Best Grad Program For a Computer Science Major? 372
ryanleary writes "I am currently a junior computer science major at a relatively competitive university. I intend to remain here for some graduate work, and I would like to get a master's degree. What would be a good field to study? An MS in computer science appears to be highly theoretical, while an MS in IT seems more practical due to its breadth (covering some management, HCI, and design). What looks best on a resume, and where might I expect to make more money in the not-too-distant future? Computer Science, Information Technology, or something different altogether — perhaps an MBA?"
Business or Accounting (Score:1, Interesting)
Seriously. Depending on where you are looking to get a job at, it will be extremely helpful in the long run.
Re:BMA is the BMW of diplomas (Score:1, Interesting)
Yeah, because all those MBAs that supposedly were growing the economy prior to the current economic downturn are really giving the MBA a good name right now. They're a dime a dozen and I'm not sure there's much value to them anymore... I'd go with something else.
Depends on Your Interest (Score:5, Interesting)
I found that an MBA with a CS degree was the best for my own career. In general, I found that there are two career paths, and which one you choose depends on your personality/goals/ambitions... You can go either the technical management route or the business management route. I chose the latter for myself and found that it allowed for great flexibility. I've been through 3 recessions now and the combo business/CS made me more nimble when things changed. I have never been laid off or out of work. I ran my own company for several years, and I am now self-employed. But, those friends of mine who went the technical route have had different types of success. Generally, they have grown to be technical managers at companies of various sizes. So, overall, the major difference between folks that took the MBA route and those that took the Masters/PhD in CS/IT is that the latter work 9-5 corporate jobs. Not that there is anything wrong with that, but it seems to just be that way. You easily could get an MBA and end up working in a corporate environment as well. To be honest, the two people I know with the greatest success did technical BS, then MBA, then (gag) a law degree.
Sorry for the long rant. My bottom line is... Stay in school, kids!
Professional Degree (Score:4, Interesting)
Your motivation appears to be purely focused toward employment and earnings (not that there's anything wrong with that). As such, I'd have to advise against graduate studies in CS or similar. While they don't have to be theoretical - Master's degrees offer a lot more flexibility in this department than PhDs - they are still focused at their core on contributing to the common knowledge. You're probably better off with a masters or doctorate that falls into the category often described as professional degrees: things such as MDs, Law degrees, MBAs, etc.
You've mentioned an MBA. It's too early for that; while it's certainly not a hard and fast rule, the general consensus is that an MBA works much better after you've been in industry for a few years. You'll be better equipped to discuss and apply the relevant ideas when you know how things work "in the real world." On top of that recommendation, it's important to realize that MBAs have literally become the new "dime a dozen" degree. As the popularity of the degree exploded, every commuter school and online university has begun offering them. Without stooping to elitism (I'm sure the education is sufficient), you risk entering a glutted field with a less than stellar name on your diploma. That's a bad way to make a stack of money and a 2-ish year time sink worthwhile. If you decide on an MBA, you should work for 3 or 4 years, then aim to obtain your MBA from one of the top 40 or so schools. Again, I'm not saying that you'll get a sub-par education or won't succeed with an MBA from tier-3 State U, but it will be more difficult to stand out from a crowd waving MBAs from the big names.
With all that said, may I recommend pursuing graduate studies related to health informatics? At it's simplest level, it's a practical and always-necessary application of CS to the medical field. With the current push from the Obama administration for Electronic Medical Records and the enormous flow of government money sure to follow, it's likely to be an enormous growth industry in the coming years. The basic ideas about DB structure and interface are translatable to other industries if you ever need to leave. Health Informatics-focused graduate programs are available through some Business schools as a hybrid of MIS studies and through the bigger Health Science schools as their own degrees or as specialized variations of Health Administration degrees.
Almost nobody does. (Score:2, Interesting)
Whether it's can't or won't is immaterial.
Re:Business or Accounting (Score:3, Interesting)
Good to hear some advice counter to mine. As a computer geek and a former marine bio major, I regretted not getting a business minor in a big way. As any tech kid goes into college, what do you think about getting a minor in business or as mentioned prior, in accounting?
If you want to start your own business and can't do our own books, you're screwed.
Programming Language Research (Score:3, Interesting)
While on the topic, I would like to ask a similar question. What places can people recommend for doing programming language research? I have a MSc in computer science, and I am thinking about getting back into academics after a few years of working. I have been studying and inventing programming languages as a hobby for a number of years now, and I am thinking that, perhaps, I could combine the two and do a PhD project related to programming languages. However, next time I go to university, I want the environment to be a bit more intellectually stimulating than what I have experienced so far. Since I am not tied to any specific location or even country, I have a vast number of universities I could potentially turn to. But which ones would be a good choice? Can anybody recommend some? Or perhaps I should turn to specific people, instead of universities.
Re:What Do You Want to Do with the Rest of Your Li (Score:1, Interesting)
The only people I met in grad school are my ex-girlfriends. I guess it depends on which university you go to, but , the engineering graduate school was no haven for social activities. Every week night, I went to class at 6pm and left 2-3 hours later. I didn't talk to anyone in my classes, and there were no group projects. [gwu.edu]
I went to the same school for my undergraduate degree, and it was a completely different experience, much like any typical college. Not only that, but no one I knew in undergrad was also in my grad classes. I also had mostly different instructors, even though it was the same major.
Re:Business or Accounting (Score:5, Interesting)
Listen, kid. I'm a professor of business and management science. My masters and PhD are in Computer Science. There is a hidden rule in academic life: you cannot swim upstream. It is easy for a mathematician or a physicist to become an engineer. It is easy for an engineer to become an economist or work in any business field. But it is close to impossible for a marketing type to become a physicist.
