College/University or BCIT?

springroll

I have decided to go back to school(YEA for me :P )

But I have an issue: I can't decide where to go to for schooling?
I am 24yrs old living at Vancouver BC. There are 2 route for me. One is going to college(douglas) to obtain a dimpolia and and going to university to finish a degree(both computer seience) or going to BCIT and just complete a 2yr porgram and get my dimpolia.

Pors and Cons of going to College/university:
Pros:
-I can work part time while studying(since it is only 3 to 4 course per semster I am sure I have free time)
- I can foucs on only 4 crouse Vs BCIT 7 to 8 course per semster so I can get better grades
-I can do Co-op and earn money and experience

Cons:
-It iwll take at least 4yrs or more to complete both a dimpolia and degree
-It iwll cost more in the end than if I am going to bcit
-I have to take some coruse that's not relevant to the program(IE accounting)


Pors and Cons of going to BCIT
Pros:
-Cost less than college/university
-U are more foucs with the program(they only teach what u need to know)
-Sets hrs and u work with the same ppl thorought out the whole semester
-Faster (only 2yrs to complete)
-Cost less
-A lot of compnay in the industry hire ppl from BCIT
-Big name in BC

Cons
-Each semester is 7 to 8 course so it is very stressful and u must stay on top of things
-Not much free time(too busy with school project and test)
-Can't work when going to BCIT
-Have ot save up a large amount of money b4 going
-Only a dimpolia
-BCIT might not be recongize outsdie of BC(since it is not a college or a university)

These are points I came up with. Since I am not in the IT indsutry I am not sure which route will be better for me and able to get me a better career.

PS for those who don't know what BCIT is here is the link www.bcit.ca


I like to hear what u guys have to say since..... well most of the ppl there have been in the IT industry for awhile and know more than me

ajs1976

I'm not sure how this applies to the canadian system but here is what I did.

Spent a couple of years playing around at school towards a BS in Chemistry. Took some computer classes and eventually dropped out to get a job in computers.

A couple of years later, decided I should get a degree. Money was an issue, so I want to a local community college part time to complete an Associates degree in CIT. Because I was able to transfer in classes, I was able to complete the program in two years even though I was part time.

Employers seem to prefer a Bachelors. Some ads require a 4-year degree while some will accept a 2-year degree with a few years of experience. I'm planning going back to school in the spring for a BS in Technology Management. I will be able to transfer in my credits from my associates and older course work towards the new program.

I guess I want the college/university route you mentioned and not the tech school route.

I took a quick glance at the BCIT site and it looks like the ITTech schools that are always advertising on TV. It looks to commercial for my tastes.

Kasor

For long term, u need college degree. A CS or IS degree will do it.

seuss_ssues

Sometimes its hard to see the forrest because of all the trees.

That being said instead of thinking in a 2-5 yr time span image how both will affect you 20 years from now. The quicker option may be cheaper and get you out sooner and started working sooner, but it may have more cons than you considered. I know of people who have worked dilligently at a company and have virtually hit their ceiling without having a 4 yr degree.

I hated college. I considered it a waste of time and money. Now that I am finished I have my degree and it was all worth it. My current job's first requirement was a Bach. in a computer related field. I every job or promotion I work towards ive got that going for me.

To sum it up it would really suck to be 40 and realize the degree was the way to go and then have to start it all over again.

Get the 4 yr, take some certs, and good things will happen.

springroll

Thx for the replys. I think I will take the college/university route......

It will be hard but I know I can do it if I try hard. :P

itdaddy

seuss_ssues

is 100% correct; i finished my AS in Networking and got a job and finished A+ not long after
but want to get my CCNA and see that BS degree is minimum if you want to get paid decent

no matter what it is BS degree and then certs or backwords. I just turned 40 and have 2 years
part time to finish my BS in CS. I look back and figure if I would do it all over again

get my BSCS (work an internship for experience) get some certs (A+ and CCNA)
then get in the door and shoot for cisco; cisco networking rocks. CLI rocks!

no matter what from an old farts (40 year old) a degree never goes away but certs expire!
and new technology comes and goes....

gettterrrrr done the degree and it is like money and retirement, you are young and
have time on your hands so invest and in time by say 27 to 30 you will be making some good money and loving your job cause you worked the right order.

kind of like finding a girl; the order i tell my son is finish your dreams career fun and stuff
then around 30 ish get married. where there is money and success there is a hot babe waiting
and go over seas and find a foreign wife! foreign chicks are hot!

hhahhaah

nel

im in the same situation. i have undertook a 5 year PT ba hons degree ! FIVE YEAR! lol. seems alot but im only 21 and have 5 yr experiance already. besides if i didnt take the degree to give me some serious weight in my qualification dept i would prob get a little age discrimination against me any way for potential jobs. ive finished 2 of those years so only 3 to go! lol but anyway the way i see it is i would rather do it now while i am younger than have to do one when im married with kids! cos believe me it is alot harder when you have family commitment etc. any lets face it those 2 or 3 years are a small chunk of what will be your working life. i think a degree is a great investment as it can open up so many different doors that IT certs cant.

Slowhand

I'm in a little bit of a different boat, in terms of what I'm doing in the IT field and in school. Given, I'm shooting for a Computer Science degree, more than likely I'm going to end up doing graduate work and push for a Master's, maybe even a Ph.D in Electrical Engineering & Computer Science, if I'm that ambitious. In the meantime, I've been procrastinating for the past few years, going to community college off and on, doing some Computer Information Systems classes while I've been working on the math requirements for EECS. In that time, I've come to realize just how expensive school is, and how much it costs just to survive, so I started to study for certs and work a bit to save up some money. The more marketable those certs and that experience makes me, the more money I can tuck away for school.

That's pretty much where I am, right now. I'm working, pushing to learn more and get some certifications under my belt. I love IT, I love learning about Cisco, Microsoft, Linux/Unix, and other technologies; but it's really going to be a means to an end, in order to get me through school. In the end, I hope to end up doing work that involves both the networking and systems administration type of things I'm doing now, as well as software development and higher-level engineering that I'll be learning in school. Then again, who knows, people sometimes go completely off the track they started on. . . I might end up as a botanist, or something.

sir_creamy_

You're getting a degree. Now all you need to do is prepare yourself for 4 years of noise and confusion. Best of luck mate.

garv221

university.

buulam

ajs1976 wrote:

I took a quick glance at the BCIT site and it looks like the ITTech schools that are always advertising on TV. It looks to commercial for my tastes.

I'm a BCIT grad

BCIT is not one of those ITTech schools... they don't have cheesy ads or anything (though we do have ITTech types around here). Its a very big and well respected institution around here. It is best known for education in highly specialized trades, most notibly its aerospace program (they're building another enormous facility near the Vancouver International Airport) but also things like automotive, construction, welding, land surveying, electrical and mechanical engineering and also a very notible marketing program, business, financial and broadcast communications.

Here we see an apparent problem, though. Folks from outside of BC (maybe not our neighboring areas) don't recognize BCIT and will have the impression that its an ITTech or CDI!

As I said, I am a BCIT grad. That was a huge factor in getting me my first job. But from there, moving up came from gained experience. I believe a degree would have longer lasting effects in job searches and promotions.

taktsoi

my friend also runs into same issue that he realizes he needs the bachelor for the promotion but most of the credits from his a.a.s are not acceptable because he earned his a.a.s since 1995. sounds bad? now he is finding a cheap a$$ local or online college that is able to accept majority of credits. got any idea?