We connect businesses with a rich pool of data and AI talent

Businesses have woken up to the importance of data and AI. There is a high demand for professionals with data and AI skills such as data analysts, machine learning engineers and data scientists. This has led to stiff competition for the top talent in the field, with, two in five employers reporting AI and machine learning as the most sought-after skills in the UK job market.  

The Data Lab’s placement programme works to place data and AI students studying Masters degrees at universities across Scotland on short data projects in industry.

The Data Lab [student placement] programme is a phenomenal resource, especially for smaller organisations like ours which need to use data but don’t have the knowledge or know-how internally.

Dr Katherine Gunderson
CEO and Founder, Grand Bequest

In good company

We work with organisations of all sizes, and across all sectors – from communication and information providers to hospitality and food and beverage suppliers. 
 
Over 1,000 companies have engaged with us and have directly benefiting from the connections we’ve helped them make to the vibrant data and AI ecosystem. 

Vast range of expertise

We can support a huge range of projects as part of the placement programme, including:

• dashboards and data visualisation,
• predictive models, anomaly detection, and forecasting,
• computer vision, NLP, and deep learning.

“We are delighted with both our placements who have delivered significant cutting-edge data science solutions for us.”

Duncan Heart
Deepminer

Data and AI student placements in Scotland 

Our MSc placement programme through The Data Lab Academy provides access to Scotland’s brightest data and AI students. The programme is open to any Scottish organisation looking to add cutting edge data or AI knowledge into their organisations. Our students are keen for work experience to use their technical skills in the real world. Typically, projects take place over summer and last about 3 months.

We work with you on what is most important and scope a project that aligns to your organisational priorities.

Timeline for project matching

There are two application rounds for 2024/25, each with their own deadline for project submission. We recommend aiming for the earliest round possible, as students will be matched to projects as we progress through the rounds

Submission Round 1

• 24th January 2025: Project submission deadline
• 3rd February 2025: Application deadline for students
• 10th-28th February 2025: Tentative interview dates

Submission Round 2

• 28th February 2025: Project submission deadline
• 10th March 2025: Application deadline for students
• 17th-31st March 2025: Tentative interview dates

We are extremely impressed at the calibre of The Data Lab MSc graduate students we’ve met so far and participating in the programme has exceeded our expectations.

Regina Berengolts
Director of Research, Analytics and Data, Innovid

Connect, collaborate and learn with The Data Lab Community

Our online platform enables data and AI professionals, academics, students and other enthusiasts from over 80 countries to connect, collaborate, and learn. As a premium member or partner, you can showcase your job openings on our jobs board to a network of over 5000 talented individuals from around the world.

Upskill your team with data and AI