The short answer is that admitted students usually have marks in the low- to mid-80’s or higher. The longer answer is that the Mathematics Faculty pays particular attention to the Applicant Information Form (AIF). Recommendations by teachers, extracurricular activities, and participation in Waterloo math competitions can all increase your chances of admission. Admission cut-offs may vary for different programs.
The many programs offered at the University of Waterloo vary in depth, breadth, and whether computers are used as a tool in another discipline or studied as a discipline in their own right. The Cheriton School of Computer Science offers the following degree programs that are accredited by the Computer Science Accreditation Council. The choice between the BCS and BMath/CS is made after first year.
- The Bachelor of Computer Science (BCS) program is aimed at students who want a solid understanding of computer science, with flexibility to choose from a wide range of elective courses. The Bioinformatics, Business, Digital Hardware, Health Informatics, Software Engineering, and Teaching Options provide concentration in specific areas. You may design your own plan to focus on other areas of interest.
- The Bachelor of Mathematics - Computer Science (BMath/CS) program combines Waterloo's strengths in both mathematics and computer science by enhancing the BCS requirements with supporting courses with mathematical content. Four options, Business, Health Informatics, Teaching, and Digital Hardware, are offered with this degree.
The following three programs are all found outside the School of Computer Science, though students in Computational Mathematics may elect to take a few of our major courses and students in Computational Science take courses in our non-major stream.
- Computer Engineering, offered by the Faculty of Engineering, deals with the design, development, and application of computer systems. It is more focused on problems in digital hardware and at the hardware/software interface, and it has a greater emphasis on adapting standard designs and on using tools to solve problems.
- Computational Mathematics teaches students to employ the increasing power of computers for solving industrial-size mathematical problems arising in a wide variety of fields (though traditionally called "scientific computation", the application base is now much wider). The development and analysis of mathematical models involves such issues as the implications of finite precision arithmetic, and the efficiency, accuracy and stability of numerical computations.
- Computational Science is a program offered by the Faculty of Science to meet the emerging need for computer-literate scientists in the rapidly evolving information technology sector. Students in this program obtain a sufficiently deep understanding of one of the science disciplines to effectively tackle the types of problems that require sophisticated computer modeling.
The Cheriton School of Computer Science also jointly offers three other degrees: Bachelor of Business Administration/Bachelor of Computer Science (a double degree program between the University of Waterloo and Wilfrid Laurier University), Bachelor of Computing and Financial Management (a joint degree between the Cheriton School of Computer Science and the School of Accounting and Financial Management), and Bachelor of Software Engineering (a joint degree between Computer Science and Engineering).
Software engineering deals with building and maintaining software systems, with a focus on the activities and issues that arise in developing a software product. Software engineering is one of many disciplines in the field of Computer Science. Both the BCS and BMath(CS) cover introductory software engineering, most notably in CS 246.
For students who would like to consider software engineering at greater depth, there are three choices, in order of decreasing flexibility in the rest of your course choices:
- As elective courses in your BCS degree, select one or more of CS445 (Software Requirement Specification and Analysis), CS446 (Software Design and Architectures), and CS447 (Software Testing, Quality Assurance, and Maintenance).
- Obtain a BCS with a Software Engineering Option by completing all 3 courses listed about and courses in communication, business, and social issues.
- Enrol in the Bachelor of Software Engineering (BSE) program and complete all 3 courses listed above, as well as some of the courses taken by engineering students, for example, chemistry, physics, hardware, and digital circuits.
The Bachelor of Computing and Financial Management (BCFM) program is offered jointly by the Cheriton School of Computer Science and the School of Accounting and Finance. The BCFM program gives students a strong core background in both computer science and accounting and financial management. This program will be of interest to students who would like to pursue careers in the applications of computer science in banking, insurance, investment and finance.
Do you need your own computer? No. Might you want your own computer? Maybe. UW provides computer labs with all the computing power you need. You may wish to have your own system, however, as a convenience.If you decide to bring a computer, almost anything you've purchased new within the last 3 years will be good enough.
The David R. Cheriton School of Computer Science offers the four degree programs listed below:
- Bachelor of Computer Science (BCS) – this program is aimed at students who want a solid understanding of computer science, with flexibility to choose from a wide range of elective courses. The Bioinformatics, Business, Digital Hardware, Health Informatics, Software Engineering and Teaching Options provide concentration in specific areas. you may design your own plan to focus on other areas that interest you. BCS is accredited by the Computer Science Accreditation Council.*
- Bachelor of Mathematics - Computer Science (BMath(CS)) – this program combines Waterloo's strengths in both mathematics and computer science by enhancing the BCS requirements with supporting courses with mathematical content. Four options, Business, Digital Hardware, Health Informatics, and Teaching, are offered with this degree. BMath/CS is accredited by the Computer Science Accreditation Council.*
- Bachelor of Computing and Financial Management (BCFM) – this program is offered jointly by the School of Computer Science and the School of Accountancy. The BCFM program gives students a strong core background in computer science as well as accounting and financial management. With knowledge of both areas, graduates will be prepared to fill the demands of the financial services sector for risk management services, software systems for secure transactions, fraud and money-laundering detection, and management of large database systems. Choice in your upper-year courses allows you to specialize in a variety of areas, and by careful selection of optional courses, you can go on to graduate studies in these disciplines.
- Bachelor of Software Engineering (BSE) – this program is a highly focused alternative to the Software Engineering Option that combines the University's strengths in Computer Science and Computer Engineering. In addition to courses in mathematics, engineering, and computer science, you will cover fundamental concepts of software design and evaluation, project management, and technical documentation.
- Bachelor of Business Administration/Bachelor of Computer Science (BBA/BCS) – this program is offered jointly by the Cheriton School of Computer Science at the University of Waterloo and the School of Business and Economics at Wilfrid Laurier University. This is a new and unique program that offers two highly respected degrees from two outstanding institutions. Graduates of this program will meet the demand from today's information rich society for personnel with both computer science and business management knowledge.
** The choice between the BCS and BMath/CS is made after first year.
David R. Cheriton School of Computer Science
University of Waterloo
Waterloo, Ontario, Canada N2L 3G1
Tel: 519-888-4567 x33293
Fax: 519-885-1208
Contact | Feedback: cs-webmaster@cs.uwaterloo.ca | David R. Cheriton School of Computer Science | Faculty of Mathematics
Last modified: Thursday, 23-Jun-2011 16:35:09 EDT