Sure, for some values of upstream. I've yet to see a mathemetician become a good experimental pyhsicist. They can/often do become excellent theoretical physicists. Likewise with engineers. Mathematicians and physicists can become excellent engineers in some areas, not so much in others. But your main point stands that the flow is mostly one-way, though there is a bit of overlap between physics and engineering especially on the semiconductors and nano stuff.
Me and My Friend Dumbo (Score:5, Interesting)
The advice about seeking out the teacher rather than the subject matches the single best piece of advice I received or handed out in my career. In fact, I used it to disprove the previous section regarding not swimming upstream.
While getting an MHA (that's an MBA for health care industry) I was given that advice by my professor. Later I attended a conference about "consciousness" at a small college. I witnessed the conference organizer trying very hard to come to an agreement with two others, clearly from different fields, what they meant by the word "energy". I had no idea who the guy was or what he did, but I knew I wanted to learn from him. It turned out he was Karl Pribram (neuroscience), the other two being Roger Penrose (physics) and Harold Liebowitz (then president of the National Academy of Engineering). What I wanted most was to learn from someone who worked that hard to turn science into shared knowledge. So I did; a year later I was in Karl's office, having just been admitted to his psychology master's program, telling him this story. No, his eyes didn't bug out. He took it to heart and taught me how to learn as well as everything he could about the field. I was 41. I got my PhD in neuroscience 7 years later. It could have been 6, but I was working on a very interesting project (tobacco as a preventative for Parkinson's, as mentioned in "Thank You For Smoking"). I was awarded non-competitive post-docs at NIH and Yale, finishing them at 50 and joining academia
Anybody can float down stream and most do. They'll tell you that's how it works. Fuck that noise. Swimming up stream makes you stronger. Worst that can happen is you fail and end up floating around with the other drifters. But I can tell you with the confidence of experience, an elephant can fly.
Re:Business or Accounting (Score:2, Interesting)
Why not do an MEng (Score:1, Interesting)
If you think the MSc is too theoretical then why not find a university that does an MEng in computing. The MEng computing courses offer you the chance to put all the theory into practice and the skills they provide are much more oriented to problem solving in real world situations which is considered a big plus on the job scene. I can't think of anywhere that does post-grad MEng courses in computing off the top of my head and I only know a few places that do undergrad MEng courses in computing, but I assume there must be a few places offering post-grad MEng courses.
Re:Business or Accounting (Score:3, Interesting)
Two points make your response utterly clueless.
First, you recommend the "Freakonomics" book. Levitt is a buffoon who abused false causality fallacies to score political points. Any grad student who has worked with statistics would know that.
Second, you recommend "fucking" grades. Again, this pretty much shows that you have no idea what you are talking about. Discipline matters and the grades you get in school show your discipline. All easy problems have been solved by now. Minesweeper has been refactored thousands of times by now. Projects today require dozens, if not hundreds, of talented people working together in synergy. The last thing hiring managers want is a kid with C's, "research" papers, and big attitude. What hiring managers do want is a kid who will do what he told, every day, every week, every months. The only way to show your focus, discipline, and perseverance is your grades.
Sell your soul - Computer Forensics / Security (Score:2, Interesting)
Disclaimer: I'm a Fed Employee, with BA and MS in Computer Science.
The Scholarship for Service (SFS) program, jointly run by the National Science Foundation and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS), the U.S. government is desperate for cybersecurity professionals. The SFS program was designed to increase and strengthen the federal government's core of cybersecurity professionals by underwriting two-year stipends for full-time students who specialize in information assurance at approved four-year colleges and universities in exchange for agreeing to serve at a federal agency in a cybersecurity position for at least two years.
http://gcn.com/articles/2009/03/23/sfs-cyber-workforce.aspx [gcn.com]
But WHY???? (Score:3, Interesting)
You have a CS degree. Go get a job! Yes, this is not the greatest market ever, but working for a couple of years is the best way to find out what kind of career is the best for you. There are of course tons of graduate degree programs where a CS graduate would fit: industrial engineering, operations research, statistics, financial engineering, MIS/CIS, and of course CS, MBA, and law. All of these could lead to good jobs and lucrative careers, if you work hard on it. For what its worth, if you play your cards right, you could get a decent job without these degrees.
Re:If you are asking this question (Score:3, Interesting)
I had the misfortune of seeing a train wreck in progress of a former sales guy brought in and appointed to manage a successful non-destructive testing section. His complete lack of technical skill in the area turned a sucess into a complete failure since he was unable to organise a work schedule and unable to organise profitable bids. The thing that threw out his budget on the bids was the lack of understanding that people really do not like to be exposed to radiation (and that there are laws about it), so a lot of radiography has to be done at night. When you have people idle for most of the week and then having to drive 200km twice a week for a couple of hours work at 2am and the client is being charged as if it was next door and daylight you end up making a loss just to cover wages and transport - and if you don't you lose staff. He lost contracts due to poor sheduling, lost money on those he got, lost staff when things got tight and he refused to pay market rates, then eventually was just a guy with no staff attempting to employ contractors with no sucess. He lost his job taking his boss with him. The new boss then recruited as many of the old team that he could get back and once again it was a profitable group if somewhat diminished.
The clueless manager was a "nice guy" with the "appearance" of knowing what he was doing but never asked anyone for advice and ignored it when it was freely given. He could have picked up the technical basics in months. IMHO he was a textbook example of a non-technical manager out of his depth managing technical staff. I've seen similar things in IT but not as spectacular.
Depends... (Score:2, Interesting)
Re:Business or Accounting (Score:4, Interesting)
There fixed that for you.