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We are involved in a wide range of outreach activities with schools, colleges and adult learners in Camden and the London area.
A-COMPS Mentoring Programme
A-COMPS (Apply Competitively into STEM) is a UCL Computer Science mentoring scheme which supports students from disadvantaged or under-represented backgrounds enter higher education.
Rae Harbird Day
Rae Harbird Day celebrates the life and legacy of a cherished member of the UCL Computer Science community through a dedicated day of activities in subjects dear to her, such as promoting diversity, fostering education, and championing gender equality.
In 2024, UCL CS will host an Outreach Day, welcoming school groups to our facilities. This event aims to provide students with a glimpse of university life and inspire them to pursue higher education in computer science.
UCL CS visits your school
Aiming at increasing students' awareness of the importance of computer science and the career opportunities it offers, CS Ambassadors engage students in interactive activities and provide them with hands-on experience with coding and programming.
During the school visits, CS Ambassadors also inform students about UCL's undergraduate and postgraduate courses in computer science and provide information about the admission requirements, application process, and scholarships available for anyone interested in pursuing a degree in computer science.
UCL is committed to addressing the issue of the imbalanced male-to-female ratio and lack of diversity in CS-related organisations globally. In line with this commitment, UCL CS also aims to promote greater inclusivity.
For this, a 50-50 policy will be implemented, prioritising schools that can ensure a balanced gender representation among their students. We are also committed to inclusion and equity, so we prioritise schools that actively support pupils from disadvantaged or under-represented backgrounds.
Your school visits UCL CS
To give students a glimpse of the university environment and to inspire them to pursue higher education in computer science, we welcome school groups to visit our facilities. In such visits, pupils can learn about the research projects and participate in interactive workshops and seminars.
During the visit, pupils will have the chance to engage with current UCL CS students and faculty members who will give them guidance and insights into university life. The department also provides students with campus tours, which give them a comprehensive understanding of the UCL community and the services available to them.
Bioinspired Robotics
Today’s scientists and engineers draw inspiration from the animal kingdom in creating the next generation of robots to help us to solve some of the biggest challenges facing humankind.
We have designed an interdisciplinary project with UCL Culture for schools in Hackney, Newham, Tower Hamlets and Waltham Forest. The project aims to enable students and teachers to explore the links between biology and robotics through a series of interconnected, hands-on activities.
The project includes:
- A twilight CPD session for teachers,
- An animal locomotion workshop in the Grant Museum of Zoology for the school,
- The loan of a bioinspired robotics kit to the school with technical support from our students.
View the robotics teaching material for schools.
Booking information is available through UCL Culture.
VR Club
VR Club is a monthly event where the Virtual Environments and Computer Graphics (VECG) Group hosts demos and mini-talks about Virtual Reality in our labs.
There are two demo sites:
- At 169 Euston Road Basement VR Lab, we will show the HTC Vive systems, PS VR2, Varjo XR1 & XR3, Magic Leap One and HoloLens. You can chat with some of the PhD students doing studies in mixed reality.
- At Malet Place Engineering Building Ground Floor VR lab we will show the CAVE, show off our "HMD museum" and talk about some of the more exploratory hardware work we do in robotics, multi-sensory devices, displays and haptics.
In2STEM
In2STEM UK is an award winning charity which empowers students from disadvantaged backgrounds to achieve their potential and progress to STEM and research careers. The summer school runs at UCL for about 15 In2STEMe students on the London programme.
Find out more and sign up by following the links on the In2STEM website.
Previous UCL CS outreach activities
Find out more about the outreach activities we've ran in the past with learners, teachers and schools.