrackeys

Exploring C++, SDL, OpenGL, and Unreal Engine 5 will also be useful. We will cover these topics in more depth after the first stage of the course.

Course equipment and costs 

Essential

At Falmouth, you can use industry-standard computers and kit on campus, with some IT suites open 24 hours during teaching weeks.

The latest advice about which computers we recommend you buy for your course is available here: https://github.com/Falmouth-Games-Academy/ga-computer-advice#readme

If you have any questions or want us to check your setup, just get in touch with us on games.support@falmouth.ac.uk 

It is important that you have a reliable internet connection, as some materials are made available to you through our virtual learning environment. We recommend a fibre broadband connection if available, but a minimum of at least 5Mbps will be suitable for livestreaming content.

Headset with Microphone

You will need a headset with a microphone for some classes. We recommend purchasing a high-quality headset for your comfort. Manufacturers such as Sennheiser, Razer, HyperX and Corsair are rated highly by our current students. These can cost between £30 - £150.

Webcam

You will need a webcam in some teaching. Manufacturers such as Logitech, Microsoft, and Razer are rated highly by our current students. These can cost between £25 - £100.