Hello...New person here!

JDMcK03

Hello Everyone!

I'm new to these forums, and new to your world in general. I'm 27 years old, and have spent my entire adult career in sales and management, all with one company. I recently hit some sort of mid-life crisis (early, I know) and decided I was no longer satisfied with my minimal salary in my field.

I recently enrolled at the University of Toledo with the intention of majoring in Computer Science. I contimplated a BBA Information Systems focus, before finally setting my sights on Computer Science.

I was wondering if any of you could spare your thoughts on the differences in degrees, and any general information that could help someone like me out.

I can say what scared me away from the Information Systems degree was reading on a number of forums that a lot of companies don't quite know what to do with an I.S. degree, because it sort of falls between two categories.

I'm not overly smart, but I am a hard worker. I like to think that if I'm taught something, I can do it. That being said, it doesn't come naturally.

Thank you kindly in advance.

the_Grinch

Never short change yourself by saying your not overly smart! Big difference in the degrees would be Computer Science would be just about all programming, where as IS would probably include some programming, but mostly IT related stuff. Most companies would refer to your resume and the skills/coursework section to see if you would be a fit for the position so I wouldn't get hung up on the degree name. That being said, I think CS is a great way to go and you should do fine. Your time in sales will definitely help your softskills which is a great thing. Good luck!

pumbaa_g

Better late then never mate! Welcome aboard, hope you are in for the long haul First item on agenda will be what you want to do or interested in, once you decide that then you can find the cert/degrees to help you on your way.

kgb

If you don't want to be a developer/programmer I'd say getting a Computer Science degree isn't what you want to get.

I wouldn't let what some HR departments say about degree names determine which degree I'd get. Unless I wasn't open to working for anyone but those companies. I can't imagine that, but everyone's situation is different.

jasong318

Hey JBMcK03, I did pretty much the same thing, started my BS in CS when I was 26 and finished six years later (working full-time, part time classes). I would say that the differences are night and day, IS would be more of a blend of business and IT, where CS would be not just programming, but the theory behind computation and programming. Programming is a part of it but not the sole purpose of a CS degree, that would be Software Engineering or Computer Engineering. My course focused on programming as a means to an end to understand the computation of a particular problem, not to teach us to develop a C# program. That beng said, you will do a lot of programming and become rather proficient at it Also, math... lots and lots of math