Computer Application Students!

Anarking

The Hardest part of CA is trying to sit in the labs and no lash out at one of the horrible mongoloids who sit guffawing like a pack of downies on vicodin.

public_enemy

sock puppet wrote: »

There seem to be a lot of conflicting opinions on this thread. I'm leaning more towards CA but is it really true that most people in the course have no interest in it and it's dumbed down? How is it different from other colleges or are they more similar now that the 2 subjects have been separated?

I wouldn't say that students have no interest in it, it's more that after a few years in the course, a lot of people tire of the workload and some of the more tedious subjects, so by the time they get to the end they just want to be done with it. Going into semester 2 of final year, I'll most likely be picking my last four modules based on how easy rather than how interesting they are.

As for it being dumbed down, I think that may be a little inaccurate. From looking at past exam papers and assignments, some subjects certainly seem to be getting easier as time goes by, but others are harder. The compilers assignment this year looks worse than the one last year, for example. It was divided into three parts and for the third one only 15 out of 40 or so students submitted anything at all (and two of them got 0). I know first year has been restructured a bit, but some of the hard stuff they've removed (like the D6) could well be considered obsolete.

Attol

sock puppet wrote: »

There seem to be a lot of conflicting opinions on this thread. I'm leaning more towards CA but is it really true that most people in the course have no interest in it and it's dumbed down? How is it different from other colleges or are they more similar now that the 2 subjects have been separated?

It depends on what you put into it. I've worked steadily throughout the year, submitted my assignments on time and done grand. It's constant work so be prepared for that. It's really not bad though as long as you keep up with the practicals etc. and attend lectures. They've changed stuff around so if anything it looks like it'd be a little harder than previous years in some ways as some people in the years ahead of me in CA have told me that some of the modules we're doing in semester 2 used to be taught in 2nd year. They've removed a lot of the optional stuff like languages and marketing and seem to be focussing more on computery stuff in CA this year, which I for one am quite happy about. I would have liked to have done the electronics optional module but oh well!

From what I've heard from people in Trinity anyway our course seems to have a teensy bit less waffle(one of my friends was doing psychology as a module on a computer science course) and seems to put a little more emphasis on practical work. This works great for me as I prefer to do continuous assessment as it's like constantly revising so you don't freak when it comes to exam time and you can't remember any syntax you learned at the start as you haven't practiced. The programming assignments got steadily more difficult.

sock puppet

Attol wrote: »

It depends on what you put into it. I've worked steadily throughout the year, submitted my assignments on time and done grand. It's constant work so be prepared for that. It's really not bad though as long as you keep up with the practicals etc. and attend lectures. They've changed stuff around so if anything it looks like it'd be a little harder than previous years in some ways as some people in the years ahead of me in CA have told me that some of the modules we're doing in semester 2 used to be taught in 2nd year. They've removed a lot of the optional stuff like languages and marketing and seem to be focussing more on computery stuff in CA this year, which I for one am quite happy about. I would have liked to have done the electronics optional module but oh well!

From what I've heard from people in Trinity anyway our course seems to have a teensy bit less waffle(one of my friends was doing psychology as a module on a computer science course) and seems to put a little more emphasis on practical work. This works great for me as I prefer to do continuous assessment as it's like constantly revising so you don't freak when it comes to exam time and you can't remember any syntax you learned at the start as you haven't practiced. The programming assignments got steadily more difficult.

Thanks for your help. I'll either go to DCU or Trinity I'd say because of travel. I'm still not decided on Computer Applications or Enterprise Computing though. Still I put them both on my form so I can change them later. Are the two courses very similar? On the list of 1st year subjects it says that you don't do the computer programming modules in EC. Since there's more emphasis on business are the job opportunities much different? I know it was said earlier in the thread that they're quite different degrees but the two who posted here who said they did IS are now working as software developers

Jewelsster

Well the good thing about Computer Applications and Enterprise Computing is that you can start one degree and swap over in the first year so you have a bit of flexibility in that respect!

However, if you want to swap from Enterprise Computing into Computer Applications you have to have chosen the Programming module over the Digital World module.

It's the only option in first year for EC students: programming or digital world so you do do some programming in first year EC (if you choose to!).

I reckon EC might have higher points than CA this year but that's more to do with the way CAO is set up (supply and demand) than reflective of the standard of the degrees.

Ultimately it depends which one suits you best and which you enjoy most! Some people love programming, some don't!

Diarmaid07

Personally I think it's a great course and if you're interested in IT, do it

I had a huge interest in programming and hardware before coming in, but only limited practical experience or knowledge. I just worked at it, had a fluke in one test, and came out(hopefully) on top.

There is a bit of business aspect in semester 1 (Business game) but this is easy enough to get through - I had done business for the LC so had a bit of a founding, my friend who didn't also got through the semester OK(so far at least - results thursday )

The maths lecturer isn't great in semester one, but if you put the work in and do a bit of extra study(keep your less stress, more success guides) you won't do too badly. All you have to do is pass for now!