Computer Science

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Computer Science is a practical subject where students can apply the academic principles learned in the classroom to real-world systems.

Our computer Science A-Level is relevant to the modern and changing world of computing. There is a focus on programming, emphasising the importance of computational thinking as a discipline. With computational thinking at its core, it helps students to develop the skills to solve problems, design systems and understand human and machine intelligence.

Taking A-Level Computer Science will be excellent preparation for students who want to go on to study Computer Science at a higher level and will also provide a good grounding for other subject areas that require computational thinking and analytical skills.

A-Level Course Content:
Unit 1: Computer Systems 40% (exam)
This is an examined unit covering the characteristics of contemporary systems architecture and other areas including characteristics of contemporary processors, input, output and storage devices, software and software development, exchanging data, data types, data structures and algorithms, legal, moral, ethical and cultural issues.

Unit 2: Algorithms and Programming 40% (exam)
This is an examined unit covering computational thinking, including programming and problem solving, pattern recognition, software development, abstraction and decomposition, algorithm design and efficiency and standard algorithms.

Unit 3: Computer Systems 20% (coursework)
This unit gives students a chance to demonstrate their programming ability learnt throughout the course. To complete this project, students will need to analyse a problem, design a solution and give a thorough evaluation.

Staff Contact
Mrs K. Williams (Head of ICT and Computing) - k.williams@wymcol.org

The College expects students to have:
Grade 6 or above in GCSE Mathematics and Grade 5 in English. Qualifications in Computer Science are not necessary

Computer Science is highly regarded by universities and helps gain entry to many degree courses including those related to Science, Mathematics, Engineering and of course Computer Science itself. Computer Science graduates work/research in a range of industries from aerospace to telecommunications and from artificial intelligence to mining.