Computer Science majors after college...

Mika08 · 04-14-2008, 07:43 PM

Do one have to graduate from a Top 20 school in order to gurantee employment after graduation? I'm going to attend Mercer University for a B.S. in Computer Science and I do plan on going to graduate school. If I don't go to graduate school, will I be frowned upon because I didn't graduate from a top school?

Will it make it harder for me to get hired for jobs like Microsoft, Google, etc. (in case I want to work there in the future)? I heard from someone that if I want to apply for a job like Google, I need to graduate from a school like MIT or Stanford. That can't be true, right?

This is a dumb question but I'm going to ask... will it affect my salary? Is it true that you get paid more if you went to schools like Harvard and Stanford than a lower-tier school?

csprof2000 · 04-14-2008, 08:16 PM

No, you'll be fine. You'll get a job, probably around ~$53 k per year, if you have a decent GPA from a state school. With a good GPA at a good, not great, school and some experience / ECs, expect ~$60 k. For a top CS u-grad program with stellar grades and excellent experience / ECs, you could make as much as ~$70 k coming out of college. A master's will only make your salary and future career better.

As a CS major, you'll have job opportunities that most people can only dream about. Check the BLS for more detailed information.

Mika08 · 04-14-2008, 10:01 PM

Thanks for the info. What do I have to do exactly to make myself marketable for the $60k+ entrance salary 4-6 years down the road?

Let's say someone get's a 3.9-4.0 GPA in a state school with lots of experience with internships and summer jobs relating to their major, as well as leadership positions in their school's community. Can that student still get paid just as much as an undergrad from a top school?

And when you say I'll have job opportunities that most people can only dream about, can you elaborate on that? Oh, and what is BLS?

csprof2000 · 04-14-2008, 10:15 PM

With a 3.9 - 4.0 GPA from a state school with a solid - nothing special, but research is done there - CS department, relevant internships / co-ops, and a short list of ECs, you can definitely expect at least $60 k, I would imagine. Your degree may not have the same name recognition as those from the top schools, but you shouldn't fare any worse than most students from top schools. Now, if somebody went to MIT and was president of 5 organizations, had 5 internships with NASA, the NSF, the NSA, Google and Microsoft and had a 4.0 and semesters of undergraduate research with a list of papers, that would be hard to beat, and rightly so. But you would automatically beat out a 3.5 MIT student with no work experience and no ECs to speak of.

The BLS is the Bureau of Labor Statistics. It provides occupational outlooks for various professions, among them, computer software engineers, computer scientists, database administrators, etc.

Computer related fields are among the fastest growing, best paid, and most satisfying in the market. Demand exceeds supply by an order of magnitude, and the artificially low supply is maintained by the myth that computer jobs are going overseas. It's bad for employers, but great for employees.

Mr Payne · 04-15-2008, 12:43 AM

3.9-4.0 from most schools could get a job at MS/Google/any number of companies.

Mika08 · 04-15-2008, 04:08 PM

Well, I heard jobs like Google and Microsoft have brutal interviews... I mean, GPA and experience alone can't get someone a job there, right?

What are the chances of someone being laid off while they are employed? I don't want to bust my ass during undergraduate/graduate school and find out sometime down the road that I'm going to be laid off from my job.

csprof2000 · 04-15-2008, 04:34 PM

"Well, I heard jobs like Google and Microsoft have brutal interviews... I mean, GPA and experience alone can't get someone a job there, right? "
Well, no, but where you go to school won't affect how tough the interview is.

"What are the chances of someone being laid off while they are employed? I don't want to bust my ass during undergraduate/graduate school and find out sometime down the road that I'm going to be laid off from my job."

The danger's always there, but it's not too likely if you have skills. And it's no more likely to happen in CS than in ChemE or EE. Don't worry about it.