Computer scientists are much sought after by employers and can command high salaries?Photo: BRC Designs/Rex Features "The future is already here — it's just not very evenly distributed." William Gibson
What qualification do you leave with?
Students usually leave with BSc but at University College London there are both MEng courses which stretch for an extra year as well as a three year BSc programme.
Degrees are usually three years but combined Masters courses as well as many opportunities to study
What does it cover?
Most computer science courses combine two strands, basic theories behind computer functions (ie algorithms) and more applied work such as Java programming. The initial course at UCL is 'Computer Architecture' which gives students a basic understanding of the structure of computers and the ways in which they hold information. Other common areas of study are professional specifications for software projects and the workings of microprocessors. Students then finish their degree with a large individual project which, at UCL, has included students designing commercially available iPhone applications and software which manages the reams of data already gathered on the athletes likely to compete in London 2012. Goldsmiths, University of London, run undergraduate and postgraduate degree programmes that include the application of computer science to the arts, media, music, design, games, psychology and business.
At undergraduate level at the University of Bedfordshire, 17 specialist BSc degrees courses are on offer.
What can you expect?
Whilst most people think some kind of voodoo magic enables our phones to receive emails, computer science students are amongst the few humans who can fully comprehend how small devices like laptops and phones manage to do all the things we ask them to.
What are the usual A-levels you need?
UCL requires students to have mathematics at A level and – for their mathematical computation programme – further mathematic too. Some institutions will only require strong GCSE results in maths but students need to show that this is an area that they are passionate about and determined to succeed in.
Career prospects
It may have become a hackneyed truism but computers play an increasingly fundamental part in our lives, from managing financial transactions between international corporations to letting us stream television programmes we've missed earlier in the week. This therefore gives computer scientists a shaman-like position in society, opening doors to well-paid jobs across the public and private sectors.
Top places to study
The latest Complete University Guide (published in April 2011) rates Cambridge, Oxford, Imperial, UCL and Bristol as the top five universities for this subject according to an index based on student satisfaction, entry standards, an assessment of the quality of the university's research, and graduate prospects.
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