- Year 9 students
- From state-funded schools
- In Oxfordshire, Berkshire, Swindon, Gloucestershire and Buckinghamshire
- Teacher nominated
What are the Royal Institution Masterclasses in Computer Science?
The Masterclasses are a series of hands-on and extra-curricular activities that are designed to inspire and engage young people in Computer Science. Each session is led by enthusiastic speakers from industry, academia and education.
Topics we have run previously include:
- History of Computer Science
- Turtle graphics
- Solving logic problems
- Exploring Spheros
- Enigma Machines
The Oxford Royal Institution Masterclasses in Computer Science are supported by Morgan Stanley and University of Oxford's Department of Computer Science.
Subject to funding the students will be invited to return for another series of Masterclass sessions in year 10 and year 11.
When and Where
The 2025 programme is running in-person at the University of Oxford's Department of Computer Science, Wolfson Building, Park's Road, OX1 3QD. There will be six sessions for year 9 students. The programme will run from 9:30am to 12:00pm on the following Saturday dates:
- Saturday 1st March
- Saturday 8th March
- Saturday 15th March
- Saturday 10th May
- Saturday 17th May
- Saturday 24th May.
Nomination criteria
Eligible schools are state funded schools in Oxfordshire, Berkshire, Swindon, Gloucestershire and Buckinghamshire:
- Eligible schools may nominate up to two students (at least one of which should be female if the school accepts female students)
- The students need to be enthusiastic about mathematics and computer science
- The students must be academically strong, in the top 20% of their year.
How do I apply?
Teachers in eligible schools may email masterclasses@cs.ox.ac.uk using a school email address to receive further details and a short online form to nominate their one/two students. Afterwards students (with the help of parents/guardians) will fill out a short online form in order to complete the application process.
The extended nomination deadline is: 5pm on Friday 29 November 2024.
Selecting Candidates:
We can allow approximately 25 students per year onto the masterclass programme. When selecting candidates, we aim for at least 50% of the cohort of students to self-identify as female. Candidates from schools who've not engaged with Computer Science outreach events in recent years will also be prioritised. We will also use ACORN and POLAR data - based on students' home postcodes - to prioritise students:
- ACORN is a classification of residential neighbourhoods
which measures the socio-economic wealth of the area you live in. ACORN
looks at the attributes of households in your area and covers health,
retail and leisure aspects. We will prioritise students who come from a
low socio-economic status background, which is classed as an ACORN 4 or 5
category. You can check which ACORN category your postcode comes under, on
the ACORN website. Please note
that you do need to register before accessing this information.
- POLAR(4) measures the rate of
progression to higher education in your area. We will prioritise students
who come from an area with a low rate of progression to higher education,
which is classed as a POLAR(4) Quintile 1 or 2. You can check the quintile
of your postcode here.
What previous participants have said:
"It has reinforced my desire to take it further for A level and eventually university"
"Computer science is now a more broader term in my eyes as to what it covers, as reflected by the varying topics in the masterclasses’"
"It seemed very well organised and had a nice balance of theory and practical aspects"
Questions?
Please don't hesitate to get in contact with us at masterclasses@cs.ox.ac.uk
Please note that the organisers reserve the right to change the programme
without notification or to make alterations to the advertised details for the
day at short notice.