Computer Science at Royal Holloway

How is the computer science course at rhul?
What has everyones experience been like?

Would like to know too

Yeh i wanna know

Hi all,

It's great to hear that you're all interested in Computer Science at Royal Holloway! In order to give you all the most accurate information I'm going to get in touch with one of our students to give you a little overview of their experiences in studying Computer Science at Royal Holloway. If you have any specific questions for them, let me know here so I can get these answered for you!

Summer

[...]

Insightful and detailed response, really appreciate it. I'm looking at the scholarship for comp sci applicants. Do you know what sort of grades recipients of the scholarship typically have or how many of them are usually given out per year?

https://www.royalholloway.ac.uk/studyhere/undergraduate/feesandfunding/bursariesandscholarships/computerscience.aspx

Hello! I'm Christos and I have just finished my second year of studying Computer Science at Royal Holloway.

When I came to an Open Day, I knew immediately that this was the university for me and that I wanted to study Computer Science, not just because of the course but also because of the vibe I received whilst talking to the lecturers. The first thing I noticed was how friendly and genuinely caring the staff were and this has not changed in the two years I have been here.

At the time of writing (June 2017), Royal Holloway offers many specialist pathways into a Computer Science degree including Information Security and Artificial Intelligence. However, in the first year, everyone takes the same modules, with exception of those on the Software Engineering pathway taking the 'Software Development' course instead of ' Object Oriented Programming II'.

The idea behind this is that new students come to university with different skills, knowledge and experiences of computer science, so by taking the same courses, every student will be brought to the same level in terms of what is required to succeed in the rest of the degree programme.

With that said, I will also point out that in first year students are taught to code from scratch, so it is not an essential requirement for you to have programmed before. Of course, programming experience is always useful and is also something to mention in your personal statement, but you will not be at a disadvantage if you have not coded before. Personally, I have never coded in my life prior to starting my degree and I do not feel it has had any effect on my ability in accessing the course. If you're interested in learning a programming language, we at Royal Holloway mainly focus on Java in the first and second year.

As all students (bar those on the Software Engineering pathway) do the same courses in first year and term one of second year, switching between pathways is a very simple process. This provides a lot of flexibility and allows students to really get to know the different areas of computer science before deciding their specialism.

There are also opportunities to do Computer Science as part of a society. The Computing Society (or as we call it 'CompSoc' is run by a group of students elected by other members of the society. They are always running smoe sort of event, be it socials, careers talks, trips or coding workshops, so there really is something for everyone. For example, this year there have been trips to Bletchley Park and EuroGamer.

CompSoc is given huge support by the department and because of this they can offer so much more to their members, including discounts to some trips and free t-shirts. Lecturers also like to attend some of the society events so you can really get to know them.

When I was applying to universities I found it really useful to know exactly what each module will cover. You can look at more information on the modules here. Under the 'Undergraduate' tab, there are numerous links beneath the 'Course and Degree Information' heading. These courses are subject to change each year but give a good indication of what you will be learning.

If you have any questions, let me know and I will be happy to answer.

Christos.

I've been reading through this forum in search of information exactly like this! Thank you!

I am a female hoping to study computer science (information security) and wonder how many females tend to study this degree?

I've been reading through this forum in search of information exactly like this! Thank you!

I am a female hoping to study computer science (information security) and wonder how many females tend to study this degree?

This is soooooooo fake hahahahahahaha.A student will never write this.Here is a real account (I'm a 3rd year, just finished graduating (last two years, won't specify) 1st class degree)Course is a piss take, modules are too easy, you learn very little, i guess if you like it easy then this is good for you.Too many students compared to professors, department isn't coping yet they are accepting more applications.The university if in huge debt hence they will do anything to rope you in then just keep you and suck you for every penny.the quality is constantly deteriorating and you will have a LOT of spare time.I suggest doing a huge amount of self learning or projects outside the course if you want to stand a chance in the real world.The computer science society is a drinking society, they do literally nothing interesting.Everyone is lazy except for the lovely Elaine M. who goes as far as remembering most student's names. Your contribution is appreciated.Most professors are very very lazy, courses are out of date and make you sleep rather than prompt contribution and interest. such a missed opportunity.Good professors leave, so only the unchanged artefacts that haven't modified their lecture slides in 10 years stay behind, no wonder research is suffering. I mean who in their right mind teaches 3rd year courses that can be memorized in a few days. so so so sad.What is good: personal time to do stuff outside to get experience. Easy courses for the lazy, campus is nice, although accommodation isn't as students are very very immature (1st - 2nd year and some 3rd.) it feels more like a party house than a university. (and then they wonder why their rankings slip)Honestly I would have fired anyone who participated in allowing such a low level presentation of knowledge to continue. Disgraceful.

Hi there,

Please can a current or recent student tell me how many days/hours a week they had to attend the uni?
I'm an adult learner with a part-time job which can be shifted around my studies. But I need to have an approximation in my head in advance.
The uni is not very helpful in their replies to this question. 🙂
Thanks in advance!

Hi! I'm currently in second year, in first year I had about 16 hours a week, now I have 13-14. I can't say when exactly they'll be though, sometimes you'll have a day off entirely, other times there's something every day feel free to ask me anything else if you think of it!