Comp sci help???

Can anyone tell me what unis don't require maths or computing a-level? for reference i do chem, bio, and psych but only recently realised i might want to take my interest in computing to uni level. i know there are a few unis that don't require maths or comp a levels but i'm not sure which they are and there's a lot of unis to sift through...

Reply 1

mesub

17

Original post by wavetovenus

Can anyone tell me what unis don't require maths or computing a-level? for reference i do chem, bio, and psych but only recently realised i might want to take my interest in computing to uni level. i know there are a few unis that don't require maths or comp a levels but i'm not sure which they are and there's a lot of unis to sift through...

If you're not taking it at A'level, you've lost access to a quite a few unis, but it isn't the end of the world:

•

Cardiff

•

Newcastle

•

Nottingham

•

City, UoL

•

UEA

•

Lancaster

•

Kent

•

Leicester

•

Reading

•

Swansea

•

Worcester

•

Birmingham City University

There's likely to be a few more as well.

(edited 3 months ago)

Reply 2

MindMax2000

Universities Forum Helper

21

Original post by wavetovenus

Can anyone tell me what unis don't require maths or computing a-level? for reference i do chem, bio, and psych but only recently realised i might want to take my interest in computing to uni level. i know there are a few unis that don't require maths or comp a levels but i'm not sure which they are and there's a lot of unis to sift through...

Reply 3

username6376713

OP

10

Original post by MindMax2000

thanks so much - i'm not a fan of the idea of taking a gap year for maths a level and i've looked at lots of the unis that do offer comp sci without maths a level. there are three russel groups (nottingham, newcastle, cardiff) and various non-russel group unis. seeing as i can only apply to 5 anyway, are these russel groups good unis to apply to + 2 non-russel groups? also, what are some things i could do to improve my chances of getting an offer?

Reply 4

MindMax2000

Universities Forum Helper

21

Original post by wavetovenus

thanks so much - i'm not a fan of the idea of taking a gap year for maths a level and i've looked at lots of the unis that do offer comp sci without maths a level. there are three russel groups (nottingham, newcastle, cardiff) and various non-russel group unis. seeing as i can only apply to 5 anyway, are these russel groups good unis to apply to + 2 non-russel groups? also, what are some things i could do to improve my chances of getting an offer?

If you wanted to, you can also apply for foundation years with Manchester and Liverpool.

I haven't done a computer science degree, so I am not an expert in this area. However, I would doubt the unis be asking a lot from you to get onto the degree courses.

The standard advice I have seen on TSR for improving your chances include:

•

Doing computer projects and build a portfolio for it e.g. website using python, react, etc.; build an app; write a software; build a database.

•

Complete a MOOC - one that I strongly recommend is Harvard's CS50 course; it's an introduction to programming that many people recommend

•

I would also spend time learning some of the programming languages that you would use, and mention these in your personal statement. I am not entirely sure what programming languages will be used in the degree that you would choose to do, but at the moment Python is the mainstream language (as it should be in my opinion), but you would also get R, JavaScript, C++, and Java. I would look through the modules of the degree that you want to do with a fine toothcomb to see what languages you would be using and go on websites like W3School.net, Enki, or Mozilla Development Network to learn as much as you can about them (and the best way to learn is to build projects with them). Learning to program would probably take up the most time, and would probably be the biggest concern of the admission staff.

•

Complete professional IT qualifications - many of these would help get you a job in IT, but they would look great on your application e.g. CompTIA, PowerBI, Python Institute, Azure, Google Developer, etc.

•

Keep on top of the development in the tech sector e.g. use of AI, augmented reality, machine learning, neuralink, etc. There are plenty of websites (emphasis on plenty), blogs (so many), YouTube channels, and magazines that would keep you updated on such developments. If you follow enough of these magazines, it's going to be difficult to not hear all about it all the time.

•

Even if you are not going to study A Level Maths, I would still recommend getting yourself acquainted with some of the maths that you will be using e.g. discrete maths, calculus, statistics, etc. (see: https://www.sheffield.ac.uk/dcs/blog/maths-computer-science, https://www.mathnasium.com/bend/news/five-types-of-math-used-in-computer-science) There's a series of books by Schuam Outlines, which can provide you with a concise summary of the sort of maths you would use e.g. Essentail Computer Mathematics by Lipschutz. Otherwise, read up the A Level revision guides for Maths and Further Maths, but I think the Schaum Outlines books would be more relevant for you.

Do get a second opinon from people who are doing Computer Science degrees regarding the above.

(edited 3 months ago)

Reply 5

vnayak

16

Original post by wavetovenus

thanks so much - i'm not a fan of the idea of taking a gap year for maths a level and i've looked at lots of the unis that do offer comp sci without maths a level. there are three russel groups (nottingham, newcastle, cardiff) and various non-russel group unis. seeing as i can only apply to 5 anyway, are these russel groups good unis to apply to + 2 non-russel groups? also, what are some things i could do to improve my chances of getting an offer?

Nottingham is an amazing university for Computer Science so yes, I would recommend applying there. I've not heard much about Newcastle and Cardiff because I'm applying for the Russell Groups at the other end of the spectrum with higher entry requirements.

