USC MS in Comp Sci

[billrach]

Hi all,

I have an undergrad degree in business.  I'm interested in an MS in CS in order to do a career change.

I had a few questions about USC's MS program.

 

1) How hard is it to get in for a non- CS person with no related coursework?  GRE/GPA numbers would be helpful

 

2) What is the value of the degree in terms of job prospects?  

 

Thanks

[DeeD]

Have you already applied ? Many colleges accept students from fields that are non-CS but related. IMHO, it would be very difficult to compete if you have no past CS/programming experience whatsoever (formal or otherwise).

 

As far as GRE scores.. I've heard of students with 315+ get in (this is one case, not the cutoff), but they are CS/IT/ECE people with internships and publications and projects. GPA doesn't really count in your case. The probability of getting into the program is directly propotional to the potential for graduate study displayed in your application. Have you any related experience ? Intersting projects ?

 

I believe some departments would (assuming you get in) reuqire you to take some undergraduate courses during/before your first year. You should really check with the department regarding their requirements though. 

 

No idea about the value of the degree in terms of job prospects. USNews does rank it 20th or something, but I don't know how much value anyone places on that anymore.

 

All the best !

Edited April 5, 2014 by DeeD

[billrach]

Thanks for your reply DeeD.

 

 

Well I have completed 2 CS courses on Coursera, I don't htink that will count for much though.  I worked in financial services for a few years.  I'm thinking about taking a Intro to CS at a local college during the fall semester.  I would like to get some type of entry level/junior programmer job, but that might be hard without a formal educational background as well.

[PhDerp]

Thanks for your reply DeeD.

 

 

Well I have completed 2 CS courses on Coursera, I don't htink that will count for much though.  I worked in financial services for a few years.  I'm thinking about taking a Intro to CS at a local college during the fall semester.  I would like to get some type of entry level/junior programmer job, but that might be hard without a formal educational background as well.

 

Why are you interested in switching into CS without having much background? Is it the job prospects? Money? Sheer interest? Or some combination of these?

 

If you can start coding, that'd be immensely helpful to your application. It's huge to see someone complete a coding project in their spare time. Even if it's a little buggy, having a github you can provide on your resume is huge to demonstrate competence.

 

And if you get chance, take online courses (or community college courses) in: basic programming, data structures, and algoirthms. Some schools combine those last two. These are the backbone behind CS.

 

Haha, maybe I'll be your TA when you get into USC. Good luck!