Studying Computer Science
Content
The Computer Science Student
The Ethics of the Computer Science Student
Staying Informed
The Computer Science Student
We strive to turn our students into good problem solvers. People whose problem solving tools are the technology and ideas of computation. Whether your interest is game programming, media design, mathematics, science, humanities, or computer systems design, every discipline, be it practical, theoretical or creative, is experiencing an ever-increasing dependence on computer technology.
Creating algorithms - solutions that can be executed on a machine - is fundamental to Computer Science. With a grounding in the fundamentals, a student can continue on to explore computer systems, software architecture, web applications, databases, computer networks, scientific applications, computer graphics, games systems, numerical applications, and any other subject for which computers have an application. Our mission in the Department of Computer Science is to provide opportunities for students to explore their computing interests, and one way we pursue this objective is by offering a selection of required and elective courses covering topics of interest and importance.
The department also provides a number of venues for activities, including seminars by prominent computer scientists, programming competitions and a student-run undergraduate Computer Science Society.
The Ethics of the Computer Science Student
Every computer science student is expected to maintain a high degree of honesty, dignity and respect for their fellow students, faculty and associates, be that in how you interact with others, in the use of the computing facilities, or in the completion of your assessments.
As a computer scientist your future career is likely to involve handling sensitive data and building applications that significantly affect other peoples' daily lives and wellbeing. So be an ethical computer scientist: consider the impact of your conduct and your decisions, both now and in the future.
Academic Integrity and Misconduct
The Department uses homework assignments as both teaching devices and major components of the assessment of each student. It therefore requires that all submissions that bear an individual student's name be the work of that student alone.
Under normal circumstances, students may discuss assignments but may not jointly write solutions. In particular, direct copying of another student's assignment is regarded as cheating by all parties knowingly involved, and will be dealt with as such, following University Regulations on Academic Misconduct.
If you're unsure where the boundary lies between legitimate discussion and illegitimate collaboration, then contact the course instructor.
During examinations, devices, electronic or otherwise, are not permitted to be used in the room, unless specifically allowed by your instructor. Under no circumstances will students be allowed to access phones or devices during examination periods.
Staying Informed
MUN email
Students are required to check their @mun.ca email accounts frequently, and to always use this account when contacting the university.
The Department and many instructors use MUN email as a primary method for communicating with individual students.
Throughout the semester, announcements concerning registration, programs, courses, social functions, part-time jobs, scholarships and general items of interest to CS students may be emailed.
Brightspace
Students should frequently access the Brighstpace shells of the courses they are currently taking. The course shell is where most course materials, assessments and announcements will be posted.
Usually not all course content is available from the first day of classes. As a course progresses, more content is opened for viewing. So pay attention to updates.
An easy way to do that is to have Brightspace automatically send you email notifications when things appear or change. The Centre for Innovation in Teaching and Learning (CITL) has created a guide to Brightspace for students, including how to set up account notifications.
The Department's official twitter account is @MUN_CompSci. and is a great way to keep up to date with events, career workshops and scholarship opportunities.
Page last updated May 24th 2021