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General questions of UOP

Last post 08-06-2009, 11:13 AM by SteveFoerster. 2 replies.
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  •  08-05-2009, 2:14 AM 22746

    General questions of UOP

    I'm currently attending UOP and am curious what type of careers can an individual apply for if they obtain the BSIT degree? I highly doubt BS-IT degree is equivalent to a CS degree because IT does not even touch the depth of programming and logic that CS does.

     Several companies require that you have a BS in Computer Science or Engineering when applying. So what other options are there?

     Bear in mind, I've worked in the IT industry for over 10 years and the majority of the jobs require your degree to be in Computer Science or Engineering, not IT. 

  •  08-05-2009, 9:24 AM 22753 in reply to 22746

    Re: General questions of UOP

    Well since you've worked in IT for 10 years you should already somewhat know the answer.  IT as an industry generally breaks into 3 specializations, managerial, technical and administrative.

    Managerial is as the name would imply, concerned with planning, project management, funding, connecting business needs to technical solutions, etc.  Namely the "business" of IT and anything and everything that would generally imply.  In other words the money, direction, strategy, etc. comes from this crowd.  From my experience a good "technical" person generally does not mean squat when it comes to them being a good manager or personnel, resources or in business needs.

     

    Technical is where the engineers and CS people come in to play.  These are the people who make the widgets, create a product or bring something online.  These people are the "builders" and generally have a depth of knowledge within a very specific technology or set of technologies.  These people are necassary and valuable to the field, but they are also very much a business "asset" and will depreciate as such.  When a business needs them, they need them yesterday and are willing to pay to get them.  When they've done the work they need, these people often find themselves to be pink slip fodder as they cost a lot to keep on staff.  Most engineers I know change jobs regularly or are working on some type of contract where the work flow never ends, such as government work.  One techie told me once, when you get comfortable with your job start interviewing for a new one.  He was implying that staying in one place too long will cause you to stagnate and lose marketability, he was right.

     

    Lastly there is the admin crowd, these people do everything from maintain databases, back up servers to budgets and accounting work.  Basically everything it takes to keep a technical infrastructure operating.  These are everything from your help desk support to your analysts.  Often this line is blurred with managerial but generally anyone who works in IT who is not building something or managing something would fall into this category. 


    So your BSIT would work nicely to fill two of the three roles listed above.  Make sense? 

  •  08-06-2009, 11:13 AM 22776 in reply to 22746

    Re: General questions of UOP

    It depends on what is covered by the coursework of your BSIT program, and I'm not familiar with yours.  I agree that most don't get into programming the way that Computer Science does, but some of them are reasonably strong with system administration or computer networking.

    If you're interested in programming, ask whether there are electives available that can get you started with it.  Getting a job as a programmer, even now, is largely based on what you can demonstrate that you can do rather than what your credentials are.  It's a delightfully meritocratic field....

    -=Steve=-


    B.S., Info Sys, Charter Oak State College
    M.A., Educational Tech Leadership, George Washington University
    Doctor of Health Education, A.T. Still University, in progress
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