Time to Level Up

Due to my fear of being homeless, I have decided to pursue the MS in applied computer science at Dakota State. I have been accepted and don't have to take any pre-reqs since my BS was in computer science. The program seems to be challenging from reading the reviews of it and I love a good challenge. Plus, I hope that earning it, learning/honing the craft, and having the alumni connections will make me more employable by permitting me to teach at a local community college and to make a jump from being a network guy to a developer at a good company or a security role at a good company because it seems that my current employer is moving to the noc-centric way...and that is all I will say about that.

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cyberguypr

Fear of being homeless? Most unusual reason I've heard to pursue a masters.

DatabaseHead

I have the opposite thought. Having student loans is a great way to get homeless.....

E Double U

A degree will not make anyone immune to misfortune, but whatever lights a fire under someone is ok with me.

TechGromit

Personally I feel certifications give more insurance than a Masters degree and they are considerably cheaper too. The only down side you have to continue to renew certifications, unlike a Master degree.

volfkhat

TechGromit wrote: »

Personally I feel certifications give more insurance than a Masters degree and they are considerably cheaper too. The only down side you have to continue to renew certifications, unlike a Master degree.

Agreed.

However, one might question why a Master's Degree earned.... 10 years ago... is somehow still considered "valid",

but a certification from 10 years ago isn't $:\$

1Bstyln

My apologies for the delay.

--cyberguypr: generally, those with a graduate computer science degree have lower unemployment rates than those who do not have it.

--DatabaseHead: I can see where you are coming from but I respectfully disagree. The program is not so expensive that I need to take out any loans. I already live a very frugal lifestyle so fiscally nothing will change. If it was a program like Carnegie Mellon, I would never attended because I do not think that the price tag is worth it.

--E Double U: True, a degree will not make anyone immune and I don't think anything can. I look at it as a case of having the degree might not help you, but not having can hurt you.

--TechGromit: I agree. I just dont want to be on the short end of the stick if the deciding factor between me and someone else is a MS degree.

--volfkhat: I agree. Most Master's programs tend to be become dated after a few years and certification tracks tend to get updated by the time you have to retake them so it seems like a better choice to undertake certifications rather than a Master's. But computer science concepts (e.g. data structures, big-o, algorithms, etc..) stand the test of time. However, it is more suited for a software engineer than a network engineer...

jamesleecoleman

volfkhat wrote: »

Agreed.

However, one might question why a Master's Degree earned.... 10 years ago... is somehow still considered "valid",

but a certification from 10 years ago isn't $:\$

If the certification has to have education requirements or continuous learning requirements then it's all good.
I think that if someone has the job experience for 10 years, doing the stuff that the degree covers then it'll still be good.

I believe the only way that its not going to work out if someone has a degree in something but works in a different career field.