CS Degree vs. MIS Degree

[Rick]

I got into a discussion with a friend of mine tonight at dinner about a computer sci. degree vs. a MIS degree. He has a BS in CS and makes pretty good money (I'd say around the 50k range). He was telling me that a MIS degree right now is pretty much worthless. He says it is hard to get a job with a MIS degree, and if you do land a job the starting pay isn't very good (30k if you are lucky). What are your opinions on this subject? I am thinking about switching my major to CS from MIS. Though I will only have about 27 credits or so that will count towards a CS degree.

[quwiltw]

Of course this depends on what you want to do, but I think an MIS degree with a minor in CS is a good idea. That way you've got enough CS courses so that you can intelligently talk about complex data structures and solving complex problems, but you've also got the business foundation for when/if you decide you'd like to move into project management. The CS courses beyond the minor are so specific (and usually low-level) that you'll likely never use them anyway. For example, I ask people to program against a database, not program a database; I ask people to use a compiler to compile their code, not write the compiler. You get the point. I think that these courses are interesting but few people reallly get to solve these sorts of problems. By getting a minor in CS you get to learn some advanced data structures and algorithms that may prove useful.

[Rick]

Of course this depends on what you want to do, but I think an MIS degree with a minor in CS is a good idea. That way you've got enough CS courses so that you can intelligently talk about complex data structures and solving complex problems, but you've also got the business foundation for when/if you decide you'd like to move into project management. The CS courses beyond the minor are so specific (and usually low-level) that you'll likely never use them anyway. For example, I ask people to program against a database, not program a database; I ask people to use a compiler to compile their code, not write the compiler. You get the point. I think that these courses are interesting but few people reallly get to solve these sorts of problems. By getting a minor in CS you get to learn some advanced data structures and algorithms that may prove useful.

 

I will look into what I need for a CS minor.

 

Thanks for the response.

[Codeless]

He has a BS in CS and makes pretty good money (I'd say around the 50k range). He was telling me that a MIS degree right now is pretty much worthless. He says it is hard to get a job with a MIS degree, and if you do land a job the starting pay isn't very good (30k if you are lucky).

 

Just curious, is 50k good? How many years in the workforce does this person have? The only reason I ask is that I have neither an MIS or CS. I have a mechanical engineering degree, but tons of experience with programming, and am pretty much oblivious to those markets, and I am currently trying to decide which way to go. (programming or mech engr, that is):p

[Nerseus]

If I might add my $0.02, I'd go with whatever degree you're most interested in. If that's money, do some research to find what each job is paying. Hopefully the money isn't more than 50% of your job choice though :)

 

As for the range in developer salaries, it varies (of course).

 

Government pays the least but has best benefits (vacation, never more than 40 hours/week). You're probably looking at $20k - $30k for entry level (just a guess). Otherwise you'll probably be a tad higher, maybe $25k - $35k. If you have 2 or 3 years experience, your salary could jump significantly, depending on what you pick up (experience, experience, experience). A jump from $25k to $40k after 3 years isn't out the question for instance. At 6 or 8 years, you could be looking at $60k or $70k, then again maybe just $45k. A lot depends on the company (type of work, size, etc.).

 

Another big factor is location - California can make about 80% more so your $25k is closer to $35k or $40. But try to live on $35k in California where a studio apartment is $1800/month and you have to wait 6 months for one to open up...

 

I can't speak for MIS degrees, but I know that Business Analysts and Project managers tend to make less in the beginning than developers. If you're good (and there are surprisingly few ones, that I've seen), you could jump MUCH higher. The really high salary comes from contract work, for both MIS and Developers. It's not as stable, but could easily pay $50/hr or more which comes out to $70k or more in salary... (you have to buy your own health insurance, and you may only work on each job for 3 to 6 months).

 

-Nerseus

[Nerseus]

Here's a link I just found by accident. It reports on average salaries for jobs in a particular region. I'm not sure about your area, but it seems to be roughly on target for my area (they give fairly wide ranges, but the average looks about right).

 

http://salary.hotjobs.com/

 

-Nerseus