The question arrives in almost every counselling session in some form. I did B.Com. Can I do a master's in data science? I'm a mechanical engineer. Can I move into AI?
The answer is yes, and it is not a loophole. Universities build degrees specifically for it, and we list 92 programmes across ten destinations that take graduates from outside the subject. In the UK alone there are 51 with a fee we have checked, running from £16,500 to £46,000 a year.
But "conversion" is not one thing. It means three different things depending on the university, and one of them will reject you for having the degree you assumed would help.
Type one: open to any discipline
The most straightforward kind. The entry requirement names a class of degree and not a subject.
- Plymouth's MSc Data Science and Business Analytics asks for a 2:2 in any subject.
- Sheffield's MSc Business Analytics is a conversion course that states no prior analytics experience is needed, with the first semester building foundations for non-specialists.
- Queen's Belfast's MSc Management is designed for graduates from non-business backgrounds who want to move into management.
If your degree is unrelated and your marks are solid, this is the group to start with. You are not an exception here; you are the intended applicant.
Type two: you must NOT have studied the subject
This is the one nobody expects, and it is worth understanding properly because it changes how you build a shortlist.
Sheffield's MSc Computer Science requires a 2:1 in a non-computing subject. A computer science graduate is not a strong applicant to it — they are ineligible. Sheffield runs MSc Advanced Computer Science for them instead, which requires a 2:1 in computing.
The two cost exactly the same, £34,550 a year for international students, and they exclude each other. A shortlist will show you both and will not tell you that one of them is closed to you.
Stirling's MSc Big Data works the same way: built for students without a computing background, with computing graduates directed to its Advanced Computing with AI route. So does Exeter's MSc Computer Science, which asks for a 2:2 in a non-related science degree, or a 2:2 in any subject together with A Level Mathematics at grade A.
The practical consequence: if you hold a computing or IT degree, the word "conversion" in a course title is a signal to read the entry requirement, not a reassurance. Half the time it means the course is not for you.
Type three: conversion in name, numerate in practice
The third group calls itself a conversion course but still expects quantitative ability, usually stated as a subject list rather than a flat "any degree".
Exeter's MSc Data Science is a conversion programme for graduates without a strong technical background — but its sibling, MSc Advanced Data Science, asks for a 2:1 in computer science, data science or another strongly numerate discipline. Economics, statistics and most engineering degrees clear that bar. A humanities degree does not.
Exeter's MSc Artificial Intelligence sits between the two: it explicitly welcomes students with no coding background, while still wanting either a science degree or A Level Mathematics at grade A.
So before you decide a course is open to you, find the sentence that names what it wants. "No programming experience required" and "open to any discipline" are different promises.
What it costs, and where it is cheapest
Conversion master's degrees are priced like any other taught master's — there is no discount for arriving without the background, and no premium either.
Across the UK programmes we hold, Manchester Metropolitan's MSc Computer Science is the most affordable at £16,500 a year, and it is explicitly designed for students arriving without a computing background. That is less than half what Sheffield or Exeter charge for a comparable conversion degree, and the typical offer is a 2:2 rather than a 2:1.
Outside the UK, Ireland runs one of the clearest examples: UCD's MSc Computer Science (Conversion) is a 16-month programme for graduates from arts, business and science backgrounds, with no prior programming assumed. We also list conversion routes in Australia, Singapore, Germany, Canada, the USA and Dubai.
Four things to check before you apply
- Find the entry requirement sentence itself, not the course summary. It will say "any subject", or name a subject list, or say "non-computing". Those are three different answers.
- Check whether a sibling course exists. Where a university runs a conversion and an advanced version, applying to the wrong one wastes an application. The advanced one is usually the better degree if you qualify, and closed if you do not.
- Check the duration. Conversion degrees are sometimes longer — 16 months rather than 12 — because the first months build the foundation. That is an extra term of living costs, not just tuition.
- Check the maths requirement separately from the subject requirement. Several courses that accept any degree still want A Level Mathematics or an equivalent, and that is the condition people miss.
A conversion master's is a genuine route, not a consolation prize — these degrees exist because employers need people who understand both a domain and the technical work. A commerce graduate who can do analytics is more useful in finance than either alone.
Every fee and entry requirement above was read from the university's own page, and each programme page on this site carries the source we read it from. If you want help working out which of the three types your degree actually opens, our counselling is free — or start with the AI course finder, which matches on your subject and marks.