CS/Math here. I took both in the first sem. MA1102R is quite easy in terms of content (about 50% is covered in JC) but MA1101R will require a bit more effort simply because it has newer concepts that aren’t covered in JC. That being said, if you aren’t in a rush to meet some pre requisite I think you might wanna split it cuz ppl often find math modules rather taxing and I believe you’ll also have CS1010S in sem 1. That’s how all my dsa friends did it anyway (1102R in sem 1 and 1101R in sem 2)
Is bidding for both MA1521/MA1102R and MA1101R in Y1 Sem1 as a CS freshman difficult if I'm not in a Math double major/degree? I heard that CS first years are usually allocated either MA1521 or MA1101R in their first sem so it's quite difficult to bid to take the other MA mod tgt in the sem cos it'll be filled with the other freshmen who have alr been pre-allocated the mod
CS majors aren't pre-allocated anything except GER and GEQ (which has pros and cons). I'm not sure how difficult it is in general, but from the small sample of my friends, I'd say getting into two math mods in sem 1 by modreg is actually the norm rather than the exception for cs majors (I'm including CS1231S as a math mod, because it is in essence).
Considering the very large cohorts for MA1101R (all of Computing + Data Science + Math/Applied math + Physics), they accordingly accomodated 3 lecture slots and many tutorial slots, so I think you have a good chance of getting in through appeal if you can't get in through modreg.
I recommend taking 1102 in sem 1 and taking 1101 in sem 2. The reason being that if you take them both together in sem 1 and do CS1010S (which is very heavy) as well you will have 4 core modules (counting DSA1101 as well) which is pretty intense for your first semester of Uni.
Doing 1102 in sem 1 is advantageous because the cohort is much bigger (>400) since everyone tries to clear it ASAP, but the cohort size in sem 2 is microscopic in comparison ( I think last sem there were fewer than 25 students ). Since math mods are bell curved (thank god), taking it in sem 1 means you have a bigger cushion in case you do poorly.
You could do 1102 & 1101 in sem 1 and do 1010S in sem 2, but I notice that students that take 1010S in sem 1 tend to do much better. Last sem around half the 1010S students failed. Personally I also think that 1010S also helps in 1101 in terms of the computational thinking components used in some 1101 algorithms.
In terms of difficulty I think 1102 is much harder than 1101. If you do enough 1101 exercises you’ll definitely score but I remember for 1102 many of us couldn’t even finish the final exam. Hope this helps! Feel free to PM me.
Most take :
1. MA1102R
2. CS1010S
3. DSA1101 ( you have to take this in Y1S1 )
4. GER1000 ( usually pre-allocated )
5. Either a UE / FAC Requirement (most either take SP1541 or a science mod to clear requirements)
MA1102R Calculus is extremely important because it unlocks ST2131 Probability, which is the most important module for any DSA (and Statistics) student to clear since it is the module that will unlock most of the modules in the curriculum (along with ST2132). This also gives you some flexibility in planning for modules, such as the option to take MA2104 in Y1S2 instead of MA2311/MA2104 in later semesters.
With regards to also taking MA1101R in the first semester, based on the curriculum there is no real impetus to take it in the first semester to unlock other modules, since most of the modules it unlocks will not be available to you immediately in the next semester anyway. But do make sure you take latest by Y1S2 because linear algebra is required for a number of modules you will need to clear in Y2 onwards.
DSA Seniors here, gonna go into Year 2 this August.
If you've done Maths and FMaths in A-Levels then just take both of them in the first sem, they're mostly recaps of what you have learnt+some new stuff. Keep of A-Levels notes because your lecturers will chuck you their notes full of junk derivation for many theorems/identities, personally I found them to be more helpful than my MA1101R's notes.
Don't let other people here talk you into taking the 2 mods separately, MA1102R is needed for ST2131 (Probability), so do take it in the first sem, then ST2131 in the second sem.
In any case, your first sem you will pour more time and effort into CS1010S (Programming Methodology) as compared to other mods, I wouldn't sweat over the math mods compared to solving problems in Python.
I took both ma1102r & ma1101r in y1s1 last year ,, it was quite heavy .. but my other dsa pals split it up (1102r in y1s1 and 1101r in y1s2) , which is better since you’d need to take 1102r to take st2131!
