foboi1122

Hey Guys,

I got my BS in mechanical engineering from UCSD and am planning to apply for a masters in Computer Science. I've been out of school for about two years in which time I've been working at a small engineering company doing a LOT of scientific programming (mainly C/C++, some matlab and python) and signal processing (both of which I fell in love with). I program on a daily basis at work, but this doesn't really show on my transcript since ME's at my school only take about 3-4 programming classes (one C++, some matlab, and some algorithm class). I also managed to take a data structures and algorithms class at UC Irvine after I graduated.

My question is, if I were to try to get into a competitive school like UC Berkeley or Stanford, how much more computer science classes would I need to take to be competitive when I apply? I see a lot of non-science majors ask these questions but I haven't really found any from engineering majors transitioning to CS.

Also how much does working at a job which requires heavy programming help my application to grad school (if any)?

Thanks in advance!

Fuzzylogic2525

Since no one seems to want to help you, I'll take a gander. In general, anyone who has significant experience in the professional field uses that as their selling point. The undergraduate degree becomes less relevant at this point. If it was me, I would dedicate the majority of my resume to the job and all the programming you've done. Ican't say specifically, since I'm not compsci but I know math undergrad majors who have Polisci PhD's. You'll be fine.

foboi1122

Thanks for for the input! I really appreciate it