I did a Computer and Electronics degree.
Was a brilliant course, but for some strange reason you didn't have to have any qualifications in electronics or computing to get on.

This was raised in a meeting at one point and apparently having a maths qualification was close enough. Fair enough, maths is important for computing and electronics, but surely the point of FURTHER education is that you at least have some knowledge of the basics of your chosen field?

That's probably why there were only about 10 of us left in the final year out of about 100 at the start.
(anonymousreality tickled your fancy on, Fri 23 Sep 2011, 14:26, 1 reply)

Well
I have a degree in computing - only, back then, it was called Data Processing. I had to program in COBOL.

Since then, I've spent most of my working life in IT and, I can categorically state, that maths,beyond addy up and takky away, are not needed.

A grasp of boolean logic is a must, but maths? - nah...

Cheers
( Legless Mister Stabby - shanks for the memory, Fri 23 Sep 2011, 14:34, closed)

Ok, maybe not all programming computing needs maths, but when you're programming games and dealing with physics and/or collision detection and 3D graphics, you definitely need some maths skills. It certainly makes your life easier!
(anonymousreality tickled your fancy on, Fri 23 Sep 2011, 14:38, closed)

I concur - I failed all the maths modules in my Engineering + Computer Science degree
...but got a 2:1 and am still working as a Hairy Programmer.

Oh, you do need to be able to grasp number bases, of course. But I can't say I've needed any Laplace transforms, Nyquist stability plots or partial differential equations recently*

* except when in bed with a laydee, obviously**

** they love it when you talk nerdy
(moon monkey is busy making memories worth repressing, Fri 23 Sep 2011, 14:39, closed)

They love a bit of binomial expansion, too
(so I've heard, anyway)
(MrOli is ugly, but in the morning you will be sober, Fri 23 Sep 2011, 14:50, closed)

Maths leading on to programming
is more a state of mind than a requirement. The sort of mind that can derive differentiation from first principals, or even just work easily in algebra, is probably also the kind of mind that finds it easy to break a problem in to small enough pieces to teach a computer to play three blind mice.
(MrOli is ugly, but in the morning you will be sober, Fri 23 Sep 2011, 14:49, closed)