Full Sail’s Computer Science bachelor's degree with a Mobile Development concentration combines programming basics with specialized training in mobile application development. Dr. Rebecca Leis, Full Sail’s Mobile Development Concentration Program Director, explains how a foundation in computer science creates well-rounded mobile developers.

Computer Science Foundations

The Computer Science portion of the degree program gives students a broad background in computer science basics and lower-level programming languages. They learn how to create data visualizations, how to model and design machine intelligence systems, and they gain a theoretical understanding of C-based languages like C# and C++. Learning those languages gives students an advantage before they dive into iOS and Android mobile programming.

“It's like the difference between learning math with a calculator versus learning math from scratch,” Rebecca says. “You can use a calculator and it will make things faster, particularly for easy problems. But if you aren't quite sure exactly what you're doing – especially for more complex problems – then sometimes you can either skip a step, or do it incorrectly and not realize it because the answer appears correct. Premade tools can save time, but they can also possibly give us false confidence in our ability to solve new and unique problems. Thus, a strong theoretical understanding is crucial to students’ knowledge acquisition.”

Students also learn how to create data visualizations and how to model and design machine intelligence systems. An example of machine learning in mobile applications includes Snapchat’s filters. These filters use computer vision algorithms (a type of machine learning model) to identify faces in an image and map entertaining features onto the original image.

In their shared Computer Science midterm courses, students also build their first simple mobile Android application in Project & Portfolio VII before they begin their Mobile Development concentration.

Mobile Development Concentration

In the specialized Mobile Development courses, students have three classes in iOS programming, three classes in Android programming, and a final capstone class where they complete their own mobile application. They explore advanced iOS frameworks, create feature-rich Android mobile experiences, and more. Mobile Development students learn the same environments and languages that are used in the mobile development industry.

“The environments they use are Android Studio and Xcode, and the languages that they focus on are Java and Kotlin for Android, and then Swift and Swift UI for iOS,” says Rebecca.

Students in Full Sail’s Mobile Development concentration can also work with faculty from other Full Sail programs to build their mobile projects.

“For example, [Mobile Development] students can create a mobile game. If they decide to do this, they can reach out to any of the game instructors and ask them about things like, 'How do you build a level?' or 'How do you integrate music for the game?',” Rebecca says.

Beyond mobile games and phone applications, students also have the option to collaborate with instructors using other mobile platforms and devices. Full Sail University’s various labs house a number of mobile devices including tablets, smart watches, wireless VR headsets, etc. that students can use to test their capstone projects.

The Computer Science bachelor’s degree with a concentration in Mobile Development prepares students for the rigors of professional programming. Whether they find their niche in a mobile development job or use their foundational computer science knowledge in a more general role, they’re ready to make their way in the tech industry.