This is a well established course at Carnegie Mellon University. You can find the course website for previous iterations of this course at the following links. Former course websites can provide excellent sources of old quizzes and exams to study from.
Qatar: F24, S24, F23, S23, S22, F21, S21, F20, S20, F19, S19
Pittsburgh: F24, S24, F23, S23, F22, S22, F21, S21, S20, F19, S19, F18, S18, F17, S17, F16, S16, F15, S15, F14, S14, F13, S13, F12, M12, S12, F11, S11, F10, S10, F09, APEA-09, S09, F08, APEA-08, S08, F07
Official Course Description
A technical introduction to the fundamentals of programming with an emphasis
on producing clear, robust, and reasonably efficient code using top-down
design, informal analysis, and effective testing and debugging. Starting
from first principles, we will cover a large subset of the Python
programming language, including its standard libraries and programming
paradigms. We will also target numerous deployment scenarios, including
standalone programs, shell scripts, and web-based applications. This course
assumes no prior programming experience. Even so, it is a fast-paced and
rigorous preparation for 15-121 or 15-122. Students seeking a more gentle introduction
to computer science should consider first taking 15-110.
Unofficial Course Description
This course is designed to help you learn how read, write, design, and debug Python programs. Towards that end, you will spend most of the time in the course developing programming as a skill by learning about various programming constructs and techniques and by constantly practicing with code.
Students who take 15-112 generally fall into one of two categories:
In this course, you will primarily do work through completing programming assignments; these assignments will help you develop and practice your coding skills. You will also be assessed with a set of quizzes and exams, to help you measure your understanding of the class's various topics. We will teach you primarily through interactive lectures and recitations, where we will demonstrate how to code using instructions, examples, and live coding. At the end of the semester, you'll demonstrate your mastery of the course's topics by working on a 3-week term project, where you can develop and code a project of your own design, based on your own interests.
Learning Objectives
At the end of the course, students should be able to:
There will be three classes each week:
Sunday, 2:30 p.m. - 3:45 p.m.
Tuesday, 2:30 p.m. - 3:45 p.m.
Thursday, 2:30 p.m. - 3:45 p.m.
Classes on Sundays and Tuesdays will consist of lectures where we learn and practice different concepts. There will be short individual and group activities during the lectures. Thursday's class will have a quiz at the beginning of the class and then lecture and exercises. The weekly quizzes will test topics that are covered in the readings, lectures, and exercises.
Grading Policy
| Course Component | Points | Notes |
| Quizzes | 10% | Lowest three quiz grades are dropped. |
| Midterm Exam 1 | 15% | |
| Midterm Exam 2 | 15% | |
| Final Exam | 20% | |
| Homeworks | 20% | |
| Term Project | 15% | |
| Participation, Attendance, and Prereading | 5% | See participation policy below. |
Letter Grade Assignment
The course uses the standard grade percentages as follows:
By default, grades round up to the next letter (so 89.50 is an A, and 89.49 is a B). The course instructors may choose to change the scales at their discretion. You are guaranteed that your letter grade will never be lowered as a result of changing scales.
Final Grade Policy
You must receive a 60% or higher (calculating using the appropriate weightings above) on in-class assessments in order to receive a D or higher in the course.
You must receive a 65% or higher (calculating using the appropriate weightings above) on in-class assessments in order to receive a C or higher in the course.
Homework Late Submission Policy
In an ideal world, we would be able to support varying submission schedules so that all students could work at their own pace. Unfortunately, this is impossible. We need you to submit assignments on time so that we can promptly give feedback to all students, to support the learning process.
However, we understand that life can sometimes get in the way. Therefore, we provide 3 grace days for homework assignments. These can be used to submit homeworks up to 24 hours late with no penalty. You may only use one grace day per homework. We strongly urge you not to use these grace days immediately; try to save them for unforeseen events.
Once you run out of grace days, late submissions will receive a score of 0.
Better-Late-Than-Never Policy
If you lost points in the homework because you didn't submit a problem or your
solution didn't pass some test cases, you have the chance to recover those
points by submitting your solutions.
The maximum number of points you can recover is 100, which is equivalent to a full homework. Note that this policy applies to single homework problems. For instance, if your homework 1 grade is 86 because you lost 8 points in problem A and 6 points in problem C, and your homework 4 is 80 because you lost 20 points in problem D that you didn't submit, you can submit these three problems by the last day of classes. If your solution to these problems is correct, you will get 34 points that will be added to the your homework 1 and homework 4 grades.
No Make-up Exams or Quizzes
We do not offer make-up quizzes, even for medical reasons. Instead, our lowest quiz score drop policy is designed to accommodate occasional absences. If you miss a quiz, there’s no need to inform us—your lowest score will simply be dropped.
For exams, no make-up exams will be administered except for the final exam. If you miss an exam due to a qualifying reason (e.g., medical or university-approved absence), the weight of the missed exam will be transferred to the final exam. Note: Students must contact the instructor before missing the final exam to discuss arrangements in case of emergencies.
