Hey...just wondering if anybody had any input on what route would be best for me to take. I enjoy programming and computer science, however would like to keep options open for other things than just programmer, such as things on the business side. I'm trying to determine the best major/minor combination for me before I get too far in my undergrad career. I am currently in the CIS program, however I have been hearing people say it's not as respected and you wont get as far in terms of salary/advancement possibilities. My other option would be to switch to the CS program, and have a minor in Business Administration. Any idea of what would be best? Thanks!
steve91 0 Newbie Poster
knights68 0 Newbie Poster
Hey...just wondering if anybody had any input on what route would be best for me to take. I enjoy programming and computer science, however would like to keep options open for other things than just programmer, such as things on the business side. I'm trying to determine the best major/minor combination for me before I get too far in my undergrad career. I am currently in the CIS program, however I have been hearing people say it's not as respected and you wont get as far in terms of salary/advancement possibilities. My other option would be to switch to the CS program, and have a minor in Business Administration. Any idea of what would be best? Thanks!
Not sure if you already got your answer, but I thought I'd give this a go.
I am in the same spot, wondering which degree would be better to go for. I was originally leaning towards a CS degree, but after conferring with a few corporate IT guys from IBM, Duke and a few other spots, I gotta say that I am more interested in going for a CIS degree.
Now you mentioned you like the programming aspects, so perhaps as you considered, a degree in CS, with a minor in CIS would be the way to go. Business-wise (because I am going to be in business for myself) CIS is the way to go. As far as which field gets more respect, depends on what fields and groups of people you are in or around.
CIS is more business oriented I suppose, where you can have your own business, do your own computer IT things and the sort or get into a corporation easier. Of course the pay is not as great as with a CS degree, but then again, nowadays, degrees are practically a dime a dozzen and corporations will appreciate the degree, but will then ask.... "what else ya got?"
Take all of this with a grain of salt. Do your research, ask questions just as you are doing. The answer will come to you quick enough.
johann_2 0 Newbie Poster
I can provide a little bit of real world experience as I have a MIS degree (pretty much the same thing as a CIS degree) and am currently working on a second bachelors in CS. If you're wanting to get into the network / admin side of things a CIS degree would provide an easier path than CS. Just make sure that you get your certs as well. You may or may not start off making less money but within a few years your salary will be more reflective of how well you do on the job than what your degree is in.
With that being said, for anything else that you would want to do in the tech world a CS degree is probably the better option. If you're wanting to get into software development definitely go for CS as a CIS will not give you the base level skills that the trade requires. Plus, the math, logic, and problem solving skills that are taught with a CS degree are far more valuable in terms of coming up with creative solutions to challenging business problems in the real world than the handful of marketing/finance/accounting classes you take with a CIS degree. If you feel that you need to beef up on business skills once you get into the workplace you can always go back and get an MBA and the coursework won't seem near as difficult as the coursework that you went through for your undergrad. As with most things, the path the requires the most challenge typically reaps the most rewards.
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