Generalist vs specialist degrees

DissonantData

The it profession has a variety of degrees available. You have cs/it/mis which are generalized degrees and information assurance and computer networking degrees which are more specialized. Which would be a better choice? I personally feel generalist degrees are better at the bachelors level and specialist degrees are better at masters level. What do you think?

TechGuru80

That is a fair assessment. Also masters degrees are generally to get people into management where a bachelors degree might be more technical for an entry level employee. Certifications are huge in this industry...coupled with a degree can really set you apart.

markulous

I was curious about this too. I planned on going the security route, but the general IT route seems tempting too.

Capozz24

I have a degree in Management Information Systems, and at my school they lacked a lot on the IT aspect of it(because half the program is about business). Please don't go down this route unless you've seen people from the actual program get jobs. Go down the Computer Science/whatever specialist route. I've been trying to make up for my lack of specialty knowledge by going for certifications, and am about to take the Network+ which I hope I can pass. However, I know I'm going to start in a help desk role and then hopefully within a fair amount of time transition into a jr. system admin or higher role. The good thing about IT is there are certifications to help you go down a specific path. For me, 2 months out of school, I've been taking what I thought was the fast-track route to getting pretty much any job in IT by trying to get basic IT certifications(such as the A+) since my degree is frustratingly generalistic.

However, it was my choice. I picked it specifically because it was easier than computer science(haha). I'll work hard, and try to make it as a network admin somewhere eventually. However, if I can't find a niche I enjoy in the industry, then I might just go back to graduate school for something like Educational Psychology(it interests me, and I was involved with these people in high school.)

Sorry, I just noticed I rambled. I will understand if you put tldr.

TechGuru80

Capozz24 wrote: »

I have a degree in Management Information Systems, and at my school they lacked a lot on the IT aspect of it(because half the program is about business). Please don't go down this route unless you've seen people from the actual program get jobs. Go down the Computer Science/whatever specialist route. I've been trying to make up for my lack of specialty knowledge by going for certifications, and am about to take the Network+ which I hope I can pass. However, I know I'm going to start in a help desk role and then hopefully within a fair amount of time transition into a jr. system admin or higher role. The good thing about IT is there are certifications to help you go down a specific path. For me, 2 months out of school, I've been taking what I thought was the fast-track route to getting pretty much any job in IT by trying to get basic IT certifications(such as the A+) since my degree is frustratingly generalistic.

However, it was my choice. I picked it specifically because it was easier than computer science(haha). I'll work hard, and try to make it as a network admin somewhere eventually. However, if I can't find a niche I enjoy in the industry, then I might just go back to graduate school for something like Educational Psychology(it interests me, and I was involved with these people in high school.)

Sorry, I just noticed I rambled. I will understand if you put tldr.

Sigh...you will probably have a help desk because you do not have experience not because you got an MIS degree instead of CS or CIS. There is no fast track to a job and having knowledge of business is helpful because you are not just a one trick pony.

Specialization degrees are gaining traction because there are literally tons of jobs you could hold in IT. Look at Cisco who completely revamped their certification setup to reflect the new paths people can take. CS/CIS seems to be more networking/development based (because of programming) where MIS seems to be more administration.

Backpacker

Until you decide what route you want to take it can be tricky. For instance I'm pursuing an Information Systems Security degree with all my electives being in programming. In addition I hope to have my CCNA and my RHCSA before I graduate.In my opinion it is helpful to have a good foundation before you can specialize.

Akaricloud

I would say it's personal preference. If you are 100% sure what speciality you want to go into and know that's where you want to stay then by all means go for the specialized degree. It'll help you gain more relevant experience and help land you a job.

Personally I wasn't tied down to any one specialized area and went with a MIS degree in hopes that after gaining more technical experience I'll be able to move into management. <2 years later I have a high paying job specializing in Big Data and am looking for opportunities to move into some management within my company.

If you go more generalized then you need to get your technical experience a different way.

DissonantData

I think of it this way. You can get a specialist job with a generalist degree. However, if you want a job that is not part of your speciality, it will be harder to get it with a specialist degree. A CS/MIS degree may be useful for both information assurance and web development. An information assurance degree may not be useful for web development and a web development degree may not be useful for IT security.

It seems that the business degree path is also useful. What options are there for a business degree (finance, accounting, business administration) and a computer science/information technology minor?

the_Grinch

From personal experience I can tell you to go with the general degree and minor/concentrate in an area of interest (if that's possible). My degree is in Security and I had a heck of a time getting employers to look past it when applying for jobs. I had all the foundation courses of an IS degree, but then a ton of security coursework and got passed over for entry level jobs. I had some experience, but each time I'd get "this isn't a security related job you'll be bored" or "there's no way to move to the security team from this position". When you're starting out you don't care what you're doing when you have bills to pay.

Now, in contrast, I had a friend who majored in Computer Science and then concentrated in Network Security along with System Administration. Got a job right out of school and then moved into security as a contractor a year later. The other side of it is you think you know what you want to do in college, but things change. A specialty can limit you when you find out you have more of a knack for systems administration then you do for network administration. Plus, in security, it's about experience. How can you secure a technology when you have no experience setting it up?

Save the specialization for certifications and a Masters/certificate. Took me four years of full time work to finally move into security and looking back I'm glad it took me that long. There are so many avenues in IT that college just can't teach you them all. My time at an MSP let me touch on each and every specialty, from there I was able to decide what was best for me.

markulous

the_Grinch wrote: »

From personal experience I can tell you to go with the general degree and minor/concentrate in an area of interest (if that's possible). My degree is in Security and I had a heck of a time getting employers to look past it when applying for jobs. I had all the foundation courses of an IS degree, but then a ton of security coursework and got passed over for entry level jobs. I had some experience, but each time I'd get "this isn't a security related job you'll be bored" or "there's no way to move to the security team from this position". When you're starting out you don't care what you're doing when you have bills to pay.

Now, in contrast, I had a friend who majored in Computer Science and then concentrated in Network Security along with System Administration. Got a job right out of school and then moved into security as a contractor a year later. The other side of it is you think you know what you want to do in college, but things change. A specialty can limit you when you find out you have more of a knack for systems administration then you do for network administration. Plus, in security, it's about experience. How can you secure a technology when you have no experience setting it up?

Save the specialization for certifications and a Masters/certificate. Took me four years of full time work to finally move into security and looking back I'm glad it took me that long. There are so many avenues in IT that college just can't teach you them all. My time at an MSP let me touch on each and every specialty, from there I was able to decide what was best for me.

Wow. I had no idea employers would be that narrow-minded. If that's the case, I'm much better off doing what you said and just getting my Bachelor's in IT and grabbing the certs I want.

I'm honestly leaning towards security myself but maybe that will change when I get thrown into that environment.