Is doing a foundation year worth it?

I want to do computer science for university, however I didn't do computer science in sixth form and I rarely have any experience for the subject. Is it wise to go straight to undergraduate? Or I must do a foundation year to get an understanding of computer science before progressing to the full three-year degree programme?

Reply 1

Harp19191

If you mean understanding in terms of content then it is fine to go straight into undergraduate as they'll teach you what you need to know from a beginners level. Also, the foundation years 'top' unis offer are more general and they are usually called engineering and science or something along those lines, so it is likely that you will not go into much detail regarding computer science and therefore are unlikely to get a good understanding of computer science.

If you mean understanding in terms of whether or not you'll like it then it is important to note that it involves a lot of Math (discrete, linear algebra, calculus etc), especially at 'top' unis, so if you do not take Maths at A-Level your options in terms of going straight into undergraduate at 'top' unis are quite limited and if you do not like Maths then it is likely that you will not like computer science.