I would say that these are some really good universities to apply to. I genuinely would suggest taking a gap year at Manchester because it is one of the best universities in the country for Computer Science (though the rankings disagree with me). If you don't believe me, there is a reason that they have a 3 A* minimum entry requirement and face double the number of applicants in comparison to Cambridge despite Cambridge having lower entry requirements. Trust me, Manchester will give you a strong background so it may be worth looking into that.

As for what you can do, there are many things. I have an offer from Imperial to study Computer Science and some of the things I mentioned include: Online courses I have completed, personal projects that I have done following these courses, projects for industry I have done, internships and work experience (which you can do on springpod.com or theforage.com but theforage.com is more for Economics as it is made by J.P Morgan Chase but there is a software engineering work experience which I am currently doing), the computer science society I started in school, my EPQ, essay competitions, Maths competitions, representing my school in Maths competitions and there is a lot more.

Reply 6

vnayak

16

Original post by MindMax2000

If you wanted to, you can also apply for foundation years with Manchester and Liverpool.

I haven't done a computer science degree, so I am not an expert in this area. However, I would doubt the unis be asking a lot from you to get onto the degree courses.

The standard advice I have seen on TSR for improving your chances include:

•

Doing computer projects and build a portfolio for it e.g. website using python, react, etc.; build an app; write a software; build a database.

•

Complete a MOOC - one that I strongly recommend is Harvard's CS50 course; it's an introduction to programming that many people recommend

•

I would also spend time learning some of the programming languages that you would use, and mention these in your personal statement. I am not entirely sure what programming languages will be used in the degree that you would choose to do, but at the moment Python is the mainstream language (as it should be in my opinion), but you would also get R, JavaScript, C++, and Java. I would look through the modules of the degree that you want to do with a fine toothcomb to see what languages you would be using and go on websites like W3School.net, Enki, or Mozilla Development Network to learn as much as you can about them (and the best way to learn is to build projects with them). Learning to program would probably take up the most time, and would probably be the biggest concern of the admission staff.

•

Complete professional IT qualifications - many of these would help get you a job in IT, but they would look great on your application e.g. CompTIA, PowerBI, Python Institute, Azure, Google Developer, etc.

•

Keep on top of the development in the tech sector e.g. use of AI, augmented reality, machine learning, neuralink, etc. There are plenty of websites (emphasis on plenty), blogs (so many), YouTube channels, and magazines that would keep you updated on such developments. If you follow enough of these magazines, it's going to be difficult to not hear all about it all the time.

•

Even if you are not going to study A Level Maths, I would still recommend getting yourself acquainted with some of the maths that you will be using e.g. discrete maths, calculus, statistics, etc. (see: https://www.sheffield.ac.uk/dcs/blog/maths-computer-science, https://www.mathnasium.com/bend/news/five-types-of-math-used-in-computer-science) There's a series of books by Schuam Outlines, which can provide you with a concise summary of the sort of maths you would use e.g. Essentail Computer Mathematics by Lipschutz. Otherwise, read up the A Level revision guides for Maths and Further Maths, but I think the Schaum Outlines books would be more relevant for you.

Do get a second opinon from people who are doing Computer Science degrees regarding the above.

@wavetovenus I wouldn't recommend getting a professional certificate as those often take years of work (months at the very least) to attain. However, I completely agree with everything else that has been mentioned by @MindMax2000. The CS50 course is something I have done, I really enjoyed it and highly recommend it.

Magazine articles - ComputingEdge.

YouTube channels - NumberPhile, ComputerPhile and many others. I would also recommend looking at Frank Stajano Explains. It is a Youtube channel created by a Computer Science fellow at Trinity College Cambridge who talks about the application process and things you can do. While it is indeed looking particularly at applicants applying to Cambridge, it is a really good resource for all university applicants.

Read some Computer science books - because you don't do Computer Science at A level, I would recommend reading a book called Computational Fairytales by Jeremy Kubica. However, I must warn you that this is a common book to read for many applicants as it is one of the books listed on the Oxford super curricular activities website. I would recommend trying to work out what interests you in Computer Science then going about researching about it. Go look into some research papers and give some takes on what you thought about it in your personal statement.

Essay Competitions- Immerse Education, Oxbridge Launchpad, Minds Underground, Oxbright Oxford Scholastica Academy. These are a few of the essay competitions I have heard of (three of which I have partaken in) and they all have essay competitions with pretty prizes. I believe that they all have CS categories (though I'm not sure about the Immerse one because it's the one I didn't enter).

Personal projects - take up a programming project to demonstrate your interest in Computer Science. Along the way, you will have to do some programming at university so you may as well get accustomed to it now. You have a huge advantage here because you don't have a Computer Science background so the world is your oyster! Try to design some fun things that you find interesting that you can talk about.

Work experience - really important you have industry experience. either secure an in-person experience yourself or do the virtual ones that I have provided links to in the above posts (albeit they aren't hyperlinks otherwise it would have taken a day for that post to go out).

