Original post by BalerocHi, thank you for tagging me.
First, let's clarify one thing I've seen in this thread. A degree with a foundation year does NOT always use up the bonus year of funding. There are two types of foundation year degrees. One that is integrated, and one that isn't. Foundation years that are integrated do not use up the bonus year. In this case, Swansea and Keele do not use up the bonus year, but Kent's course will.
Next, I want to address the stigma of Foundation Years. Many people have a negative attitude towards one, and I want to talk about that. For a foundation year, it takes you 1 year longer than it would normally. But, you are already taking 3 years to complete the degree. Second, the whole purpose of a degree (given you are paying for it eventually) is to build you the skills, confidence and ability to do anything you want in life. If your degree is not achieving that, what is the purpose of achieving a degree if it doesn't provide you with all the skills necessary to be successful. If you learn and can accomplish more with a foundation year, then the skills you benefit from will aid you far more than the year saved from doing a 3 year degree.
Now, I will go through each course individually:
1) Computer Science at Keele. This is a software development degree. It's labelled computer science, but it focuses on web development, mobile development, programming, databases, and more. It is a great software development degree NOT a computer science degree. So, if you want a degree without much math, that focuses on software development, this is a good option.
Next, let's discuss Swansea.
I think the foundation year with computer science degree is great. The foundation year covers more core mathematical concepts compared to Keele.
However, Swansea's foundation year and degree doesn't cover some important concepts like calculus or university-level algebra, only the basics of mathematics, which may be limiting. But, it still covers more mathematics than Keele's CS degree.
Overall,
- Swansea is more comprehensive, especially if you want to pursue mathematically-inclined areas of CS, like Machine Learning and data science.
- Swansea offers more breadth and depth than Keele based solely on its syllabus (one caveat to this: Keele has less information about its syllabus compared to Swansea, so that could be the reason why).
- Both degrees have their flaws, with both not covering the ideal amount of mathematics needed, but Swansea does cover more mathematics than Keele.
So if you had to choose between the foundation year in computer science at Swansea or computer science at Keele, I would choose Swansea's foundation year in computer science degree.
Finally, your Kent university choice involves starting with Electrical Engineering, then switching courses. In this case, the foundation year WILL count as a bonus year of funding, which means you cannot fail a year at all, or you won't be able to complete your degree. Therefore, I don't recommend this option.
In conclusion, if I had to choose between your three options, I would choose Swansea's Computer Science with a Foundation Year, it is better than Keele when considering only the syllabus, and Kent I would not recommend taking their electronic engineering foundation year as you would lose 1 year of funding, which wouldn't happen if you chose Swansea's integrated foundation year course.