Which Computer Science course to pick (CK401, TR033,LM051)

jreanor

I apologize for double posting this thread...but I posted it in the wrong section by accident. I'm pretty sure it should be here.

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2055789876

Thanks very much

lmimmfn

I cant comment on any of those as i did my Comp Science Degree in CIT, you should look at the subjects covered and determine whether you'd prefer more theory or actual hands on programming and which one of those courses you would enjoy more, back in the mid 90's the 2 Comp Science courses i determines were the best for me were the one in CIT and the one in DCU, i decided on the CIT one as the DCU course had law etc. which i had absolutely no interest in.

Also, its completely dependent on what you would actually like to do when you finish the degree, reading the other thread you say you would like to be a software developer, well the most important subjects for that purpose are programming, object orientated analysis and design( OOAD ), UML, computer architecture, also testing is important( unit tests/basic integration tests ). However it is good to be well versed in networking, low level computer languages like assembly( as it provides the foundation that all languages work on ), formal language theory can be handy also.

Basically at college you will learn a set of basic skills, but you will end up specialising in certain areas when you start working in the industry.

if i was in your position i'd actually ring up the collages/universities and find out more about the subjects covered, not just in first year but for the duration of the degree.

At the end of the day i have never experienced any company preferring any course an interviewee has recieved their degree in, you're either good or you're not.
Ive interviewed graduates before and i've paid 0 attention to where they recieved their degree from, technical skills are what matters.
I will say though that if after you graduate that you're planning on getting interviewed in the US its best to pick the most famous one and one which would be more recognised.

jreanor

lmimmfn wrote: »

I cant comment on any of those as i did my Comp Science Degree in CIT, you should look at the subjects covered and determine whether you'd prefer more theory or actual hands on programming and which one of those courses you would enjoy more, back in the mid 90's the 2 Comp Science courses i determines were the best for me were the one in CIT and the one in DCU, i decided on the CIT one as the DCU course had law etc. which i had absolutely no interest in.

Also, its completely dependent on what you would actually like to do when you finish the degree, reading the other thread you say you would like to be a software developer, well the most important subjects for that purpose are programming, object orientated analysis and design( OOAD ), UML, computer architecture, also testing is important( unit tests/basic integration tests ). However it is good to be well versed in networking, low level computer languages like assembly( as it provides the foundation that all languages work on ), formal language theory can be handy also.

Basically at college you will learn a set of basic skills, but you will end up specialising in certain areas when you start working in the industry.

if i was in your position i'd actually ring up the collages/universities and find out more about the subjects covered, not just in first year but for the duration of the degree.

At the end of the day i have never experienced any company preferring any course an interviewee has recieved their degree in, you're either good or you're not.
Ive interviewed graduates before and i've paid 0 attention to where they recieved their degree from, technical skills are what matters.
I will say though that if after you graduate that you're planning on getting interviewed in the US its best to pick the most famous one and one which would be more recognised.

Thanks lmimmfn. That is a big help. Ringing up the colleges is a great idea, I will definitely do that. I really appreciate your help.

corkcomp

jreanor wrote: »

I apologize for double posting this thread...but I posted it in the wrong section by accident. I'm pretty sure it should be here.

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2055789876

Thanks very much

just read your first post there, have you looked at CR116 in CIT?

IF you are into java programming and general software development this is a great course, and you get the benefit of the networking component also .. you need to be pretty good at maths though. its a tough course and the class piss ups become less frequent once you get into second and third year. drop me a pm if you need to know anything further on this, im speaking as a grad of this course ..

jreanor

Thanks for your suggestion. I have considered that course before but I ruled it out because although I have an interest in networking, it is not my main area of interest.

Zeouterlimits

Hey jreanor,
I'm a 2nd Year Computer Systems student (one of those lucky enough to get a Co-Op come May) so if you have any questions I'd be more than willing to help.

You say that networking isn't your main area of interest, what is?
Programming I assume? High or Low level?
What knowledge do you have of the courses?
Good luck with whatever you choose.

jreanor

Zeouterlimits wrote: »

Hey jreanor,
I'm a 2nd Year Computer Systems student (one of those lucky enough to get a Co-Op come May) so if you have any questions I'd be more than willing to help.

You say that networking isn't your main area of interest, what is?
Programming I assume? High or Low level?
What knowledge do you have of the courses?
Good luck with whatever you choose.

Thanks for your response. If you dont mind me asking, in which college are you studying?

Yes. Programming. I am especially interested in low-level programming.

As far as I have seen the content of the 3 courses mentioned above varies only slightly between them but I have limited knowledge on this.

corkcomp

jreanor wrote: »

Thanks for your response. If you dont mind me asking, in which college are you studying?

Yes. Programming. I am especially interested in low-level programming.

As far as I have seen the content of the 3 courses mentioned above varies only slightly between them but I have limited knowledge on this.

not sure if you may have gotten incorrect info re CR116 but the main component of the course is actually programming and software development so if this is your area, take a second look! programming includes java, C, C++, real time systems and assembly language

Zeouterlimits

jreanor wrote: »

Thanks for your response. If you dont mind me asking, in which college are you studying?

Yes. Programming. I am especially interested in low-level programming.

As far as I have seen the content of the 3 courses mentioned above varies only slightly between them but I have limited knowledge on this.

Oh sorry, thought when I said Systems you'd realise, I'm studying in UL.
Honestly Computer Engineering is alot closer to lower level programming, Science and Systems while certainly having some (in Computer Organisation and Architecture modules), deals alot more the higher level languages: C, C++, Java etc.

snappieT

I just finished TR033 this year, and really think it was a great course, with tonnes of opportunities for jobs or further study. It's a full computer science course (i.e. not a software development course). You will learn (lots of) programming, but you also learn about the electronics, logic, and other hardware (I mean CPU and general architecture, not how a printer works...)

If you like computers and are very interested in how they work (above and beyond how to code on them), then TR033 is, without a doubt, the course for you. If you're interested solely in software/networking, look elsewhere. This is not to say you won't cover software and networking in great depth in TR033, it's just that that's not what the course it, it's part of it.