BA Modern Language and Business & Management (French) / Course details

Year of entry: 2024

Course unit details:
Computing for Social Scientists

Course unit fact file
Unit code ECON10151
Credit rating 10
Unit level Level 1
Teaching period(s) Semester 1
Available as a free choice unit? Yes

Overview

This unit aims to develop students’ intellectual, practical and transferable computing skills.

At the end of this course unit, it is expected that students will be able to

1.     Use and understand University IT systems, including library systems and associated citation and journal databases;

2.     Use the equation editor, styles and endnote referencing functionality within Microsoft Word and related software;

3.     Manipulate, summarise and visually represent data in Microsoft Excel;

4.     Use Microsoft Excel’s solver functionality to solve constrained dynamic optimization problems;

5.     Integrate Microsoft Excel output within a Microsoft Word report to quantitative reports at a professional standard;

6.     Use Microsoft Excel for financial analysis;

Aims

This unit aims to develop students’ intellectual, practical and transferable computing skills.

 

Learning outcomes

At the end of this course unit, it is expected that students will be able to

1.     Use and understand University IT systems, including library systems and associated citation and journal databases;

2.     Use the equation editor, styles and endnote referencing functionality within Microsoft Word and related software;

3.     Manipulate, summarise and visually represent data in Microsoft Excel;

4.     Use Microsoft Excel’s solver functionality to solve constrained dynamic optimization problems;

5.     Integrate Microsoft Excel output within a Microsoft Word report to quantitative reports at a professional standard;

6.     Use Microsoft Excel for financial analysis;

 

Syllabus

Weekly Schedule:

 

Week 1

•       Introduction (Face-to-Face Lecture)

•       University IT & Library Systems (Face-to-Face Lecture)


Week 2

•       Intermediate Word 1 (Web Lecture)

•       Intermediate Word 2 (Web Lecture)


Week 3

•       Excel Overview (Face-to-Face Lecture)

•       Excel 1 (Web Lecture)

•       Excel 2 (Web Lecture)

•       Word (Class)


Week 4

•       Excel 3 - Charts I (Web Lecture)

•       Excel - XY plots, correlation and causality (Web Lecture)

•       Data Distributions - frequency tables & histograms (Web Lecture)

•       Excel: data, functions & formulae (Class)

 

Week 5

•       The Integrated Word/Excel Project (Face-to-Face Lecture)

•       Excel: plots and data (Class)

 

Week 6

•       Reading Week

 

 

Week 7

•       The Solver Assignment (Face-to-Face Lecture)

•       Excel Solver (Web Lecture)

 

Week 8

•       Excel for Finance (Face-to-Face Lecture)

•       Excel: Solver (Class)

•       Online Submission of Integrated Word/Excel Project

 

Week 9

•       VLOOKUP, PivotTables (Face-to-Face Lecture)

•       Excel: Finance (Class)

 

Week 10

•       Excel: VLOOKUP, PivotTables (Class)

•       Online Submission of Excel Solver Assignment

Teaching and learning methods

Synchronous activities (such as Lectures or Review and Q&A sessions, and tutorials), and guided self-study

Employability skills

Other
Students will obtain the practical computing skills identified in the Intended Learning Outcomes.

Assessment methods

35%      Integrated Word/Excel project

35%      Excel solver assignment

30%      Exam

Feedback methods

  • Practice multiple choice test.
  • Feedback in classes.
  • Office hours.
  • Revision sessions.
  • Discussion boards.

Teaching staff

Staff member Role
Robert O'Neill Unit coordinator

Additional notes

Return to course details