Requirements for Computer Science

OK, I received an offer from Cambridge for Computer Science last month, so I hope my knowledge of the applications and interview process will be of some use.
Firstly, they don't expect you to know much about computing. The sum of my computing knowledge/experience at the time of the interview was:

Books/Articles:

Computer Science: An Overview, by Glenn Brookshear. Cannot recommend this enough, it's an amazing introduction and will give you a solid foundation in the subject. I picked up an old edition (about 2001) for £3 on Amazon, don't go spend £40 on the newest edition, there's no point, but it's a great way to show your interest.

Brian Hayes compsci articles in American Scientist: give a good perspective of applications in the real world, quite interesting. There are loads, but try to read a few.

Others:

Weeks work experience at a local software firm. Not sure how useful this actually was in the application, to be honest I didn't do much computing that week.
I did learn some Python in that week, so I mentioned that and some programs I'd written.
Extended project on cryptography (very much related to compsci). I genuinely believe this made the difference in my application, I'd certainly recommend it.

My point is, I had done VERY little computing prior to last summer, I'm sure you can fit in all of that stuff in the time you have left, and I was successful.

At the interview, they don't presume much knowledge of computing, this was the same for Imperial too. I spoke about cryptography for a bit, then did some problem solving questions (logic/maths puzzles). I didn't get any open ended questions like 'why do you want to study computer science', and I didn't really have to give any long answers.

Obviously, this is just my experience, and I can't promise it will be the same for all colleges, but the emphasis is VERY much on what you are capable of, they are aware computing is not widely taught, so they do not expect much prior knowledge, but the do expect you to have explored the field a bit to make sure it is what you want to do.

My offer is A*AA, with the A* in Maths. You seem capable of achieving this, so I wouldn't worry too much on those grounds.

So, best of luck, I'm sure you'll be fine, just READ

Hi
You've mentioned Cambridge, but I'll take the liberty of assuming you're also considering either the straight Computer Science or Maths and Computer Science degrees at Oxford too, so hopefully this will be of use to you. :-)

Our standard conditional offer is A*AA with at least an A in Maths. For the straight CompSci degree the A* has to be in either Maths, Further Maths, Physics or Computing. For Maths and CompSci you need A*/A in Maths/Further Maths (either way around) or if Further Maths isn't taken, an A* in Maths. So, Maths is essential and we think that Further Maths is the best preparation for one of our courses. In terms of subject choice it sounds like you've got that covered nicely. We suggest a science subject such as Physics, but it's not essential. (We'd be perfectly happy to see Biology.) We only make offers on three A2s, although we'd notice if you'd done more. You therefore couldn't use an extra AS in Physics towards the A*AA. We've certainly seen successful candidates with politics/economics as a third/fourth A Level, so no problem at all with that.

We are very much looking for students with an interest in the subject (we want to be sure you know you really do want to spend a tough three/four years focused on the subject(s)), but we aren't looking for any specific knowledge. The courses start from first principles. Some students (30-40% approx) of our A-Level taking candidates in the last couple of years have done Computing but the rest haven't. So it's certainly realistic to apply without having done it. Some of our students having been programming at home for years; others were quite new to the field when they applied. What we are really looking for is students with a proven flair for Maths. We make some suggestions of activities and books to get you started in the field of CompSci here. But they are just suggestions. As explained in our guidance about writing a CS personal statement, talk something(s) related to Maths or Computing that you have done to demonstrate your passion for the subject, and help convince us of your commitment. We don't have a checklist of things we want you to have completed: we'd rather hear about what you've chosen to do, and what excited you about it. It doesn't have to be earth-shatteringly original.

As mentioned above, regarding Cambridge interviews, the Oxford interview doesn't require you to have computing knowledge either. They very mathematically focussed. Examples are given here. The MAT aptitude/admissions test that our candidates sit is also very maths-based. To give you a rough idea in the last couple of years we've interviewed students who've got, broadly speaking, above 50-53%.

I hope that helps.

OK, I received an offer from Cambridge for Computer Science last month, so I hope my knowledge of the applications and interview process will be of some use.
Firstly, they don't expect you to know much about computing. The sum of my computing knowledge/experience at the time of the interview was:

Books/Articles:

Computer Science: An Overview, by Glenn Brookshear. Cannot recommend this enough, it's an amazing introduction and will give you a solid foundation in the subject. I picked up an old edition (about 2001) for £3 on Amazon, don't go spend £40 on the newest edition, there's no point, but it's a great way to show your interest.

Brian Hayes compsci articles in American Scientist: give a good perspective of applications in the real world, quite interesting. There are loads, but try to read a few.

Others:

Weeks work experience at a local software firm. Not sure how useful this actually was in the application, to be honest I didn't do much computing that week.
I did learn some Python in that week, so I mentioned that and some programs I'd written.
Extended project on cryptography (very much related to compsci). I genuinely believe this made the difference in my application, I'd certainly recommend it.

My point is, I had done VERY little computing prior to last summer, I'm sure you can fit in all of that stuff in the time you have left, and I was successful.

At the interview, they don't presume much knowledge of computing, this was the same for Imperial too. I spoke about cryptography for a bit, then did some problem solving questions (logic/maths puzzles). I didn't get any open ended questions like 'why do you want to study computer science', and I didn't really have to give any long answers.

Obviously, this is just my experience, and I can't promise it will be the same for all colleges, but the emphasis is VERY much on what you are capable of, they are aware computing is not widely taught, so they do not expect much prior knowledge, but the do expect you to have explored the field a bit to make sure it is what you want to do.

My offer is A*AA, with the A* in Maths. You seem capable of achieving this, so I wouldn't worry too much on those grounds.

So, best of luck, I'm sure you'll be fine, just READ

Thanks for replying, it's certainly calmed my nerves to be told this by the department directly When it comes to taking a Physics AS, I know that I won't be able to use it towards my offer, but I was wondering whether it would be useful during the Computer Science course to have that background knowledge there.
Also, thank you for the links, I'll start ordering a few of the suggested reading materials and having a more detailed look into the MAT test this weekend.