(BSc) Bachelor of Science
Computer Science (Including Foundation Year)
Current
University of Essex
University of Essex
Essex Pathways
Colchester Campus
Honours Degree
Full-time
BSC G403
19/03/2014
Details
Professional accreditation
None
Admission criteria
A-levels: 180 points, including DD (or equivalent)
GCSE: Mathematics C
IELTS (International English Language Testing System) code
English language requirements for applicants whose first language is not English: IELTS 5.5 overall.
If you are an international student requiring a Tier 4 visa to study in the UK please see our immigration webpages for the latest Home Office guidance on English language qualifications.
Other English language qualifications may be acceptable so please contact us for further details. If we accept the English component of an international qualification then it will be included in the information given about the academic levels required. Please note that date restrictions may apply to some English language qualifications.
Course qualifiers
A course qualifier is a bracketed addition to your course title to denote a specialisation or pathway that you have achieved via the completion of specific modules during your course. The
specific module requirements for each qualifier title are noted below. Eligibility for any selected qualifier will be determined by the department and confirmed by the final year Board of
Examiners. If the required modules are not successfully completed, your course title will remain as described above without any bracketed addition. Selection of a course qualifier is
optional and student can register preferences or opt-out via Online Module Enrolment (eNROL).
None
Rules of assessment
Rules of assessment are the rules, principles and frameworks which the University uses to calculate your course progression and final results.
Additional notes
None
External examiners
Dr Ke Chen
Senior Lecturer
The University of Manchester
External Examiners provide an independent overview of our courses, offering their expertise and help towards our continual improvement of course content, teaching, learning, and assessment.
External Examiners are normally academics from other higher education institutions, but may be from the industry, business or the profession as appropriate for the course.
They comment on how well courses align with national standards, and on how well the teaching, learning and assessment methods allow students to develop and demonstrate the relevant knowledge and skills needed to achieve their awards.
External Examiners who are responsible for awards are key members of Boards of Examiners. These boards make decisions about student progression within their course and about whether students can receive their final award.
Programme aims
1. to provide students with a foundation in financial accounting, management accounting and financial management, with an opportunity to develop expertise in a chosen specialism;
2. to equip students with the knowledge and skills necessary to pursue a career in accounting;
3. to encourage and facilitate critical, analytical thinking by students as a vital foundation for subsequent academic study, employment, professional and personal development, and participation in society;
4. to enable students to acquire the personal and key skills they need to develop as autonomous and reflective individuals with the capacity to continue learning;
5. to provide students with an opportunity to gain exemption from at least the Foundation Stage of the qualifying examinations of the professional accounting bodies.
Learning outcomes and learning, teaching and assessment methods
On successful completion of the programme a graduate should demonstrate knowledge and skills as follows:
A: Knowledge and understanding
A1: Principles, techniques and processes of project management.
A2: The industrial context and the professional, legal and ethical responsibilities of computer scientists
A3: Mathematical principles that underpin the analysis and generation of computing models and algorithms
A4: Programming models, languages and development environments
A5: Computer systems, including computer architecture, operating systems, embedded computer systems and computer networks
A6: Information systems, including data modelling, database design, information retrieval and visualisation, and access via interactive web pages
A7: Systems analysis and software development processes
A8: Principles, techniques and applications in those areas of computer science or related disciplines in which the student has chosen to develop special expertise
Learning methods
Lectures and tutor-led seminars
Directed reading
Individual and group tasks
Assessment methods
Achievement of knowledge outcomes is assessed primarily through unseen closed-book examinations, and also through marked coursework.
An assessment of the understanding of underlying concepts and principles forms part of the overall assessment of the final year individual project report and oral presentation.
B: Intellectual and cognitive skills
B1: Analyse a given problem and select the most appropriate methods for its solution.
B2: Evaluate the relative strengths of a range of theories, techniques, tools, languages etc used in the design and construction of computer-based systems.
B3: Interpret the contents of articles and other sources, and form a critical judgement of their relative importance and relevance to an area of study.
B4: Construct informed, succinct and reasoned descriptions of, and proposals for, computer-based systems.
Learning methods
Lectures and tutor-led seminars
Directed reading
Individual and group tasks
Assessment methods
Achievement of intellectual skills is assessed primarily through unseen closed-book examinations, and also through marked assignments and project work.
C: Practical skills
C1: Make effective use of a range of theories, techniques, programming languages, operating systems, design support tools and development environments.
C2: Specify, design, implement, test and document a computer-based system.
C3: Work as a member of a team, contributing to the planning and execution of a system development task.
C4: Propose, plan, undertake and report a self-directed individual programme of investigation, design and implementation.
Learning methods
Lectures and tutor-led seminars
Directed reading
Individual and group tasks
Assessment methods
Achievement of practical skills is assessed through marked coursework, project reports, oral presentations and demonstrations of completed systems.
D: Key skills
D1: Communicate effectively in written reports and oral presentations using appropriate terminology and technical language
D2: Retrieve information using search engines, browsers and catalogues; use appropriate IT facilities to prepare and present technical reports in various formats (documents, oral presentations)
D3: Use mathematical techniques in the processes of analysis and desig
D4: Analyse complex problems and design effective solution
D5: Plan and manage team projects using available support tools; work effectively as part of a tea
D6: Organise activity and manage time in a programme of self-directed study
Learning methods
Lectures and tutor-led seminars
Directed reading
Individual and group tasks
Assessment methods
Assessment of the key skills D3 and D4 is intrinsic to subject based assessment.
The assessment of project work includes specific allocations of credit for project management (D5, D6) and the quality of presentations (D1 and D2).
An individual's contribution to team projects (D5) is determined by means of a submission containing reflective and self-assessment components.
The assessment of the final year individual project report includes specific allocation of credit for the quality, extent and relevance of a bibliography, including internet sources (D2).