Data Ethics Professional

This course is best suited to professionals who manage or use data or AI tools to inform organisational strategy as well as day to day decision making. Alumni from previous cohorts come from a range of roles, including data protection officers, software engineers, programme managers, data analysts and more.

An ODI Data Ethics Professional is recognised by the ODI as competent in the area of data ethics, and the practical steps required to help organisations minimise potential harms that come from data collection, use, and sharing.

As a certified professional you will:

• Be listed on the ODI website as a certified professional
• Be part of a network of professionals, and invited to regular peer learning events.
• Be able to use your certification to create, market and sell services that are aimed at improving data ethics practices in projects and organisations.
• Get access to exclusive content and tools via the ODI Learning Experience Platform

There are no specific prerequisites for this course. Participants should be open minded and willing to learn through their own self-directed research. A good level of general literacy and numeracy will offer the best chances of success from the course.

This is a blended course. Dependent on the chosen pathway, your learning experience includes:

• (Self-Directed) self-directed activities which follow the theming of each week and allow you to build your understanding of different concepts in the domain of data ethics
• (Champions) Tutor-led webinars that focus the discussion on the different topics and contextualise these for the varied domains of the learners. There will also be discussions related to the learning that provide opportunities to develop your understanding and debate key topics with peers 
• (Professionals) An assessment to recognise your ability to actively demonstrate the key data ethics skills in a professional context

The assessment framework forms the fundamental basis for how we assess whether people have passed the course, and focuses on three areas:

1. an understanding of data ethics as a field--for example, recognising how certain data-driven processes or tools might adversely impact some groups or unevenly distribute the benefits
2. an understanding of the types of data techniques that can lead to harmful impacts (e.g., training an AI algorithm with data containing historical bias) or be harnessed to drive more equitable outcomes (e.g., data minimisation, aggregation and anonymisation)
3. the ability to use tools and frameworks to evaluate projects and make suggestions that can mitigate harmful impacts. The ODI's data ethics canvas is one example of a tool that can be applied in this way, although learners are encouraged to use any suitable tool or framework relevant to their sector.

To become a Data Ethics Professional, a minimum of a pass mark must be achieved in all three areas.

Assessment components

We offer a flexible assessment format for this course, allowing participants to choose a case study relevant to their sector and job role. Assessments typically take the form of a 2500-word report, but other formats are also acceptable (for example, a recording of a talk at a professional conference), empowering participants to demonstrate their understanding of ethical data practices in a manner that suits their expertise and professional needs.

There are two components to the assessment which form part of the programme.

1 – Written case study

The written case study is the main piece of assessment and requires participants to demonstrate their knowledge and skills as a data ethics professional. The case study must be a piece of original research, written by the participant. Case studies should be no longer than 2500 words (excluding references and appendices).

Case studies can be written in two ways:

1. A research paper examining an existing or third party case study. In such studies we would expect to see extensive use of references to professional peer-reviewed works and an evaluation of the case study against the principles taught in the course in order to create a number of recommendations.
2. An original piece of work applying the teachings of the course to the participants’ own area. This type of case study may require fewer references as the participant is directly investigating the practical data ethics questions on data/processes/technologies to which they have access.

Time requirement: 30 hours

2 – Case study discussion

In order to help develop case studies, participants are required to engage in discussions throughout the course related to the topics covered, as well as their chosen case study.

Weekly engagement: 30~ mins

It is expected that the assessed case study will require approximately 30 hours of engagement. 

Who is this course for?

This course is best suited to professionals who manage or use data or AI tools to inform organisational strategy as well as day to day decision making. Alumni from previous cohorts come from a range of roles, including data protection officers, software engineers, programme managers, data analysts and more.

How many places/people are on each course? 

Up to 24 participants.

What are the practical course requirements?

Just an internet-enabled laptop or PC, that can access Zoom calls for the teacher lead aspects of the course. That’s all.

Can you tell me more about ODI Courses?

Founded in 2012 by Sir Tim Berners-Lee and Sir Nigel Shadbolt, the ODI offers courses that are friendly, supportive and fun. No question is a silly question in our classrooms, and our expert teachers will arm you with all the practical skills you need for applying what you’ve learnt to the real world. The majority of the course content is made available to reuse under an open licence.

About this course

This course was created by and is © The Open Data Institute.

1. Individuals certified as ODI Data Ethics Professionals can use their certification to help promote their expertise in support of creating, marketing and selling services aimed at improving data ethics practices in projects and organisations.
2. ODI certification of an individual as a Data Ethics Professional must not be used to suggest the ODI recognises or endorses an organisation, product or services ethical practices. The course equips you to adopt practices that embed ethical thinking around collection, use and sharing of data, not to meet a particular ethical standard.
3. Certified individuals must agree to be listed on our network pages along with a picture that clearly identifies them. This enables those engaging an ODI Data Ethics Professional to check their identity and certification status. Certified individuals will receive one year of free individual membership (including regular email updates) to the ODI.
4. The ODI reserves the right to revoke certification of any individual at any time if individuals or associated organisations are found to be in breach of these conditions.