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Open only to first-year students, the Computing IRL ("In Real Life") immersive program aims to reimagine what beginners can do with computer science in their first semester. Students will see how computing techniques and ideas inform and are informed by their interaction with the real world. Computing IRL consist of three courses:

• A first-year seminar on the societal impacts of technology
• An introductory computer science course for beginners
• An internship course to apply that knowledge to real problems.

Is Computing IRL for me?

Probably! The target audience for the program are students with no computer science background but are interested in learning. You do not need any previous programming experience! We value students with diverse interests across the sciences, the arts, and the humanities, and especially those who want to use their knowledge to help other people.

Note that due to the course load required, Computing IRL is not compatible with the 3-2 engineering program.

What internship projects would I do?

An example of an internship location is STEAM:CODERS, a non-profit in Pasadena dedicated to bringing STEAM (science, technology, engineering, arts, and mathematics) education to students at underserved K-12 institutions. Interns there will learn about STEAM education, about how technology supports or excludes low-income communities, and about the structure and operation of community non-profits. We will consult with students before placing them with an organization and we hope to match incoming students with more advanced students within each organization.

Other past projects include working with:

• The Metropolitan Water District to design the Solar Cup website
• The ÎçÒ¹¾ç³¡ Computer Science Department to build community via online social activities
• A judicial office campaign to build social media presence and track results
• ÎçÒ¹¾ç³¡ Athletics teams to track competition results and build social media presence
• La Matematica (an Association for Women in Mathematics publication) to develop ethical review practices and materials
• The ÎçÒ¹¾ç³¡ Student Success team to build a virtual ÎçÒ¹¾ç³¡ quad
• Operation Pizzicato to streamline entertainment industry media processing practices
• The ÎçÒ¹¾ç³¡ Fellowships Office to redesign their website and build social media presence
• Streetscope to develop computer vision techniques for measuring traffic
• The ÎçÒ¹¾ç³¡ Institute for the Study of Los Angeles to design online exhibits in the digital humanities
• The Garvey School District to support online learning and student emotional well-being

What classes would I take as part of Computing IRL?

The Computing IRL ÎçÒ¹¾ç³¡ Immersive Semester consists of 3 linked courses totaling 12 units:

• FYS 2: Social Difference and the Politics of Technology (4 units)
• COMP 131: Fundamentals of Computer Science (4 units)
• COMP 295: Computer Science Internship (4 units)

Students who successfully complete these courses will fulfill both their Fall First Year Seminar (FYS) requirement as well as the Core Lab Science requirement.

First-year students at ÎçÒ¹¾ç³¡ can take up to 18 units each semester, with an average course load being around 16 units, so Computing IRL participants will be able to register for one additional 4-unit class of their choice during Orientation.

What have previous students said?

From the Fall 2023 Internship course:

• I feel like this [the Computing IRL Internship] really helped me understand some concepts in computer science that helped me in my other computer science class. It also helped me gain some computer science skills that can be used for jobs and internships that I may want to do in the future. [I] wanted to gain skills in communication, team work, and computer science skills and after taking the course and completing it, I feel like I gained skills in all of these areas. I feel like I also gained skills that I had not thought I would gain.

• The fact that all of the internships were so different was great, and everyone brought something different to the table, which is great for diverse groups of students.

From the Fall 2023 Introductory Computer Science course:

• I had zero background in computer science before this course and it was a very scary concept to me. I now know that it is a doable subject and have a new appreciation for it. [The professor] is clearly really knowledgeable and cares about communicating his knowledge to beginners. Knowing that was a comfort to me. I'm really appreciative that the course was taught in a digestible way. I expected to struggle a lot and I kind of did but the course was very gratifying in the sense that I felt like my hard work paid off every time I put in the effort. My mom told me to take this course and I really didn't want to but I just gave in, but now I'm planning on continuing in CS which is pretty surprising to me.