Course details

Summary

The Postgraduate Certificate in Applied Science (PGCertAppSc) allows students to begin postgraduate study with a 60 point qualification from which they can later proceed to a Postgraduate Diploma or Master's degree.

This option allows students to maintain employment while gaining qualifications.

Computer Science is the study of computers and the work they do. We need a science of computers because, unlike other machines, computers are general purpose; the same machine can perform many different tasks and the same tasks can be done equally well by different computers.

Because of this, the study of what a computer can do is more than the study of a particular machine. It is the study of what can be done by a device which processes information. Naturally Computer Science papers deal with the practical matter of making the computer do what we want it to (programming). But we also deal with many other questions about computing and computers. How do they work? How are they used? How do they fit into our society? What are their limitations?

Today computers are used not only as a tool in commerce and science, but also for research in many disciplines, such as Anthropology and Linguistics. Computer Science can be taken as a major for both the Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Science degrees and can also be included as a supporting subject in a Bachelor of Commerce degree. Some knowledge of computing is useful to all science students and many arts and business students even if you do not intend to major in Computer Science.

Structure of the Programme

The programme of study

shall consist of approved 400- and 500-level papers, to the value of 60 points, selected from the papers specified in Science Schedule D for the Master of Applied Science subject concerned.

shall normally include papers from more than one subject.

may, with the approval of the Head of Department or Course Director concerned, include papers worth up to 20 points from 400-and 500-level papers other than those specified in Science Schedule D.

Entry criteria

Admission to the programme shall be subject to the approval of the Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Science).

Every applicant must either: be a graduate, or have alternative qualifications or experience acceptable to the Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Sciences).

In considering an applicant’s qualifications, regard will be had to the detail of the course of study followed to gain the qualification, as well as the applicant's performance in the programme.

English Language Requirements

IELTS - Score of 6.5 in the academic module (with no individual band below 6.0); Internet-based TOEFL Score of 95 with a minimum writing score of 22.; Paper-based TOEFL (Test of English as a Foreign Language) score of 587 (TWE 4.5); Cambridge Certificate of Proficiency in English (CPE) – Overall score of 176 (with no individual band below 169); Cambridge Certificate in Advanced English (CAE) – Overall score of 176 (with no individual band below 169); APIEL Advanced Placement International English Language Examination - Grade 4 or higher; Pearson Test of English (PTE) Academic - Overall score of 64 with no communicative skills score below 57; University of Otago Foundation Studies Ltd: Completion of 'English for Postgraduate Academic Purposes' with a grade of C or higher.