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Shape our digital world

While new technologies emerge constantly, the core skills you develop in Computer Science remain relevant throughout your career. You will learn to analyse complex problems, design effective solutions and adapt to new tools and systems.

Learn to reason – not just to code

Computer Science is about more than writing code. In this programme, you will learn to understand, critisise and improve digital systems: how algorithms work, how data is stored, processed and protected, how hardware and software interact, how networks securely share information, and how people engage with technology. Programming is a part of that, but the real value lies in understanding the principles behind it. That enables you to build technology that is not only functional, but also reliable and impactful.

Be amplified by AI – not restricted by it

Artificial Intelligence can generate code in seconds, but it cannot replace human understanding. That is why you will learn to work effectively with AI, while staying in control of the outcome. As AI becomes more powerful, it is even more important to understand what happens under the hood: how models work, where they can fail, and how to validate and improve AI-generated solutions. With these fundamental skills, you will become the driver of technology, not just a user of it.

An inspiring and societally engaged environment

The programme will be taught by award-winning academic lecturers and guest speakers from the industry. Through them, and via the business thesis fair, you can start building your professional network. Courses are taught in English, attracting students from diverse background and creating an international learning environment. On the VU Campus you will meet students from many disciplines, while studying in one of Europe’s most vibrant cities.

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Year 1: Core concepts and ways of thinking

In the first year you will build a solid foundation and develop the mindset of a computer scientist: reasoning step by step, testing assumptions, and learning how systems behave. You learn the basic principles of computing, including:

  • your first programming language
  • computational thinking
  • building your own website
  • computer architecture
  • programming your own application

From the start, you combine theory with hands-on work. Programming is used to make abstract concepts concrete, and to bring the knowledge you obtained into practice.

Subjects

Year 2: Deepening your understanding

In the second year, you expand and deepen your knowledge. You learn how larger systems are designed, built, and maintained, how choices at a technical level affect performance, safety, and usability, and how to make an interface user-friendly. Topics include:

  • more programming languages
  • linear algebra
  • static methods
  • algorithms
  • computer operating systems
  • software design
  • human-computer interaction

Subjects

Year 3: Specialisation and application

In the final year you will work on more advanced topics, and develop your own direction within Computer Science.

You will complete a minor of your interest, such as:

  • Bioinformatics & Systems Biology
  • Deep Programming
  • Data Science
  • Web Services & Data
  • Teaching minor

You will also develop an individual Bachelor’s project, in which you apply the skills and knowledge you have obtained to a topic of your choice.

Subjects

  • 1st year

    Year 1: Core concepts and ways of thinking

    In the first year you will build a solid foundation and develop the mindset of a computer scientist: reasoning step by step, testing assumptions, and learning how systems behave. You learn the basic principles of computing, including:

    • your first programming language
    • computational thinking
    • building your own website
    • computer architecture
    • programming your own application

    From the start, you combine theory with hands-on work. Programming is used to make abstract concepts concrete, and to bring the knowledge you obtained into practice.

    Subjects

    • Computer Programming
    • English Language Test
    • Logic & Sets for CS
    • Data Structures & Algorithms for CS
    • Pervasive Computing
    • Web Technology
    • Computer Organisation
    • Requirements Engineering
    • Computer Networks
    • Discrete Math & Calculus
    • Systems Programming Project

    Find the complete course overview in the study guide.

  • 2nd year

    Year 2: Deepening your understanding

    In the second year, you expand and deepen your knowledge. You learn how larger systems are designed, built, and maintained, how choices at a technical level affect performance, safety, and usability, and how to make an interface user-friendly. Topics include:

    • more programming languages
    • linear algebra
    • static methods
    • algorithms
    • computer operating systems
    • software design
    • human-computer interaction

    Subjects

    • Object-Oriented & Functional Programming
    • Statistical Methods
    • Networks and Graphs
    • Operating Systems
    • History of Science for CS
    • Linear Algebra
    • Software Design
    • Databases

    Find the complete course overview in the study guide.

  • 3rd year

    Year 3: Specialisation and application

    In the final year you will work on more advanced topics, and develop your own direction within Computer Science.

    You will complete a minor of your interest, such as:

    • Bioinformatics & Systems Biology
    • Deep Programming
    • Data Science
    • Web Services & Data
    • Teaching minor

    You will also develop an individual Bachelor’s project, in which you apply the skills and knowledge you have obtained to a topic of your choice.

    Subjects

    • Bachelor Project Computer Science
    • Automata & Complexity
    • Machine Learning
    • Philosophy & Ethics

    Find the complete course overview in the study guide.

Areas of study

Areas of study

This Bachelor focuses on the following areas of study:

  • Theory (15%)
  • Programming (15%)
  • Systems (15%)
  • Mathematics (15%)
  • Software (10%)
  • Data and AI (5%)
  • Academic skills (25%)

Mathematics

The programme builds partly on the Mathematics B you know from Dutch secondary school, and expands into new areas. Some examples can be found in the following courses:

  • Logic & Sets | secondary school: functions and relations; new: propositional and predicate logic
  • Discrete Math & Calculus | secondary school: limits, continuous functions and integrals; new: graph theory and combinational permutations
  • Statistical Methods | secondary school: probability, hypothesis testing

You will also encounter new types of mathematics in courses such as Data Structures and Algorithms, Automata & Complexity, and Logic & Modelling.

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