My Education

Key topics covered:

• • History of computing
• • Internal workings of a digital computer
• • Basic programming tasks in high-level languages
• • Applying best practices, such as version control on GitHub/GitLab and unit testing

How was it assessed?

• • Group project – Text based adventure game - can be found Here
  In a group we had to create a text based adventure game, in which we achieved 75% overall, only losing marks on the presentation, not the implementation.
• • Individual project – Text based adventure game
  I was given a template to complete a very simple text based adventure game where I had to implement the logic but the base structure of the game was pre-made, where I achieved 100%.
• • MCQ Test – 89%

OCR A Level Computer Science (H446) covering computer systems, algorithms/programming, and a substantial individual programming project.

Key topics covered (Computer systems):

• • CPU architecture and the fetch–decode–execute cycle (incl. Von Neumann/Harvard and performance factors)
• • Processor types and parallelism (CISC/RISC, multicore, pipelining, GPUs)
• • Input/output and storage; main memory (RAM/ROM/virtual memory) and selecting appropriate devices
• • Systems software and operating systems (memory management, scheduling, interrupts/polling, BIOS/boot process, virtual machines)
• • Applications generation and translators (compilers/interpreters/assemblers), stages of compilation, linkers/loaders/libraries
• • Software development methodologies and the development lifecycle
• • Exchanging data: compression, encryption and hashing; databases; networks; web technologies
• • Data types and data structures; Boolean logic/algebra
• • Legal, moral, cultural and ethical issues in computing

Key topics covered (Algorithms & programming):

• • Computational thinking (abstraction, decomposition, algorithmic thinking, thinking ahead, logic)
• • Problem solving and programming techniques (structured programming, modularity, subroutines, recursion, OOP concepts)
• • Computational methods (e.g. validation, testing approaches, and using programs to model/solve problems)
• • Algorithms: complexity and efficiency, standard searching and sorting, and applying data structures to solve problems

Major project (6 months):

• • Individual programming project completed over ~6 months with 3 iterations and a ~200-page write-up. View in Projects
  Built a driving theory revision game with a question system and progression loop (see the project card above).

AQA A Level Economics covering both microeconomics and macroeconomics, with a strong focus on analytical thinking, evaluation and real‑world application.

Key topics covered:

• • Microeconomics: supply and demand, price elasticity, market structures, market failure and government intervention
• • Macroeconomics: economic growth, inflation, unemployment, fiscal and monetary policy
• • The global economy: trade, exchange rates, globalisation and development
• • Behavioural economics and the role of incentives
• • Evaluation of economic policies using data, diagrams and written judgement

Useful skills developed:

• • Strong analytical and problem‑solving skills, breaking down complex systems into manageable components
• • Data interpretation and evaluation, drawing conclusions from graphs, statistics and written sources
• • Structured written communication, forming balanced arguments and justifying decisions
• • Understanding incentives, trade‑offs and constraints in decision‑making

Relevance to the tech industry:

• • Applying cost–benefit analysis and trade‑off thinking when designing systems or features
• • Evaluating product decisions using data rather than assumptions
• • Understanding markets, competition and pricing strategies in technology‑driven industries
• • Communicating technical decisions clearly to non‑technical stakeholders

Pearson BTEC Level 3 EXTENDED CERT in Information Technology, covering both theoretical understanding of IT systems and practical, coursework-based application.

Core units studied:

• • Unit 1: Information Technology Systems — hardware, software, networks, topologies, protocols, data management and emerging technologies
• • Unit 2: Creating Systems to Manage Information — relational databases, data modelling, queries and data integrity
• • Unit 3: Using Social Media in Business — digital marketing strategies, audience targeting, analytics and evaluation
• • Unit 6: Website Development — designing and building responsive websites using HTML and CSS

Key topics and skills developed:

• • Understanding how different technologies work together in real-world IT systems
• • Network types and topologies, hardware selection and system configuration
• • Database design, normalisation and querying to manage structured information
• • Web development using semantic HTML and CSS for layout, styling and accessibility
• • Evaluating technology choices based on user needs, constraints and business context

Applied coursework:

• • Designed and built a multi-page website for a fictional therapy dog charity using HTML and CSS. View in Projects
  Focused on usability, SEO considerations, structured content and client-style requirements.

Relevance to software and technology roles:

• • Strong foundation in how software, hardware and networks interact
• • Experience producing technical documentation and coursework to a professional standard
• • Translating user and business requirements into technical solutions
• • Practical exposure to end-to-end project work, mirroring real-world development workflows