DePaul (Chicago) MS in CS program? (going from BS in Biology)

[pandorasnecklace]

Hey everyone,

 

First post here. I have a bit of an unconventional background. I have a BS in Biology (minors in Business & Chem)  and I graduated this past May with a good GPA from a Top 50 nationally ranked university and one of the best in my field for B.S. I wanted to pursue Biology research after college, but after working in a lab for a few years, I decided that really wasn't for me. After graduation, I had a pretty good internship with a start-up in the health IT space doing business development. I enjoyed what I was doing and more importantly I was very curious about the technologies we were using. I began to teach myself basic programming (already knew VBA, started Python and Java). Now, my knowledge level is pretty basic, but I'm teaching myself using online resources and find learning this stuff really exciting and enjoyable. After my internship was over in December, I am currently unemployed and looking for jobs. I know that the CS world has a lot of demand right now and is forecasted to have a great deal of demand in the future also. 

 

My question is whether the MS in CS program at DePaul is worth it? The program seems like it's targeted towards not just CS people, but also non-CS folks. The people with non-CS backgrounds would end up adding an extra year to their program and would have to take foundation courses before they began their grad school courses. So the program ends up being 3 years instead of 2. Also, the program seems like it's really easy to get into. All I would need is a 3.0/4.0, transcript, application and fee. No rec letters or GRE scores. I checked with the admissions office and they said I had a very good chance of being accepted. One of the things I really like about this program is that it can be full-time and most of the classes are in the evenings so I could potentially work in the daytime and go to school at night. 

 

Does anyone have any experience with this program? Is it too good to be true? Or should I wait and get the foundation courses else where and apply to a more competitive program next year? I'd appreciate any feedback about this program, my next steps, or any other advice or comments you can provide. 

 

Thanks for you help!

[rustledjimmies]

You should go for it! CS is a great field -- it's interesting and has great job prospects. 

 

as for applying to a more competitive program next year... it's up to you -- think about what you want to do after your MS. I think it is not difficult to find a solid, great job with an MSCS from an unranked university -- as long as you can demonstrate your competency. 

 

If you want to work at google, you may want to consider waiting

[IlliniBSer]

pandorasnecklace, its crazy how similar our stories are. I also am a biology grad who am pursuing this program. Im really curious to hear what you ended up deciding on? did you attend DePaul?