computer science / engineering at Windsor

[iluvchairs112]

I've checked out computer science at Windsor and it seems like a pretty good place, I especially like their program with the software engineering specialization.
Does anyone here attend Windsor or know anyone who attends Windsor for computer science?
Basically is it a good school?

[McKenzie]

It's like a lot of programs, good courses and bad courses, good profs and bad profs. On the up-side the School of Computer Science at Windsor is fairly small which means it is easy to get to know most of your fellow students, and the profs are very approachable. One on one help is available for those who need it and it is easy to develop a close-knit community. You also don't have the same level of pressure that schools like Waterloo will put on you. On the down-side, it's in Windsor. I've lived in Windsor most of my life, it's not a horrible place, but it is kinda dirty/blue-collar. Windsor has a lower entrace requirement, which means you can expect first year to be easier at Windsor. If you are at the top of your class this will bore you. If you need the review, this is a good thing.

Most universities have seen declining enrollment in CS over the past few years. I know Windsor is willing to jump through hoops to get and keep good students. If you find yourself bored with the first year program you can talk to Dr. Frost or Dr. Kobti and they are willing to get you involved in research very early to help keep you interested.

You've heard it before, you'll hear it again. There is no right or wrong school to go to, but there are better and worse choices for you. It's all a matter of what is the best fit for you. If you need more information, I'm glad to supply it. I graduated from CS at Windsor 14 years ago, and a number of the students that I taught high school to are currently at Windsor.

[Vermette]

Hi there, I am a new B.Sc Software Engineering grad here at Windsor (and a first-time compsci.ca poster!) so perhaps I can answer any specific questions you may have.

McKenzie is right; what makes a particular school the best or worst depends on your own needs. Windsor does have kind of a sour reputation attached to it, but it's not all deserved (some of it is from this blue-collar town itself) and the administration has been working hard to change that reputation. I'm not entirely happy with the upper administration's actions (they spent $1million on a marketing campaign and I hate the new logo that came out of it), but the CS department has been pushing to do some awesome things in the 4 years I've been here in the face of nationwide declining CS enrollment. There's been some local outreach with a regional high school programming competition for the last 2 years, an open house to showcase our facilities, the new Game Development lab, a more active Computer Science Society, etc..

People are right when they point out that this school does have lower entrance requirements. The downside to this is the first year is in fact a little slow if you already have some experience with basic programming concepts like arrays, looping, recursion, etc.. You may find yourself wishing the class was moving a little faster through the material. But, you may benefit from this if you lack those core concepts and get up to speed. (Personally, I am in favour of restructuring the first year schedule to push some of the second year material into the second semester.)

For the honours stream, the course requirements are nearly identical for the first two years between the specializations, so if you decide you want to switch out of Software Engineering into some other specialty, it's possible.

Like any school, there's good profs and bad ones. People have their own preferences too; I've had some professors that I thought were amazing educators that really knew how to push you and convey the material while other people hated them, and vice-versa. I've had classes that I was actually excited to go to, and some I skipped whenever possible.

Feel free to post any other questions you may have about the campus or the program itself. If I can't answer them myself I'll try to forward them to the appropriate people are get back to you.