Exam Submission Policy
Students must promptly hand in their papers at the end of a quiz or exam.
Failure to submit the paper on time may result in the quiz or exam not being
accepted and receiving a grade of zero for that assessment.
Participation Policy
The Participation, Attendance, and Prereading (PAP) grade (worth 5% of your semester average) will be updated at mid-semester and at the end of the semester before the final exam, and depends on several factors relating to your accountability, engagement, and participation. The course requires you to attend and actively participate in all the lectures, recitations, required events, and mentor meetings.
You are also expected to carefully read the course notes and other assigned readings and complete pre-reading checkpoints.
Responsiveness
You need to monitor your andrew email and
respond to course-related emails promptly, preferably the same day and in any
case within two days. Also, you must read all instructor Discord (the class Q&A
forum) posts promptly and carefully. You are responsible for knowing this
information, including any changes or additions to policies, deadlines, etc.
Pre-reading
Each week, you will be assigned a specific subset of the course notes in CMU CS
Academy (including code snippets and walk-through videos) as required reading in
preparation for the following topics. Most of these notes contain checkpoints
that must be completed prior to the checkpoint deadline. The pre-reading
checkpoint assessments will typically be due on Sunday 2:00 p.m. You should
regularly read the course schedule and any course announcements, as there will
be a few exceptions.
Successfully completing prereading assignments on-time will constitute 50% of your PAP grade.
Lecture Attendance and Mentor Meetings
You are expected to attend all lectures, and arrive on-time. Students who do
not attend, or arrive late, will be marked absent.
Starting from week 3, you will be assigned to one CA mentor. You should meet
regularly with your mentor (once a week), and respect the pre-arranged meeting
schedule. Not attending, arriving late, or requesting last minute time changes
will result in you being marked as a no-show.
Lecture and mentor meeting attendance will constitute 50% of your PAP grade.
Laptops and mobile devices
Research on learning
shows that unexpected noises and visual distractions can disrupt attention
and negatively impact everyone's learning experience. To maintain a focused
environment, the use of laptops, tablets, and mobile phones is not allowed
during class, unless explicitly permitted by the instructor.
Please silence all mobile devices before class begins. Using devices for activities unrelated to class, such as working on assignments or browsing, is strictly prohibited. Thank you for helping create a distraction-free learning environment.
Homework
Homeworks are typically due on Tuesdays at 9pm. These assignments generally contain a coding exercises (reading, debugging, and writing code). They generally assess the material taught the week they are released, and take several hours to complete. We strongly encourage you to start the homeworks early- The day they are released is best, and within two days of release at the latest!
Homeworks must be completed individually.
Programming assignments will be graded based on style (modularity, effective use of data abstraction, readability, commenting, etc.) and functionality (correctness and efficiency of the program on all possible test inputs). Your code should be properly annotated with comments that are well-placed, concise, and informative. Your assignments will be graded by the CAs, by automated graders, and at times by your instructor.
The Term Project will take place over three weeks at the end of the semester. You will design and build a program of your choosing with the guidance of a mentor CA.
In-Class Written Assessments
Quizzes will be given weekly at the beginning of lecture on Thursday. Quizzes generally cover material from the previous week and the previous homework. Quizzes are designed to be time-intensive, to test for fluency and demonstrate where additional study is needed.
There will be two exams given in class, as noted in the course schedule. Each exam will cover material presented in the preceding weeks (with Exam 2 focusing mostly on material not covered in Exam 1). Exams also test for fluency, though to a lesser extent than quizzes.
There will be a standard 3-hour final exam during the final exam period at the end of the semester. This exam will cover material from the entire semester. The final exam is built to allow enough time to attempt all problems.
This course has a rigorous academic integrity policy and it is strictly enforced.
Refer to the course academic honesty policy.
Course Resources
Required Software
You should have a computer (ideally a laptop). However, it does not need to be very new or powerful. We recommend an Apple or Windows laptop, though common distributions of Ubuntu will also work. Please contact us if you cannot reasonably get access to a computer.
You will need to bring to lecture and recitation an internet-accessable device that is able to, at the very least, access Discord and Google Forms and respond to poll questions. A laptop will certainly work; a smartphone or table should be sufficient too. Please contact us if you cannot reasonably access a device that you can bring to each lecture.
Every required software package we use is available for free on the web. This includes:
External Resources
Note that all textbooks/resources are optional.
Electronics
Research has shown that devices can greatly detract from student learning. Therefore, students may only use electronic devices in lecture during learning activities which involve those devices.
Outside of these events, students should only use electronic devices with explicit permission from the instructors. Notes may still be taken, of course, but should be done with pen and paper. This policy is meant to help all students focus, as electronic devices are distracting not only for the user, but also for the students surrounding them.
Recording
Students may not record audio or video of lectures or recitations without explicit permission in writing from the instructor. Violations will result in your failing the course. Exceptions will be granted in accordance with university guidelines for accessibility concerns, but even then such recordings may not be shared publicly or privately and must be deleted at the end of the semester.
