The department is dedicated to research to advance the growth of knowledge and understanding of the science of computing; to educating undergraduates and postgraduates to their full potential; to developing links with government, business, industry and the community; and to providing an intellectual and physical environment in which all its staff and students can perform to the best of their ability.
Teaching
The department provides a broad range of courses to cater for the wide variety of students interested in computing.
It seeks to achieve appropriate balances between professional expertise and intellectual endeavour in its students.
It encourages honours students in computer science and also provides suitable courses to support other disciplines (particularly in Science, Engineering and Humanities).
Research
The department carries out basic and strategic research in computing hardware, software and theory, building on its strengths which currently include inference, image processing and graphics, artificial intelligence and computer systems.
It maintains and develops its links (individual and group) with the international computer science community, publishing and presenting its results in artefacts, software and papers at international and other conferences and in international and other journals.
It aims to provide an environment in which all members of the department, staff and students alike, can carry out their research. It encourages cooperation and the effective and efficient use of resources by groups formed wholly from the department or partly from outside.
It actively recruits the highest quality staff and research students.
Links
The department encourages joint research and development with appropriate bodies in government, business, industry and both the national and international communities.
The department seeks research support from all appropriate sources and attempts to broaden the base of such support.
Environment
The department strives to enhance the working environment by the provision of adequate equipment and support personnel.
It encourages all working in the department to further their own education and qualifications by undertaking courses of appropriate duration.
It manages its resources to preserve and enhance the working conditions so that staff can devote their energies to their principal duties of research and teaching.
It vigorously represents its needs and achievements in the appropriate forums both within and outside the university.
It continues to respond to the needs of the faculty, the university and the community at large and to provide advice and knowledge to the best of its ability.
Objectives - Major in computer science
The major in computer science is the principal undergraduate offering of the Department of Computer Science. The major is a sequence of subjects available to students studying for a Bachelor of Computing (Computer Science); the major is also available to students in a range of other courses, including the Bachelor of Science and Bachelor of Computer Science and Engineering.
The aim of the major is to provide students with both practical skills and a conceptual understanding of computer science, focusing on four main areas of study: algorithms, computing machinery, theory, and applications. Teaching is directed at giving students not only the essential facts in these areas, but also an understanding of the concepts and principles that underlie and interrelate them.
Students completing this sequence will have knowledge and understanding of the following areas:
* algorithms - specification, design, implementation, representation by formal languages, systems software engineering, and programming paradigms;
* computing machinery - specification, design, implementation, interfacing, networking, and new technologies;
* theoretical basis - reliability and correctness, analysis, resource usage, formal systems and their properties, computability, artificial intelligence, and information theory;
* applications - commercial, industrial, educational and personal applications, including application techniques such as graphics simulation.
They will be able to:
* apply their knowledge of algorithm analysis and design to solve either applied or research-oriented computational problems;
* apply their knowledge to the design and development of computing systems;
* review and evaluate computing systems;
* apply fundamental principles to the understanding of new technologies;
* communicate effectively in a professional environment;
* participate in large-scale programming projects.
They will have developed attitudes which allow them to:
* participate professionally in industrial research and development;
* relate computational problem-solving issues back to the fundamental principles of computing;
* confidently use computers as problem-solving tools;
* adapt readily to changing technologies.