Computer Science at Oxford

From Computer Science at Oxford

Oxford students about to sit exams

The Computer Science degree has examinations at the end of each year. Those in the second and third years count towards the final degree result, with about 45% of the weight on the second year exams and 55% on the third year exams.

• The first year exams consist of five 3-hour papers on Functional Programming, Data Structures and Algorithms; Imperative Programming; Digital Hardware and Logic & Proof; Discrete Mathematics and Linear Algebra; and Calculus and Probability. These papers correspond directly with the lecture courses attended during the year.
• The second year exams consist of three 1½-hour papers on core subjects: Object-Oriented Programming, Concurrency and Models of Computation. Candidates also take five papers of 1½ hours each on Computer Science options, making a total equivalent to four 3-hour papers.
• The third year exams consist of six papers of 1½ hours each on Computer Science options, making an equivalent of three 3-hour papers. Candidates also submit a report on the project work they have done during the year.
• The fourth year of the Computer Science course, leading to a Masters qualification, is mostly examined by take-home papers completed during the vacations. Candidates also submit a report on their project.

There is a practical element to the examinations in that the examiners receive reports on the practical work done during the year. Candidates are expected to have attended practical sessions and done the required work in order to pass the exam, but this work does not contribute to the degree class that is awarded.