What do our students say?
Nuzhah Gooda Sahib
BSc Computer Science student
(Graduated 2008)
Being an international student from Mauritius, I couldn’t come to visit the university before accepting my offer. I chose Queen Mary mainly because of the degree programme – it had the right combination of computer science and business modules that I wanted together with on-campus accommodation. It is very convenient to live a few minutes from lectures. Queen Mary is diverse – there are people from all over the world. It’s just a very enriching experience. 
"The best thing about a joint programme like the BSc Computer Science with Business Management and Accounting is that it gives you the opportunity of being involved in two departments. It’s challenging but very interesting. Another great thing about it is that you get to meet loads of different people. Our lecturers are very involved in their own research groups and it’s very interesting to hear them talk about their pioneering research.
There are plenty of spaces at Queen Mary for socialising and there is no lack of places to relax between lectures. Our campus has several eating outlets and coffee shops. The new health and fitness centre provides another way to spend time. For some place a little quieter, Regent’s Canal runs through the campus and it’s a good place to sit on a nice, warm day.
The library provides a wide range of resources necessary for doing well on your degree programme, including books, journals, computers and printers. The 24/7 opening hours during revision and exam time is a blessing. The ‘Level One’ study area, which is appropriate for group study and teamwork, provides a very relaxed environment.
Like most computer science students, my favourite place on campus is the Informatics Teaching Laboratory (ITL). It is a building exclusively for the School’s students and it has the computers and software needed for our work. Whether an undergraduate or a master’s student, it’s the place where we spend most of our days. In fact, the first thing I do when I get to campus is go to the ITL to see who else is around.
Last academic year I was involved in PASS (Peer Assisted Study Support) in the department. This is a voluntary scheme aimed at helping first year students to settle in university life and also to cope with the challenges involved with studies in computer science. I have really enjoyed this experience and feel that it’s worthwhile to help first year students. Also, as the scheme is run in other departments too the inter-departmental meetings allowed me to meet other people. The training programme provided useful careers advice on CV building, presentations and teamwork.
The most interesting – and most difficult – part of my degree has been the software engineering project in my second year. It involved a group project to build two card games. The project lasted for the year and was aimed at simulating a real work environment with deadlines and deliverables. Looking back now, I can say it was a very enriching experience as it taught me things I that will be really useful in my future career."
