Should I take D+T or Computer science for A-levels?

If you don’t like computer science then you should not take it

wow you absolute genius. I never thought of that

Just because I like an A level more than another is not good enough reason for me to take it. I plan on going to an Oxbridge University and I want to know If i should still take it since they most likely value computer science more than D+T

Hi, I’m currently doing Maths, Further Maths, Physics and Computer Science at a level. If you don’t like programming, then don’t take CompSci cause there’s a lot of it on the course, actually 20% of your final grade is a Coding Project (NEA). If you want to apply to Oxbridge, the subjects they’re going to be mostly interested in is Maths, Further Maths and Physics, they won’t really care about the fourth one tbh (I want to do compsci there and A Level computer science isn’t a requirement, Cambridge prefers that you take physics). Regarding D+T, it’s the first time I hear that that exists as an A level, so I can’t really give u any advice on that. Hope this helps.

Hmm, well if you say you're good at arduino, then I'd imagine that you can program somewhat. You say you find it daunting, but if you want to go to Oxbridge, many things will be daunting initially. Also, the algorithmic-thinking will supplement maths, FM and physics, and it will look better on your UCAS than DT, I'd imagine.

Also, programming is becoming ubiquitous in STEM, so it's an invaluable skill, even if you don't like it so much. It'll also open you up to some cool projects. If we assume that you want to do maths/engineering/physics at uni, you could work on computational fluid dynamics, chaotic simulations, computability theory, algorithms (in general), physics simulation (a really cool paper came out within the last couple years where a neural network predicted dark matter in the universe pretty accurately) and of course, AI.

I'm rambling here, but I really think there's some real utility to computer science (not just programming, algorithmic theory too), and far less utility in DT.

Thanks for the reply. While I do see how important programming is in Engineering fields, especially since I am thinking of majoring in electronics, I think that my past projects is already enough of an indication to the University that I can program and apply it to real-world scenarios. To be honest, I could cope through the programming involved in Computer Science but what really bugs me is the sheer amount of definitions to learn.

Overall I think there are some parts of computer science I enjoy, like boolean logic and adder circuits however there is so much that I just dont get along with so for that reason Im on the falling edge of changing my A levels.

Someone else in the thread said that Universities only care about, math, fm and physics so the fourth A level is up to you.

How much of that do you think is right?

Thanks

I'm interested in what you mean by definitions? I'd imagine compsci is not as definition heavy as, say, physics.

And while you do seem very intelligent, I'd imagine that doing compsci at A-Level would certainly improve your programming, and mathematics too. And as you mention electronics, that's definitely the most programming-heavy of the engineering degrees. I have recently started a PhD program in robotics, and my coursemates who are from an electronics background are pretty adept at C programming, and they didn't go to Oxbridge. I'd just say think about it, I do think DT would be a waste, and I agree that the fourth A-Level is pretty much up to you, but I think compsci will still look better.

When you say you don't like the other aspects of compsci, they will invariably be required in electronics, too. General programming, optimisation (huge in electronics, especially if you're working on microcontrollers), algorithms (signal processing, Monte Carlo, efficient algorithms, etc) and probably much more that I am not aware of. It may also help shape the direction you want to go in, so for example GPU design and programming is a pretty cool and rising field, and if you happen to take a liking to compsci more, it would certainly help in your road to getting there. Do you have any idea what you would like to go into?

Again, I'm not trying to force you at all, but if you do want to go to Oxbridge, I do think compsci will look far more favourable, and that is pretty big due to how competitive it is. Even Imperial College, which I'm assuming will be one of your backups, will be competitive as well, so all the positives you can get is a good idea I'd imagine.