Largest increase ever in Computer Science undergraduates at Southampton

This year, ECS welcomes 94 new computer science undergraduates which is 20 per cent higher than last year and its largest intake in five years.

According to Dr Paul Garratt, Senior Admissions Tutor, Computer Science, the increase is very good news for the industry and signals a renewed interest in mathematics and physics and an endorsement of computer science as a route to extremely lucrative careers such as management consultancy, finance and IT.

‘Employment prospects for computer sciences graduates in Europe and the USA are greater then ever, he said. ‘It is not unusual for a graduate to start out on £35,000 in what is now an extremely healthy job market.’

ECS graduates are employed by some of the world’s major IT employers such as Microsoft and Google and IBM.

The School’s popularity in computer science was highlighted earlier this year when students gave the highest rating in the UK to their courses (average 4.5 out of a possible 5), scoring aspects such as teaching, assessment and feedback, academic support, organisation and management, learning resources, personal development, and overall satisfaction.

According to Dr Garratt, the combination of electronics and computer science at ECS and the state-of-the art facilities under construction in the new Mountbatten Building are also factors which account for this year’s increase.

ECS welcomed a total of 270 undergraduates, 144 MSc students and 65 PhD students this year.