Thoughts on degree to persue

[FaceMouth]

Hello,

I'm just wondering if anybody has any thoughts on which degree would be better, computer science or computer engineering. I am mainly concerned with availability of jobs. Where I live doesn't really have much impact on my decision either (staying in the US though).

The engineering program has a lot more math, of course, but I don't think this will be too much problem for me. I'm just curious what people working in the computer industry think, what they see as far as who gets hired for different jobs.

I'm leaning a little more towards engineering right now, seems to be a more "anal retentive" field. I was an IT major, but I'm just not feeling that so much. Also, I'm only in my first year so whichever way I go will not affect me as far as having to take extra classes.

Lastly, and least important, which field pays the most? I'm not really concerned with money, I just want to work on computers and get paid for it.

[ripken204]

i have the same exact question, im very good at math too.

[suryad]

What math have you taken so far?

[ripken204]

well i dont want to steal this thread but maybe you can help both of us at once. by the end of high school i will taken statistics, calculus, trig, geometry...

[FaceMouth]

I'm in College algebra right now. This is not what I meant to discuss in this thread though.

I'm curious about people's opinions on availability of jobs between the two different degrees.

Edited October 24, 2005 by FaceMouth

[TheFlash428]

From my experiences, what you study in college (while it definately helps you prepare for a career in any field), rarely dictates what you will actually end up doing once you leave school.

It's hard for me to answer your question because although I am currently a network engineer, I studied biology in college. Remember, it's not always what you know, but who you know.

My advice, look over the courses required for each program and choose based on which one fits your interests and skills, as no one wants to be bored or feel like they're in over thier head. While many academic counselors would try to have you believe otherwise--the major you choose now does not necessary establish the path of your professional career for the rest of your life. A degree will give you the basic knowledge you need to seek a job in the field of your choosing, but most of your skills are usually learned through experience and on the job training; if you work hard and are good at what you do, opportunities for advancement will always be available (or so is my way of thinking).

[FaceMouth]

Hey Flash,

I've tried to write this post 3 times now but can't get it to sound quite right. I don't want to respond in a way that sounds rude, or makes me appear as a someone who thinks they know everything. In a blunt sentence, to keep myself from babbling too much, I know everything you are talking about. I was in the army for a while and got out about a year ago because I love computers. Computers are probably a worse addiction than crack, I have to know every thing about them .

I see why you responded the way you did, looking back at my original post. There is definetely no black and white answer to my question, especially with jobs in fields like computers, engineering, or anything that requires a lot of abstract thinking. At the same time there are trends as to who employers hire based on their education. I know I'm not going to graduate and the next day see an ad in the paper for a company looking to hire a computer scientist . (bad pun intented)

While there is no definete answer I would just like to hear what real people think, rather than just reading through statistics and national averages. I'm not looking to be influenced by opinions, just curious since I have never worked in any type of computer field before.

thanks again for the reply. I like what you said about advisors. I don't talk to mine anymore because she is always talking down to me and trying to tell me what I should major in. I only go see her to register for classes or take care of other mundane tasks which require her presence.

Here's a good quote I read somewhere, I think it fits perfectly as a way to describe formal education:

"I learn despite my education"

It should be mandatory for schools to have this posted in every classroom.

[I_Broke_My_MHZ]

The three most related courses involving computers are computer science, computer engineering and electrical engineering. Electrical Engineers are more hardware oriented, computer scientists work more with software, computer engineers sit in the middle.

[TheFlash428]

In that case, if you are just looking for a flat recommendation, I would say computer engineering.

But I still sticking with my statement that you should study what interests you. The jobs and $ will come (although some cities/parts of the country may be more bountiful with jobs than others--but that is a completely different subject) as long as you can prove that you know what you're doing and do a good job at it.

I have a similar love of computers, including the desire to learn every thing I possibly can about them. Your personal quest for knowlegde will probably have you searching for the answers to everthing from the engineering to the science of computers (whatever that really means). But I do find that those with that kind of passion (and since you said you do not fear the math) are a better fit for the engineering program.

I hope this was more of the answer you were looking for.

[suryad]

Seems like engineering is the way for you to go just like Flash said. I just graduated with my BS in Comp Sci this year and just took the java programmer cert from sun.

I think there will be a demand for both hardware and software in the future because of cryptography, bioinformatics and data mining, and of course the gaming industry. Movies are getting boring for a lot of people and that is why we can see their sales dropping....people are moving more towards electronic gizmos and computers are prob the most complicated of them all.

People are still figuring out how to build the fastest processors, fastest hard drives and so on.....and writing software to take advantage of all the given hardware I would say is the msot difficult task. Becuase with the higher languages that are coming out for computer programming, programmers have to deal with a lot of abstraction and all these layers distance the code from assembly code and that results in inefficient code. Sure we would see massively faster apps if everything was written in C and assembly....but that is not possible.....so compiler development is quite important.

What I am trying to say is there are a lot of jobs in both CE and CS. Its just for you to decide whether hardware stirs you or whether writing software that takes advantage of the last bit of processor power is what you wanna do.

[FaceMouth]

Thanks again for the replies.

I will probably end up going in engineering, I've been leaning that way for a while. I still have another few semesters before I really need to be decisive. I started this thread after doing a bit of research about the job market. There was a dearptment of labor report that showed a higher percentage of jobs available for people holding computer science degrees compared to computer engineering. It just got me wondering, and it's always good to find out as much as you can about something.

Flash, it seems like we think alike about a lot of things.

TheFlash428 Posted Yesterday, 07:12 AM

In that case, if you are just looking for a flat recommendation, I would say computer engineering.

But I still sticking with my statement that you should study what interests you. The jobs and $ will come (although some cities/parts of the country may be more bountiful with jobs than others--but that is a completely different subject) as long as you can prove that you know what you're doing and do a good job at it.

I'm definetely going where my interests lie. I'd rather have a job I love and make $40,00 a year than a job I hated that paid me a million bucks a year. There are so many people in the military that stay in just because they get a pay check every month. They just complain about everything and tell people that are getting out that they will end up working at McDonalds.

[amd64]

ok here is my 2 bits worth.... after getting an hnd and ccna from college i went straight into 3rd year at uni doing a Bsc in networking (never realy enjoyed that so i droped out).... i went back coz i couldent get a job and was board so i'm currently at a uni in scotland doing a Beng, in embedded computer systems... i have a lot of friends in the computer industry.. and they all say .... get urself a good grounding in basic computer skills doesent realy matter what field coz ur gonna go from job to job in this industry.. so you end up doing something completley different from your degree. but where the big bucks are is in .. project managment ... cisco ... and database administration.

just my opinion...

but ur future is your own so do what you think is best... but it helps to get others opinions.

education is fundamental to econamy ... without education econamy will colapse.

please excuse the typo but i'm dyslexic....

[Mikep7779]

Fall 2006 i will be starting my engineering major aswell.