advice needed

[Nikki Parker]

Hello everyone,
With my senior year of college rapidly approaching, I have been asking myself what to do with my future. I will be receiving a BS in Computer Science and heading out into the IT business world. However, should i work right away or go to grad school. The way the market is these days I dont know if I should go right to work...whould i do better after a masters program. My focus is programming, but if i went for my masters it would be software engineering. So should I look for a programming job or take my GREs. Thanks for any wisdom, Nikki

[Greg Harris]

hi nikki. i am in the middle of my junior year, so i am in a similar situation... my college is starting a masters program in computer science next fall (just before i graduate) and i have been debating if i should stay or get into the working world and let my company pay the bill. i am 29 so i feel as if i should go ahead and start working.
the way i solved my problem was by deciding to get concurrent majors in computer science and mathematics. at my school it is only 6 or 7 more classes (2 semesters) so it is not a big deal. i think the mathematics degree will put me ahead of the rest when it comes to resume time.
you might want to check on getting a dual major or minor in mathematics as well... if i were to come back later they said it would be 12 classes instead of 6, so i am going to do it now. otherwise, if i were you, i would go ahead and get the masters while i had the momentum.

[Mapraputa Is]

I personally found education without prior working experience pretty useless. Get a programming job and then go for your Master.

[Janna Lockhart]

Agreed. Most schools won't even entertain the thought of admitting a Masters Student without work history and if your's will, you still would probably get a lot more out of your Masters after having worked for a while. I recommend getting a job and putting that knowledge to use.

[lusha tak]

Hi all!
Nikki has asked almost the same question i wanted to ask....
i am B.E. electrical & currently working on java related technologies with an IT company for the last one year. i cleared my scjp two weeks back.Now seeing the market conditions i am also thinking of pursuing further studies(MS computers)..giving GRE & stuff. But not very clear about it.many doubts are there in my mind..such as ...am i actually willing to go for this?? .where it will take me ?? what would be the future perspects after completing this ??
can anybody throw somelight??

[Sandra Lavigne]

yeah i recommend getting some job experience in your field.
in fact, find out if the program is available through correspondance or night classes so you can work while doing your schooling all at once. it's a bit of a challenge, but very rewarding, you'll be more likely to get hired if you're in the process of getting your degree