Faculty of Information Technology
FIT2004 Algorithms and data structures is a level 2, 6-credit-point, undergraduate unit from the Faculty of Information Technology, offered in 2020 in Semester 1 and Semester 2 at Clayton and Malaysia. It has no prerequisites and unlocks 8 units, leading on to 12 units in all. Students rate it 4.0 out of 5 from 1 review and call it very hard.
This is the 2020 handbook entry. See the 2026 entry.
Hard but worth it. The assignments are brutal and you will spend whole weekends on them, but you come out actually understanding dynamic programming and graph algorithms. Do the tutorial sheets every week, the exam questions look a lot like them.
No prerequisites or corequisites besides the enrolment rules below.
8 units list FIT2004 as a prerequisite or corequisite.
Prerequisite: One of FIT1008, FIT1015, FIT1054, FIT2085 or CSE1303 and 6 points of Level 1 mathematics.
Prohibitions: CSE2304, FIT2009
This unit introduces students to problem solving concepts and techniques fundamental to the science of programming. In doing this it covers problem specification, algorithmic design, analysis and implementation. Detailed topics include analysis of best, average and worst-case time and space complexity; introduction to numerical algorithms; recursion; advanced data structures such as heaps and B-trees; hashing; sorting algorithms; searching algorithms; graph algorithms; and numerical computing.
| Teaching period | Campus | Mode |
|---|---|---|
| First semester | Clayton | On campus |
| First semester | Malaysia | On campus |
| First semester (Fully flex) | Clayton | Flexible |
| Second semester | Clayton | On campus |
| Second semester | Malaysia | On campus |
When you finish this unit, you should be able to:
Analyse general problem solving strategies and algorithmic paradigms, and apply them to solving new problems;
Prove correctness of programs, analyse their space and time complexities;
Compare and contrast various abstract data types and use them appropriately;
Develop and implement algorithms to solve computational problems.
Minimum total expected workload to achieve the learning outcomes for this unit is 144 hours per semester typically comprising a mixture of scheduled online and face to face learning activities and independent study. Independent study may include associated reading and preparation for scheduled activities. The unit requires on average three/four hours of scheduled activities per week. Scheduled activities may include a combination of teacher directed learning and online engagement.
Mark Allen Weiss. (2012). Data Structures and Algorithm Analysis in Java . (3rd Edition) Pearson (ISBN: 9780132576277).
Python (latest version) installed in the labs
FIT2004 is part of 5 areas of study in the 2020 handbook.
FIT2004 has no prerequisites, but enrolment rules apply.
FIT2004 is a prerequisite or corequisite for 8 units, including FIT3143, FIT3144, FIT3155, FIT3161, FIT3163 and FIT3170. Those lead on to 12 units in all.
In 2020, FIT2004 runs in Semester 1 and Semester 2 at Clayton and Malaysia.
Students who took it rate it very hard to do well in and very heavy on workload (1 rating). The handbook expects about 144 hours of study across the semester.
Yes. The exam is worth 60% of the final mark, alongside 1 other task.
FIT2004 is part of Computational science, Computer science and Software engineering.
It is rated 4.0 out of 5 from 1 review. Read the reviews above or add your own.