The Student Room Group

Which University for Computer Science? (Birmingham City or Aston)

Hi guys and gals this is my first post :smile:

I am currently looking at universities to apply to for 2014. The subject I am interesting in is Computer Science. I was thinking of applying to Leicester however, I live in Birmingham and my parents can't comfortably afford to fund my moving away.

More to the point I will be applying to the University of Birmingham although I do not think I will get in because they ask for AAB and they are top on the guardian league table for computer science.

My other two choices are Birmingham City University and Aston University. I have missed the June open days I would just like to hear people's opinion on both universities. I have heard good things about Aston and a lot of mixed opinions on Birmingham City.

By the way my fall-back uni choice will probably be Coventry.
Reply 1
Bump
Reply 2
Aston is a ok uni from what my teachers tell me and past students. I would stay away from birmingham city uni.
Reply 3
Original post by ElliotW
Aston is a ok uni from what my teachers tell me and past students. I would stay away from birmingham city uni.


Why what is so bad about brimingham city uni?
Reply 4
Nothing wrong with Birmingham city. It's better than Coventry for starters.
Reply 5
Original post by Sabuntu
Hi guys and gals this is my first post :smile:

I am currently looking at universities to apply to for 2014. The subject I am interesting in is Computer Science. I was thinking of applying to Leicester however, I live in Birmingham and my parents can't comfortably afford to fund my moving away.

More to the point I will be applying to the University of Birmingham although I do not think I will get in because they ask for AAB and they are top on the guardian league table for computer science.

My other two choices are Birmingham City University and Aston University. I have missed the June open days I would just like to hear people's opinion on both universities. I have heard good things about Aston and a lot of mixed opinions on Birmingham City.

By the way my fall-back uni choice will probably be Coventry.


They are different institutions, indeed. Aston is a good quality pre-92 university that has a very strong reputation for its science and technology teaching. Aston is ranked in the top 40 institutions in the country, and indeed is close to entering the top 30 on a number of counts. For computing, Birmingham City isn't even in the top 90 on the Guardian table, for example. However, it is well known and highly rated for its arts and design degrees.

Out of the two, Aston offers a degree closest to Birmingham University's, so if that was your ideal choice, I think Aston is likely to be the right one for you.

Good luck!

George
Reply 6
Original post by gbuchanan
They are different institutions, indeed. Aston is a good quality pre-92 university that has a very strong reputation for its science and technology teaching. Aston is ranked in the top 40 institutions in the country, and indeed is close to entering the top 30 on a number of counts. For computing, Birmingham City isn't even in the top 90 on the Guardian table, for example. However, it is well known and highly rated for its arts and design degrees.

Out of the two, Aston offers a degree closest to Birmingham University's, so if that was your ideal choice, I think Aston is likely to be the right one for you.

Good luck!

George


Thank you for that comprehensive reply. However you appear to have looked at the table for 2013 students. On the guardian 2014 table Birmingham City is 51 and Aston is 53. That is I why am a bit confused.

Here is the link: http://www.guardian.co.uk/education/table/2013/jun/04/university-guide-computer-sciences-it
(edited 10 years ago)
Reply 7
Hmm... you're quite right, and it turns out the Guardian's own site has an incorrect link in it, which I didn't spot.

What's happened in terms of ranking is that Birmingham City has shot up in computing due to a huge surge in overall student satisfaction (from the 60s to 90%). In one year. Surprising, but not entirely unknown.

I looked up the current and old unistats data on the two courses, as that's often enlightening.

Aston still wins overall I think - some key data that is important:

Aston is BCS accredited; Birmingham City is not. While British Computer Society membership is not vital for everyone, if a course is not accredited, it means it does not meet the criteria for practical skills required for BCS accreditation.

In terms of employment, 36% of Birmingham City graduates were unemployed at six months; while only 15% at Aston were (it was a bad year, so figures are generally high). In other words, Birmingham City has more than double the unemployment rate.

If you look at what jobs those who did get work do, the picture is similar: 95% of working Aston graduates having a professional or managerial role, while only 65% of Birmingham City graduates are (to save you the number crunching, this means that in the end Aston has nearly double the chance of getting you a professional role at the end of the course.

I noticed, interestingly, that the average actual fees paid at Aston are lower than at Birmingham.

There is a change between 2011 and 2012 data (which are the last two years) for Birmingham City - which is a major upswing. However, there can be (in both directions) quite marked differences between years. Averaging out over the last while, Aston is markedly ahead, but last year on a some questions, Birmingham City did outperform them.

Overall, I think Aston look the better bet from the KIS data, with better consistency of student satisfaction and, importantly, markedly better employment. The Guardian table this year seems to be rating "value added" higher, but that looks at grades on graduation, not employment. The former is generally easier for an institution to adjust than the latter.

I hope that helps,

George
Reply 8
Original post by gbuchanan
Hmm... you're quite right, and it turns out the Guardian's own site has an incorrect link in it, which I didn't spot.

What's happened in terms of ranking is that Birmingham City has shot up in computing due to a huge surge in overall student satisfaction (from the 60s to 90%). In one year. Surprising, but not entirely unknown.

I looked up the current and old unistats data on the two courses, as that's often enlightening.

Aston still wins overall I think - some key data that is important:

Aston is BCS accredited; Birmingham City is not. While British Computer Society membership is not vital for everyone, if a course is not accredited, it means it does not meet the criteria for practical skills required for BCS accreditation.

In terms of employment, 36% of Birmingham City graduates were unemployed at six months; while only 15% at Aston were (it was a bad year, so figures are generally high). In other words, Birmingham City has more than double the unemployment rate.

If you look at what jobs those who did get work do, the picture is similar: 95% of working Aston graduates having a professional or managerial role, while only 65% of Birmingham City graduates are (to save you the number crunching, this means that in the end Aston has nearly double the chance of getting you a professional role at the end of the course.

I noticed, interestingly, that the average actual fees paid at Aston are lower than at Birmingham.

There is a change between 2011 and 2012 data (which are the last two years) for Birmingham City - which is a major upswing. However, there can be (in both directions) quite marked differences between years. Averaging out over the last while, Aston is markedly ahead, but last year on a some questions, Birmingham City did outperform them.

Overall, I think Aston look the better bet from the KIS data, with better consistency of student satisfaction and, importantly, markedly better employment. The Guardian table this year seems to be rating "value added" higher, but that looks at grades on graduation, not employment. The former is generally easier for an institution to adjust than the latter.

I hope that helps,

George


Thanks George. Those are some very good points you have there. Looks like I will focus on getting into Aston then :smile:

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