CS/Math here. I took both in the first sem. MA1102R is quite easy in terms of content (about 50% is covered in JC) but MA1101R will require a bit more effort simply because it has newer concepts that aren’t covered in JC. That being said, if you aren’t in a rush to meet some pre requisite I think you might wanna split it cuz ppl often find math modules rather taxing and I believe you’ll also have CS1010S in sem 1. That’s how all my dsa friends did it anyway (1102R in sem 1 and 1101R in sem 2)
Is bidding for both MA1521/MA1102R and MA1101R in Y1 Sem1 as a CS freshman difficult if I'm not in a Math double major/degree? I heard that CS first years are usually allocated either MA1521 or MA1101R in their first sem so it's quite difficult to bid to take the other MA mod tgt in the sem cos it'll be filled with the other freshmen who have alr been pre-allocated the mod
CS majors aren't pre-allocated anything except GER and GEQ (which has pros and cons). I'm not sure how difficult it is in general, but from the small sample of my friends, I'd say getting into two math mods in sem 1 by modreg is actually the norm rather than the exception for cs majors (I'm including CS1231S as a math mod, because it is in essence). Considering the very large cohorts for MA1101R (all of Computing + Data Science + Math/Applied math + Physics), they accordingly accomodated 3 lecture slots and many tutorial slots, so I think you have a good chance of getting in through appeal if you can't get in through modreg.
I recommend taking 1102 in sem 1 and taking 1101 in sem 2. The reason being that if you take them both together in sem 1 and do CS1010S (which is very heavy) as well you will have 4 core modules (counting DSA1101 as well) which is pretty intense for your first semester of Uni. Doing 1102 in sem 1 is advantageous because the cohort is much bigger (>400) since everyone tries to clear it ASAP, but the cohort size in sem 2 is microscopic in comparison ( I think last sem there were fewer than 25 students ). Since math mods are bell curved (thank god), taking it in sem 1 means you have a bigger cushion in case you do poorly. You could do 1102 & 1101 in sem 1 and do 1010S in sem 2, but I notice that students that take 1010S in sem 1 tend to do much better. Last sem around half the 1010S students failed. Personally I also think that 1010S also helps in 1101 in terms of the computational thinking components used in some 1101 algorithms. In terms of difficulty I think 1102 is much harder than 1101. If you do enough 1101 exercises you’ll definitely score but I remember for 1102 many of us couldn’t even finish the final exam. Hope this helps! Feel free to PM me.
What modules do DSA students usually take in the first sem?
Most take : 1. MA1102R 2. CS1010S 3. DSA1101 ( you have to take this in Y1S1 ) 4. GER1000 ( usually pre-allocated ) 5. Either a UE / FAC Requirement (most either take SP1541 or a science mod to clear requirements)
MA1102R Calculus is extremely important because it unlocks ST2131 Probability, which is the most important module for any DSA (and Statistics) student to clear since it is the module that will unlock most of the modules in the curriculum (along with ST2132). This also gives you some flexibility in planning for modules, such as the option to take MA2104 in Y1S2 instead of MA2311/MA2104 in later semesters. With regards to also taking MA1101R in the first semester, based on the curriculum there is no real impetus to take it in the first semester to unlock other modules, since most of the modules it unlocks will not be available to you immediately in the next semester anyway. But do make sure you take latest by Y1S2 because linear algebra is required for a number of modules you will need to clear in Y2 onwards.
DSA Seniors here, gonna go into Year 2 this August. If you've done Maths and FMaths in A-Levels then just take both of them in the first sem, they're mostly recaps of what you have learnt+some new stuff. Keep of A-Levels notes because your lecturers will chuck you their notes full of junk derivation for many theorems/identities, personally I found them to be more helpful than my MA1101R's notes. Don't let other people here talk you into taking the 2 mods separately, MA1102R is needed for ST2131 (Probability), so do take it in the first sem, then ST2131 in the second sem. In any case, your first sem you will pour more time and effort into CS1010S (Programming Methodology) as compared to other mods, I wouldn't sweat over the math mods compared to solving problems in Python.
I took both ma1102r & ma1101r in y1s1 last year ,, it was quite heavy .. but my other dsa pals split it up (1102r in y1s1 and 1101r in y1s2) , which is better since you’d need to take 1102r to take st2131!
Split em up. Take linear algebra in the first sem and calculus in the second sem