I'm thinking about getting my master's of CS (no thesis) and probably doing it distance ed, 1 or 2 classes at a time. I did EE/CPE undergrad and now I don't feel like a real programmer. I have no interest in staying in academia long term (thus no thesis), but I always enjoyed the coursework.

Questions:
-Is MCS generally worth the time/money?
-Letters of recommendation. I'm kind of horrified by the thought of asking professors who barely knew me 3 years ago for these. Is it really that bad? Can I use someone like a supervisor to supplement?
-Within the courses I can select from, does it matter which ones I take? I felt like I took a bunch of random ECE courses with no real direction in undergrad.

[dumb question] I have the understanding that I can get up to 12 credit hours without actually applying to a program. Would it be a bad idea for me to take a few classes like this first... maybe it would make it easier to get the letters?

[Edited on February 28, 2011 at 10:03 AM. Reason : asdfasdfsadf]

2/28/2011 10:00:29 AM

yeah

2/28/2011 7:36:55 PM

Quote :

"-Letters of recommendation. I'm kind of horrified by the thought of asking professors who barely knew me 3 years ago for these. Is it really that bad? Can I use someone like a supervisor to supplement?"

I can tell you that a lot of people in ECE get recommendations from people who aren't their instructors.

2/28/2011 9:44:02 PM

Couple of notes for this program in particular:

* Make sure you have satisfied the undergraduate pre-reqs. There is a list on the website of the math and CSC courses you need. If you lack any of them, take them distance as a PBS student. This has to be done before applying.

* They usually like to have one letter from a supervisor, and the other two academic, preferably in the subject you are applying for. If you have to take any PBS courses to satisfy pre-reqs, this can be easily accomplished if you get to know your professors.

* For the non-thesis, you can take almost anything you like, provided it is CSC 5xx/7xx level. The website gives specific guidance, for example that a certain amount must come from "core" classes, the rest elective.

* GRE score is important. The math score should be high, the verbal really doesn't matter.


Talk to the DGP for Computer Science before doing anything. These guys have huge discretion in admissions and etc.

Hope this helps...

3/8/2011 2:06:16 PM