COMP2521 Notices

Important COMP2521 Final Exam Update

Posted by Tahereh Hassanzadeh Thursday 06 August 2026, 08:01:22 PM.

Only 24% of students have completed the MyExperience survey. Therefore, no programming question topics will be revealed before the final exam .

The final exam is worth 100 marks :

• Programming section: 50 marks
  • Five programming questions
  • Each question is worth 10 marks
• Theory section: 50 marks

Tries and Heaps will NOT be included in the programming section.

However, Tries and Heaps may still be included in the theory section . Therefore, you must study all course content for the theory section.

Please note: only the programming questions on Tries and Heaps are excluded. The topics themselves are not excluded from the exam .

I still encourage you to complete the MyExperience survey. Your constructive feedback is valuable and helps us improve the course.

It has been a pleasure lecturing you this term. I wish you all the best for the final exam.

Tahereh

Exam environment demo

Posted by Kevin Luxa 🦉 Tuesday 04 August 2026, 04:14:12 PM.

Hi everyone,

This week, and this week only, you'll get a chance to try out the exam environment in the in-person labs, so please attend a lab if you would like to familiarise yourself with the exam environment before the final exam.

Graph Theory Workshop – Week 10

Posted by Tahereh Hassanzadeh Wednesday 29 July 2026, 09:33:28 PM.

Hello Everyone,

The UNSW Competitive Programming and Mathematics Society (CPMSoc) will run a Graph Theory workshop covering topics relevant to COMP2521, including:

• Euler and Hamiltonian paths and cycles
• Kruskal’s algorithm
• Dijkstra’s algorithm
• Theoretical foundations of graph algorithms

Date: Wednesday, Week 10
Time: 3:00–5:00 pm
Format: Hybrid

In-person location: Tyree Energy Technologies Building, LG05
Online: YouTube livestream via the CPMSoc channel:
https://m.youtube.com/@unswcpmsoc535/streams?ra=m

The workshop may be useful for students seeking additional practice and a more theoretical perspective on graph theory.

Regards,

Tahereh

COMP2521 Week 9 and Week 10 Revision Sessions

Posted by Tahereh Hassanzadeh Wednesday 29 July 2026, 11:41:29 AM.

Week 9 and Week 10 Revision Sessions

Two in-person revision sessions will be held over the next two weeks:

Week 9 Revision Session

Topics: Content covered up to and including AVL trees
Date: Wednesday, 29 July
Time: 4:00–6:00 pm
Location: Old Main Building, G31

Week 10 Revision Session

Topics: Graphs and the remaining course content
Date: Wednesday, 5 August
Time: 4:00–6:00 pm
Location: Science and Engineering Building, G05

Please note that both sessions will be held in person only , and no recordings will be available. However, the revision slides and solutions to the prepared practice problems will be provided.

Regards,

Tahereh

WIT x CPMSoc: Competitive Programming Contest

Posted by Kevin Luxa 🦉 Monday 20 July 2026, 11:12:18 PM.

Hi everyone,

Are you interested in competitive programming but haven't tried it before? Or do you enjoy solving coding problems? Or do you miss the high you get from seeing that you've passed all the tests?

If so, please check out this programming contest brought to you by WIT and CPMSoc! The contest is beginner friendly and catered towards COMP2521-level students. Free food will be provided!

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Are you someone who wants to sharpen their coding skills, tackle challenging algorithmic problems, and compete against other students? Join us for a 2-hour Competitive Programming Contest, where you'll work in teams of up to 3 to solve a series of programming challenges on an online contest platform.

Whether you're looking to improve your problem-solving abilities, practice coding under time pressure, prepare for technical interviews, or simply have fun with friends, this contest is a great opportunity to challenge yourself in a supportive and collaborative environment. No matter your experience level, there's something to learn!

🍕 Free pizza will be provided to keep you fuelled throughout the competition.

Key Details:
📅 Thursday, 23 July (Week 8)
⏱️ 4:30 PM – 7:30 PM
📍 Tyree Energy Technology LG05

Teams:
👥 Teams of up to 3, you can also register as an individual!
✏️ Every team member must register individually, even if you're competing together.

Gather your team, bring your laptop, and get ready for an evening of coding, collaboration, and friendly competition. See you on the leaderboard!

SIGN UP LINK HERE: https://campus.hellorubric.com/?eid=68592

COMP2521 Lecture Update – Thursday, 2 July

Posted by Tahereh Hassanzadeh Thursday 02 July 2026, 09:55:59 AM.

Hello everyone,

Unfortunately, today’s lecture, Thursday, 2 July, from 1–3 pm, will also be delivered via YouTube livestream only and will not run face to face.

Please join the livestream at the usual lecture time.

Thank you for your understanding.

Regards,
Tahereh Hassanzadeh

COMP2521 Lecture Update

Posted by Tahereh Hassanzadeh Monday 29 June 2026, 02:03:53 PM.

Hello everyone,

Unfortunately, I will not be able to attend tomorrow’s lecture in person, Tuesday, 30 June, from 2–4 pm. The lecture will still run as scheduled, but it will be delivered via YouTube livestream only.

Please join the livestream at the usual lecture time.

Thank you for your understanding.

Regards,

Tahereh Hassanzadeh

Additional BST and AVL Example Videos

Posted by Tahereh Hassanzadeh Wednesday 24 June 2026, 09:04:43 PM.

Dear students,

I have recorded four short additional videos to go through several worked examples on BST global and local rebalancing , as well as AVL insertion and deletion .

The videos cover:

1. Example 1: Global rebalancing
2. Example 2: Global rebalancing
3. Example 3: Local rebalancing and root insertion
4. Example 4: AVL insertion and deletion

If you did not attend the lecture or have not yet watched the recording, please watch the lecture video first, then these example videos. They are intended to help you better understand the concepts through step-by-step examples.

The OneNote solutions are also available here .

See you tomorrow.

Best regards,
Tahereh

Help Session Schedule

Posted by Kevin Luxa 🦉 Monday 15 June 2026, 01:45:06 PM.

Hi everyone,

Regular help sessions have now been scheduled! You can see the schedule on the help sessions page .

Welcome to COMP2521 26T2

Posted by Tahereh Hassanzadeh Monday 01 June 2026, 11:52:12 AM.

Hello everyone,

Welcome to COMP2521: Data Structures and Algorithms!

We are looking forward to starting the term with you. Most of the information you will need for the course, including lectures, tutorials, labs, assignments, and assessment details, will be available on the course website . Please also take some time to read through the course outline , as it explains the topics we will cover, the weekly schedule, and how the course will be assessed.

Our first lecture is tomorrow, Tuesday, 2 June, at 2:00 pm in Matthews Theatre A . The second lecture will be on Thursday at 1:00 pm in the same location.

All lectures will also be streamed on YouTube. You will find the livestream link on the lecture page, along with the lecture slides for each week. Slides will be posted as soon as they are ready. We are also considering making some older lecture slides available for students who would like to read ahead, but please note that the content may differ slightly from this term’s material.

Tutorials and labs start in Week 1, so please make sure you know your tutorial time and location.

If you have any questions, either now or later in the term, please ask them on the course forum . Our course admin team and tutors will be very happy to help.

I look forward to meeting you all and hope you have a great start to the term.

Best regards,
Tahereh Hassanzadeh