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Is computing a difficult course to study at uni?

hey :smile:
basically i've been looking at courses such as business computer systems, computer science, computing and business, internet computing, software engineering etc and the majority of these unis dont ask for ICT/computing alevel or maths. I only achieved a B in GCSE and i still found it very difficult.
So does that mean that these courses arent as difficult as it seems?

I do ict, but i will still only manage a B at the end of next year and I havent even fully grasped all the database concepts etc

sorry for the paragraph, any info will be much appreciated!! :biggrin:

thankyou :smile:
Reply 1
I only achieved a C at GCSE Maths and I'm still doing CompSci. You shouldn't really be asking how difficult the course is, how much work is required shouldn't be an issue.

The worst thing you can do is choose a course that isn't as interesting to you, but feels 'safer'. Trust me, I did this last year and am now in debt and a year behind. Pick the course that makes you think "wow, that seems like it'll be interesting to learn." Sure, if the maths content is harder than you've ever experienced you'll begin to feel out of depth. Just put the work in, it shouldn't be too difficult if you enjoy what you study.
Reply 2
Original post by kaffacuinox
hey :smile:
basically i've been looking at courses such as business computer systems, computer science, computing and business, internet computing, software engineering etc and the majority of these unis dont ask for ICT/computing alevel or maths. I only achieved a B in GCSE and i still found it very difficult.
So does that mean that these courses arent as difficult as it seems?

I do ict, but i will still only manage a B at the end of next year and I havent even fully grasped all the database concepts etc

sorry for the paragraph, any info will be much appreciated!! :biggrin:

thankyou :smile:


ICT is quite different to Computer Science......................

The top uni's ask for a-level maths usually, though it would help if you go elsewhere.....reason being is that the maths you do is from statistics which can be confusing, logic as well which is quite confusing down the line.
The rest is programming.
Reply 3
Original post by Iqbal007
ICT is quite different to Computer Science......................

The top uni's ask for a-level maths usually, though it would help if you go elsewhere.....reason being is that the maths you do is from statistics which can be confusing, logic as well which is quite confusing down the line.
The rest is programming.


Oh right i see, yeah i definetley wasn't looking at the top unis but was considering Manchester met, Portsmouth, Newcastle and Warwick possibly :smile:
Ah yeah math definetley isn't my strongest point :s-smilie: but i'm assuming it would be computer related not hardcore full on mathematics :| haha
thankyou :smile:
Reply 4
Original post by Mito
I only achieved a C at GCSE Maths and I'm still doing CompSci. You shouldn't really be asking how difficult the course is, how much work is required shouldn't be an issue.

The worst thing you can do is choose a course that isn't as interesting to you, but feels 'safer'. Trust me, I did this last year and am now in debt and a year behind. Pick the course that makes you think "wow, that seems like it'll be interesting to learn." Sure, if the maths content is harder than you've ever experienced you'll begin to feel out of depth. Just put the work in, it shouldn't be too difficult if you enjoy what you study.


Ah cheers that's good advice, yeah personally, not gonna lie, computing etc is not nearly as interesting to me as say history would be studying wise, but im thinking more about the career possibilities after, which would be much greater with a computer science degree :/ but i would put all the effort in.. i hope :P
Reply 5
Original post by kaffacuinox
Oh right i see, yeah i definetley wasn't looking at the top unis but was considering Manchester met, Portsmouth, Newcastle and Warwick possibly :smile:
Ah yeah math definetley isn't my strongest point :s-smilie: but i'm assuming it would be computer related not hardcore full on mathematics :| haha
thankyou :smile:


Warwick would quite high up, than Newcastle some way down.
You have programming related maths which is for programming purposes, basic maths.
But you will have maths modules which focus on probability, so a-level statistics content. And some other related modules.
Reply 6
Original post by kaffacuinox
Ah cheers that's good advice, yeah personally, not gonna lie, computing etc is not nearly as interesting to me as say history would be studying wise, but im thinking more about the career possibilities after, which would be much greater with a computer science degree :/ but i would put all the effort in.. i hope :P


Have you tried getting a feel for the subject by trying some programming? There's loads of sites out there that can help you get started, there's an extremely low entry bar to start programming in your spare time and if you do decide to go on to do a computer science or similar course, it'll be useful to have for your personal statement.

ICT actually has less cross over with computing than you'd think. At A level, for example, ICT is pretty much how to use a computer whereas computing is how computers work.
(edited 11 years ago)

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