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Okay. I assume that you guys view a Computer Science degree as much more worthwhile then?
At least at my employer, MIS candidates are viewed as less desirable for more senior level technical positions than someone with a CS or software engineering degree. Someone with a pure CS or software engineering degree from a quality program will be a shoo-in. We've have some MIS candidates come in that couldn't even answer basic IT related questions.
We do require a degree and I can't think of any of our direct competitors who would not require one either.
It could be worth it if you want to work for federal, state or local government. Which isn't a bad idea since those jobs pay better than private industry, are more 9-5 and it's harder to get laid off. In private industry, however ,I doubt it will pay off.
If you want to be a DBA it's better to just learn how to be a DBA and then get an entry level job somewhere. I don't know why anyone wants to be a DBA though, it has taken me almost 15 years to expunge all knowledge of databases from my brain.
It could be worth it if you want to work for federal, state or local government. Which isn't a bad idea since those jobs pay better than private industry, are more 9-5 and it's harder to get laid off. In private industry, however ,I doubt it will pay off.
If you want to be a DBA it's better to just learn how to be a DBA and then get an entry level job somewhere. I don't know why anyone wants to be a DBA though, it has taken me almost 15 years to expunge all knowledge of databases from my brain.
Well, I believe the appeal is that a DBA with the right skills and experience can make 75k to 125k per year.
My husband has a BS in Computer Science and worked for a long time with that. About 6 years ago he decided to get a MLIS and he is now a database admin. However, he said his Masters really has had no impact on his career. He was already out of programming and doing database work when he got his degree. And that degree put us $64K in debt!!
I'd STRONGLY encourage you to finish your Bachelors in Computer Science. That's invaluable. But work a few years and see if you may want to go back for your Masters.
As for those suggesting the OP work in gov -- my husband moved out of gov, went into the private sector, and doubled his salary.
Doesn't a DBA position have more of a probability to be an on-call 24/7 type of job? A company database is about as mission critical as you can get. Anyways, you don't need a degree for that, although it certainly doesn't hurt.
While not exactly the same degree, I decided to go back to school part time to get an MBA in IT Management. For me, the reason was simple, I had taken a lot of computer courses, but changed majors out of CS to Finance. I got a job as a Financial Systems Analyst basically managing the financial systems, walking the line between finance and IT. Unfortunately while I knew a ton about programming and computers in general, I had nothing on my resume that indicated that.
So for me, I got the paper to prove what I knew. It helps gets my resume past the check box HR people who say "No IT degree = no job" despite the experience, but I'd say that's about all it's helped. My employer paid for about half of it, so it wasn't that bad of a deal.
Would I have gone directly for a degree that wasn't one of the "hard" computer degrees? Probably not, but I already had the experience so I just needed the paper for my resume.
My husband does database analysis and is never on call. His work is more related to marketing. I'm sure other positions may vary. Also, he said if he had stayed in programming or software dv he would be making a lot more money than he is now but he's very happy he changed the course of his career.
I work in the IT realm. Here's what I have to say: A degree in ANYTHING is good. Now it's all about learning a language, infrastructure, script, etc.
You don't have to have a degree in IT. You just have to know what your doing and have working experience doing it.
IT is a field you can't BS. Either you have it or you don't. Companies what a person who has it. IT keeps changing. If you have it, you are in high demand!
I would say get some certifications under your belt. I don't know about anywhere else, but many companies in Houston like to see certs if your degree isn't technical. Means you are actually trying to learn. IT managers like learners...
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