Graduate school from a mid-low tier school worth it?

juillet
Sun, 04 Feb 2018 20:09:52 +0000

I would say do not let things like deadlines determine where you apply to school. A year really isn’t a long time in the grand scheme of things. If you waited just a year, you could apply to the schools you really wanted to apply to instead of forcing yourself to apply to whatever’s left over. (The bigger concern is your GPA).

But the better question is why do you feel like you need an MS in computer science? Your BS is in computer engineering. It’s different, but it’s not so different that you couldn’t start looking for jobs in what you want and learn on the job, or at least start with a related job and then move into something you wanted through some lateral career moves. For example, you could apply to some software jobs right now and I bet you could get some - people with BAs in non-computer related fields who know program and basic algorithms/data structures get them relatively often. If someone with a BA in English who went through a General Assembly boot camp for six weeks can get a software development job I am sure that you can.

Or you may find that you start out in hardware, maybe take a couple of the classes you are missing part-time (with your company paying for them, of course) and then move into a software job in a year or two.

Computer science/engineering is a field where your professional experience and connections matter a whole lot more than graduate work. So start networking, and start applying. Join professional organizations (many have student memberships), go to small regional conferences or networking dinners, look on Indeed or Dice and start looking at positions that interest you.