BSc Computer Science (with Integrated Foundation Year)

BSc Computer Science (with Integrated Foundation Year)

This course is available to Home (UK) students and students from the EU who meet the English Language requirements.

Our Integrated Foundation Year will take you through a carefully-designed course to help you to progress confidently onto your undergraduate degree.

Engineering, Physical, Computational and Mathematical sciences underpin modern technological society and can help us provide answers to fundamental questions. Graduates with these degrees are highly sought after by employers. The Computer Science Foundation Year provides progressive structures in which you are able to gain knowledge and understanding of approaches to scientific study and your chosen degree subject.

All Foundation Year students take ‘Global Perspectives’, then four subject-based courses provide familiarity with Mathematics and computation – the language of modern science and technology, and key for success in science, technology and engineering.

Once you have completed your Foundation year, you will normally progress onto the full degree course, BSc Computer Science. There may also be flexibility to move onto a degree in another department (see end of section, below).

Want to work at the cutting-edge of computing technology and help in shaping the future of our global society? Computers, intelligent devices and the internet are central to so many aspects of 21st century life, from business and industry to governance and our personal lives. Their potential for transforming economies, driving efficiencies and enhancing the well-being of societies is almost limitless. Our progressive curriculum will give you the knowledge and technical skills that employers need, and introduce you to pioneering ideas and technologies to help you to realise your ambitions.

We cover all the essentials of application development, from programming to software engineering, databases to web development, computer graphics to robotics, and information security. You will also explore the fundamentals of computing – what computers do, and how efficiently they do it – and learn about a host of advanced technologies, from computer games, digital sound and music, to concurrent and parallel programming, machine learning, bioinformatics, the internet of things, computational finance and more. From the outset you will be experimenting with programming games, robots, Gadgeteer kits, Subversion, JUnit testing, Scrum-based Agile software and more, in our well-equipped laboratories.

We are a highly respected, research-focused department with a friendly approach and award-winning teaching. We offer a short-term summer work placement course and a dedicated personal adviser to guide you through your studies. You will also be welcome to join our thriving Computing Society. We are proud to be among the few departments in the UK to hold the Athena SWAN bronze award for increasing female participation in computer science.

The course’s modular structure gives you the flexibility to tailor your degree to your interests. We also offer you the opportunity to follow a specialist pathway that matches your career ambitions. At the end of year 1 you will have the option of transferring onto one of these pathways (Artificial Intelligence, Information Security or Distributed & Networked Computing), as well as onto a year-in-industry course, or onto our longer and more advanced integrated masters course. Transferring onto our Software Engineering pathway requires previous programming experience and early permission to take the Software Development course in year 1, rather than Object-oriented Programming.

On successful completion of your Foundation Year, you may be able to choose an alternative pathway which could include a degree from one of the other departments offering a Foundation Year within the School of Engineering, Physical and Mathematical Sciences. If you'd like to do this, you may take your Foundation Year Individual Project in one of these other departments. The degree course you choose to take after progression is likely to depend on the individual project you select during the foundation year. Please note however that you must take 'Foundation Skills (Mathematics)' and your individual project in the Department of Mathematics if you wish to join a full degree course in Mathematics.

From time to time, we make changes to our courses to improve the student and learning experience. If we make a significant change to your chosen course, we’ll let you know as soon as possible.

Students will generally need good high school graduation grades or equivalent, plus one year of further study.

English language requirements

All teaching at Royal Holloway is in English. You will therefore need to have good enough written and spoken English to cope with your studies right from the start.

The scores we require

• IELTS: 6.5 overall. No subscore lower than 5.5.
• Pearson Test of English: 61 overall. Writing 54. No subscore lower than 51.
• Trinity College London Integrated Skills in English (ISE): ISE III.