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I am in serious need of advice. I'm in my thirties and considering a career change because, among other things, I've hit a dead end in my current job. Since I already have a bachelor's degree, I am considering taking the background courses needed to enter graduate school and get a master's degree in either Statistics or Computer Science. These choices have appeal to me because I've always had a love and aptitude for math. Moreover, I've also heard anecdotally that there is a lot of demand for workers with these skills and degrees, and that remuneration is pretty good, although I don't have any firsthand knowledge of this and am not sure if it's just hype. Also, I am concerned about whether my age would be a hinderance in starting a career in these fields right now.
As I'm just a layperson regarding the fields of statistics and computer science, I would appreciate any relevant insights anyone here could give me about career prospects in these 2 fields given my situation, which degree would be better, other degrees I should consider that I may have overlooked, or any other advice you could share, especially if you have more expert or first hand knowledge. I'm not married and don't have kids, so going back to school wouldn't be a huge burden for me.
Thanks.
If I were in your shoes, before asking anybody on an online forum how their job is or jumping into getting a degree, I would try and literally work in that field somehow.
Like, even if you work full time, find a way either after hours or on Saturdays or something, go into an office place and see how they do coding and what you'll be doing all day. Offer to work for free or something and see how much you'll like it.
All day long, you can hear somebody say they love their job and they get kick@ss salaries. That is a small sample size. You have to remember how many computer science degrees are awarded every year and that number is going up and up. So, don't go into it for the $. See if you enjoy it.
Stats, stats and stats!!! I am in Biostats field and always see opportunities with good $$$. I would recommend it with my eyes closed! GL and DM me if you need more info.
Based on the various industries I interact with, I would steer you toward statistics.
Data analysis is more essential than ever for many companies, and the growth potential is huge.
I'd get a data science certificate from one of the companies that has a good reputation and good connections. And skip the grad school. IF you like it, then go to grad school, but it may not be needed to be a data scientist.
Also, there are so many types of analyst roles. My team has a few types: some that are more coders - but they don't have a CS degree. The other ones have an understanding of reporting and data. They are paid well and there is a lot of opportunity.
Marketing teams have a big need for analyst too. And there are analysts roles in every department as organizations get larger.
CS is in high demand. Good coders/engineers can easily made 6 figures with great job security. Lots of competition and study though.
This is why the "analyst" path is better. They also make 6 figures, lots of opportunity across industries. And if the tech economy busts, there are still other industries that desire that skill set. Less competition.
Thanks for all the advice here; it's a lot to consider. I started this fall by taking a couple of classes (Calculus 2 and Introductory Programming) at my local university, and did well in both classes. Those courses were background classes to both the Stats and CS programs, but the courses I will need to take for the two programs begin to diverge next semester, so I'll need to make a decision soon as to what I want to do.
Anyway, when I finally graduate, I anticipate I will be in my mid- to late thirties. I also wanted to know whether my age would be any kind of hindrance in terms of starting a career in these fields right now.
Thank you.
Last edited by elner; 12-26-2016 at 11:19 AM..
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