Attendance
Your regular, on-time attendance of class is important for your success. As such, class attendance is mandatory and graded as described in the grading policy. In addition, arriving late is not permitted. If you attempt to enter the classroom after class has started, you will be asked to leave. If you arrive late for a quiz, you will not be permitted to take the quiz or make it up.
Extensions
In general, we cannot give individual extensions on assignments or assessments. However, there are a few exceptions.
Medical Emergencies: If you are sick to the point that you cannot attend class or do work, go to the doctor! If you have a short illness (such as food poisoning or the flu) you should simply use a late day (for homework) or a dropped quiz for a quiz. Students who have prolonged medical emergencies may obtain extensions from the instructors after coordinating with the Office of Health and Wellness. Please see the medical excuse guidelines available on Scotty.
Family/Personal Emergencies: If you are having a family or personal emergency (such as a death in the family or a mental health crisis), reach out to your academic advisor immediately! They can help support you in your time of need, and will also reach out to all of your instructors (including me) to request extensions for you.
University-Approved Absences: If you are attending a university-approved event off-campus (such as a multi-day athletic/academic trip organized by the university), you may request an extension for the duration of the trip. You must provide confirmation of your attendance, usually from a faculty or staff organizer of the event.
Please note that extensions must be requested before the assignment/assessment deadline.
Regrade Requests
We occasionally make mistakes while grading (we're only human!). If you find a mistake which you would like us to correct:
In both cases, include all relevant details for your regrade request.
Regrades must be requested within two weeks of the time when the contested grade was released. The two week limit may be shortened at the end of the semester in order to meet grade submission deadlines.
Note: Regrade requests may result in the entire assignment being regraded, not just the incorrectly graded part.
How to do well in this course
Our goals are for you to succeed in
this course and to teach you skills and concepts that will contribute to your
success in life. To this end, we are providing you with lots of resources and
the knowledge that comes from years of experience. Talking to some of the
thousands of students who took this course before you, here's some advice that
they found particularly useful:
Each semester, I ask top-performing students to share their tips for success. You can find their responses here.
Diversity
It is my hope that students from a diversity of backgrounds and perspectives be well served by this course, that students' learning needs be addressed both in and out of class, and that the diversity students bring to this class be viewed as a resource, strength and benefit. It is my intent to present materials and activities that are respectful of diversity: gender, sexuality, disability, age, socioeconomic status, ethnicity, race, nationality, religion, and culture. Your suggestions are encouraged and appreciated. Please let me know ways to improve the effectiveness of the course for you personally or for other students or student groups.
This statement is adapted from The University of Iowa Department of Education.
Accommodations for Students with Disabilities
Carnegie Mellon University is committed to providing reasonable accommodations for all persons with disabilities. To access accommodation services you are expected to initiate the request and submit a Voluntary Disclosure of Disability Form to the office of Health & Wellness or CaPS-Q. In order to receive services/accommodations, verification of a disability is required as recommended in writing by a doctor, licensed psychologist or psycho-educational specialist. The office of Health & Wellness, CaPS-Q and Office of Disability Resources in Pittsburgh will review the information you provide. All information will be considered confidential and only released to appropriate persons on a need to know basis.
Once the accommodations have been approved, you will be issued a Summary of Accommodations Memorandum documenting the disability and describing the accommodation. You are responsible for providing the Memorandum to your professors at the beginning of each semester.
For more information on policies and procedures, please visit Assistance for Individuals with Disabilities on Scotty.
For additional information, please feel free to contact any of the following:
Wellness and Happiness
We care very much about your well-being and happiness. CMU students (and
faculty) work very hard, but we must keep our balance and always attend to our
well-being and happiness first. Achieving a better grade is almost never a
matter of putting in more time! So be sure to get enough sleep, eat right,
exercise regularly, and attend to your well-being and happiness.
Also, please know that we do care about you and take your well-being seriously. We want to help you learn while minimizing stress. Meeting the learning goals of 15-112 necessitates significant effort and a fast pace, but do not fall into the trap of working endlessly, as this will only reduce your efficiency (and more importantly, your happiness and well-being). It is not necessary, expected, or something to be proud of. We can help you improve your efficiency and work less, not more. We also seek to minimize the workload as much as is possible, while still meeting the learning goals of the course.
Finally, if you are feeling overly stressed, anxious, or unhappy about your performance or your general experience in this course: please come talk to us. We will listen. We are here for you and we will try to help. There are also many helpful resources available on campus and an important part of the college experience is learning how to ask for help. Asking for support sooner, rather than later, can often help your situation from getting more complicated. If you or any of your CMUQ peers are experiencing academic stress, difficult life events, or feelings like anxiety or depression, we strongly encourage you to seek support.
Our Student Affairs staff are here to help:
You can also visit the Ilona Wyers Student Lounge and connect with anyone on the Student Affairs Team. Consider also reaching out to a friend, faculty, staff, or family member you trust for help. If you would like to speak to a trained professional for mental health support, day or night, call our ProtoCall hotline at 5554 7913, which is staffed by trained mental health care providers.
If the situation is life threatening, call 999.