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  • Computer Science (MSc / Postgraduate Diploma)

Contact our course team

Department of Computer Science and Informatics
tel: 020 7631 6700
email: cs-enq@dcs.bbk.ac.uk

Admissions tutors

Dr Dell Zhang

  • Duration
      • Two years part-time or one year full-time.
  • Attendance
      • Two–three evenings a week or one day plus one other evening part-time; three–four days a week full-time.
      • October–September.
  • Location
      • Central London.
  • Entry requirements
      • Good degree, or equivalent, in a subject other than computer science, together with some aptitude for programming.
      • Applicants without a degree-level qualification but with significant computing experience may also be considered.
  • Teaching

    • Lectures, some of which incorporate practical sessions, together with extra coursework completed in your own time.

  • Assessment

    • Coursework, including programming assignments, written examinations and a project. The Postgraduate Diploma and MSc are awarded on the basis of the same coursework and examinations. For the Postgraduate Diploma, you have to pass the examinations and coursework, but a project is not required. For the MSc, you have to pass the coursework and the examinations and also to submit a satisfactory project.

  • Fees (2009/2010)
      • Part-time (home/EU students): £2568 pa
      • Part-time (overseas students): £7764 pa
      • Full-time (home/EU students): £3390 pa
      • Full-time (overseas students): £15,534 pa
  • When to apply
      • Interviews February–September.
      • As this degree is popular, earlier applications are more likely to be successful.
  • Make your application
  • Supplementary information
Prospective students >> All our courses >> Postgraduate courses, 2010/2011 entry >> Full-time programmes >> Computer Science (MSc / Postgraduate Diploma)

Computer Science (MSc / Postgraduate Diploma) - 2010/2011 entry


Why study this course at Birkbeck?

  • Designed for graduates of subjects other than computing, who would like to embark on a career in IT.
  • Also ideal if you are working in IT and want to update your skills and place them in a broader context while obtaining a formal qualification.

  • Gain exemption from parts of the membership examinations of the British Computer Society.

This intensive programme in computing provides a good grounding for working in the information technology industry. As well as gaining a broad knowledge of computing, you will acquire programming skills and have the opportunity to investigate certain areas of current research more deeply.

What will I be studying?

Taught modules are supplemented by a substantial individual project that may be carried out in a ‘real-world’ setting.

Modules offered include:

  • Computer Systems (with examples from UNIX/Linux)
  • Database and Knowledge Management
  • Fundamentals of Computing (including mathematics and data structures)
  • Information Retrieval and Organisation
  • Information Systems (and their development in an organisational context)
  • Internet and Web Technologies 
  • Object-Oriented Design and Programming using Java and C#
  • Programming in C++.

Find out more about these modules.

Study resources

You will have 24-hour access to several laboratories of networked PCs with a range of language compilers, database and other application software. We are connected, via the SuperJANET network, to the computers of other academic institutions in London, elsewhere in the UK and abroad.

Make your application

You can apply online from the link below.

What can I go on to do?

If you are interested in further research, we offer a PhD/MPhil in Computer Science and Information Systems.

Computer science graduates also go on to careers in software engineering, information systems management, consultancy or research. We regularly publish career-related information on our web site.

Last modified: 18 Mar 2010 14.31

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