The main thing would be courses. I would suggest creating an account on edX.org and then going through some of the introductory Computer Science courses. CS50 have all of their courses available there and there are so many courses you can do, covering different skills. There is one for Python, one for AI, one for data analysis and this is just CS50. There are so many more that do it. For reference, CS50 is the Computer Science course at Harvard University and there are many more from the likes of Stanford, MIT (search up MIT OpenCourseWare) and also UK institutions. There is also the ones organised by freecodecamp.org and Codecademy but the freecodecamp ones take a long time to complete which I'm guessing you don't have and Codecademy requires a subscription to access the courses. Other than that, there are several courses you can find on YouTube for all skill levels and covering all sorts of things. There are a few good channels: Tech With Tim, BroCode and many others I can't remember at this moment.

@MindMax2000 Questions have been answered by a Computer Science applicant. Hope this was helpful.

Reply 7

username6376713

OP

10

Original post by vnayak

@wavetovenus I wouldn't recommend getting a professional certificate as those often take years of work (months at the very least) to attain. However, I completely agree with everything else that has been mentioned by @MindMax2000. The CS50 course is something I have done, I really enjoyed it and highly recommend it.

Magazine articles - ComputingEdge.

YouTube channels - NumberPhile, ComputerPhile and many others. I would also recommend looking at Frank Stajano Explains. It is a Youtube channel created by a Computer Science fellow at Trinity College Cambridge who talks about the application process and things you can do. While it is indeed looking particularly at applicants applying to Cambridge, it is a really good resource for all university applicants.

Read some Computer science books - because you don't do Computer Science at A level, I would recommend reading a book called Computational Fairytales by Jeremy Kubica. However, I must warn you that this is a common book to read for many applicants as it is one of the books listed on the Oxford super curricular activities website. I would recommend trying to work out what interests you in Computer Science then going about researching about it. Go look into some research papers and give some takes on what you thought about it in your personal statement.

Essay Competitions- Immerse Education, Oxbridge Launchpad, Minds Underground, Oxbright Oxford Scholastica Academy. These are a few of the essay competitions I have heard of (three of which I have partaken in) and they all have essay competitions with pretty prizes. I believe that they all have CS categories (though I'm not sure about the Immerse one because it's the one I didn't enter).

Personal projects - take up a programming project to demonstrate your interest in Computer Science. Along the way, you will have to do some programming at university so you may as well get accustomed to it now. You have a huge advantage here because you don't have a Computer Science background so the world is your oyster! Try to design some fun things that you find interesting that you can talk about.

Work experience - really important you have industry experience. either secure an in-person experience yourself or do the virtual ones that I have provided links to in the above posts (albeit they aren't hyperlinks otherwise it would have taken a day for that post to go out).

The main thing would be courses. I would suggest creating an account on edX.org and then going through some of the introductory Computer Science courses. CS50 have all of their courses available there and there are so many courses you can do, covering different skills. There is one for Python, one for AI, one for data analysis and this is just CS50. There are so many more that do it. For reference, CS50 is the Computer Science course at Harvard University and there are many more from the likes of Stanford, MIT (search up MIT OpenCourseWare) and also UK institutions. There is also the ones organised by freecodecamp.org and Codecademy but the freecodecamp ones take a long time to complete which I'm guessing you don't have and Codecademy requires a subscription to access the courses. Other than that, there are several courses you can find on YouTube for all skill levels and covering all sorts of things. There are a few good channels: Tech With Tim, BroCode and many others I can't remember at this moment.

@MindMax2000 Questions have been answered by a Computer Science applicant. Hope this was helpful.

thank you so much for your help - i'll take it all on board. i'll try to go to some uni open days and see what i think of the few i mentioned before or whether it would be best to take a gap year as, to be frank, spending an extra year in the town/area im in right now wouldn't be great for me lol.. id love to get away to uni (wherever that might be) as soon as

i'll look into those online courses and work experiences, thanks! those essay competitions sound good too.

thanks for your help, it's been very useful. good luck with your studies and congrats on your offer (:

Reply 8

MindMax2000

Universities Forum Helper

21

Original post by wavetovenus

thank you so much for your help - i'll take it all on board. i'll try to go to some uni open days and see what i think of the few i mentioned before or whether it would be best to take a gap year as, to be frank, spending an extra year in the town/area im in right now wouldn't be great for me lol.. id love to get away to uni (wherever that might be) as soon as

i'll look into those online courses and work experiences, thanks! those essay competitions sound good too.

thanks for your help, it's been very useful. good luck with your studies and congrats on your offer (:

If you just wanted to get away from the town that you're in, why not spend a gap year away from your town? There's nothing stopping you from doing so, especially when you're 18.

If you wanted, you can spend it teaching English as a foreign language abroad, work on a cruiseline for about 12 months, work on a Camp with accommodation for a few months, or even go work in catering at a chalet during ski season. If you have extended family in areas/country where you can get a lot of work during particular seasons or where workers are in demand, there really isn't anything stopping you from doing so.

If you want to stay in the country, there is nothing to say that you can't try to find yourself a place to live outside of your area and work for a year (if you can find the work).

Comp sci help???

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