<p>Has anybody ever enrolled or are planning to enroll at the MCIT program in UPEnn. If so does it have a good ROI? It is worth spending time completing this program? And will it open the doors for jobs in large reputable software companies?</p>
<p>I am an EE major planning to apply to this program.</p>
<p>I know this is an old post, but in case anyone is still considering the MCIT program, my experience with it was very positive. The MCIT program is a much smaller program than the regular MSE CS program (my full-time ‘cohort’ had between 30 and 40 students) and I felt that the guidance and attention we received from the core MCIT administrators, professors and lecturers were phenomenal. </p>
<p>However, while the core classes do a good job providing a strong CS foundation, a lot of your ‘ROI’ will likely be affected by the electives you select. After completing the core, you select electives from the same pool as all the other graduate CS students, and selecting challenging coursework (such as machine learning or distributed systems) can put you in the same hiring pool as the MSE CS candidates. Selecting ‘softer’ electives would not be as helpful.</p>
<p>That being said, MCIT graduates do go on to software engineering positions at Google, Amazon and Microsoft, which is noteworthy considering none of those students studied computer science as undergrads. Penn releases annual career plan survey reports with more data. It’s self-reported, but the Engineering grad school report (containing info for both the MCIT and MSE CS programs) for 2012 is here: <a href=“http://www.vpul.upenn.edu/careerservices/files/SEASM_CPSurv2012.pdf[/url]”>http://www.vpul.upenn.edu/careerservices/files/SEASM_CPSurv2012.pdf</a>.</p>
<p>Hi!! Was accepted to the MCIT program a few weeks ago and am very excited. Not 100% sure I’m going yet, but things look good. Anyone know how this program compares to UChicago’s computer science masters program? They seem very similar.</p>
<p>I’m not too familiar with Chicago’s program. After a brief look at their website, I can only note the following things:</p>
<ul>
<li>Chicago grants an MS in Computer Science. Penn grants a Master of Computer and Information Technology. You can take four more classes and graduate with both MCIT and MSCS degrees, but since placements with the MCIT degree are similar to those with the Penn MSCS degree, I don’t know anyone who has considered it.</li>
<li>Chicago appears to have an “Immersion Phase” that may require additional time and money to complete. Penn does not have an “Immersion Phase” as these topics are likely covered in the 6 core classes.</li>
<li>However, if you place out of Chicago’s “Immersion Phase”, then you are only required to complete nine classes vs Penn’s ten class requirement. In this situation, you may be able to complete the degree sooner and with fewer loans</li>
</ul>
<p>I couldn’t find any information on the following, so you may want to ask someone at Chicago about:
<p>Thanks for the insight! Do you think the distinction between MS in CS and MCIT matters? The coursework is very similar, but I wonder if the title MCIT may cause confusion for an employer.</p>
<p>Also, the main difference I can see between the two programs is that Chicago is one year, while Penn is two years (but have pretty much the same total coursework). On the one hand, I think it would be good to power through my masters in a year and get into the workforce. However, I worry a one year program won’t give me enough time to flesh out my interests and the lack of having a summer internship period could hurt my employment prospects. Do you think you could have been equally As prepared for the workforce if the program had been condensed into one year?</p>
<p>Most “IT” degrees out there are a blend of IT and management topics. Those degrees are generally focused on the application of technology in the business world, so there’s definitely the opportunity for confusion if an employer isn’t familiar with Penn’s MCIT program. One way to mitigate that risk is by including key courses or projects on your resume.</p>
<p>The Chicago program has a couple of prerequisite classes, whereas the Penn program does not. My guess is that the total Chicago program (Prerequisites + 9 courses) covers the same material as Penn’s 10 courses. Of course, if you already have the required math and programming background, that would mean that you would only have to take 9 courses at Chicago. At Penn, you can place out of the intro classes, but you still need to complete 10 total courses, so you would have to replace them with more electives (which in my opinion, are the real difference-makers once you leave the program).</p>
<p>There’s also the benefit of being able to take on a summer internship. Applying to internships is good practice for the full-time recruiting experience, and there are also those internships that led to full-time offers at the end of the summer. With Chicago’s 9-month program, I’m not sure if you can take on a summer internship, so you should probably check with Chicago to see what opportunities are there for you to gain practical work experience before you graduate.</p>