Topic: What is CS, IT, the difference and the career path?
Computer Science (CS) is about using mathematics to program software/systems to run more efficiently, including in design and development.
Information Technology (IT) careers are more about utilizing, installing, maintaining, and improving software, computer systems, operating networks, and databases.
Both degrees require strong logical-thinking and problem-solving skills, self-study, and patient.
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Topic: What courses should CS/IT freshmen take at Kean?
Step 1: Take a look at the CS/IT Academic Guide Sheet Packethere. The School of Computer Science & Technology (SCST) at Kean offers 9 undergraduate Options (degrees) and one Master's degree.
Understand the academic program guide sheet, course flow, prerequisites of the required courses, and course schedule for your degree.
Step 2: Take a look at the first-year study plan templateshere.
Your first-year study plan should be based on your first math course and major at Kean.
Step 3: Decide the major-related courses (ID 1400, TECH 1010, CPS 1231, CPS 2231) you should take for the first semester based on your first math course at Kean.
Math 0901 & CS or IT major, take GE courses.
Math 0901/1000 & IT major, take ID 1400.
Math 1000 & IT major, TECH 1010, ID 1400.
Math 1054 & IT major, take TECH 1010 and CPS 1231.
Math 0901/1000 & CS major, take ID 1400, TECH 1010.
Math 1000 & CS major, ID 1400, NO TECH 1010.
Math 1054 or 2415 & CS major, take CPS 1231 and Lab Science I.
Step 4: Make necessary adjustments to your first-year study plan and register for courses on KeanWISE
Take a look at the CS/IT Academic Guide Sheet Packethere, and understand the followings:
The academic program guide sheet of your major - It has 4 key sections:
General Education (GE): Foundation Requirements, Humanities, Social Sciences, Science and Mathematics
Additional required courses: Math, CPS or TECH courses, ENG 3091, MGS 2030 (IT), Communications, etc
Academic Major: major Core, Major Concentration, Major Electives.
Free Electives: Any non-major courses. You need to take more than half of the free elective credits in 3xxx or higher-level courses.
Course flow - The flow chart shows the course sequence you should take in each year/semester.
Prerequisites of the required courses - You must complete the prerequisites first before you should take that course. For example, you need to pass CPS 1231 to take CPS 2231. Some courses might have 2 prerequisites. All the CPS/TECH courses have prerequisites, except TECH 1010.
Course schedule of CPS and TECH courses - Most of the 3xxx and 4xxx CPS/TECH courses are only available once a year. If you miss it, you might need to wait for one year.
Explore your interests and decide your major as early as possible. Students might want to change majors. It is better to make the decision before taking the Data Structures - CPS 2232 (CS) or 2240 (IT). After Data Structures, students will need to take the Major Core, Major Concentration, or Major Electives. If you decide to change your major from CS to IT, you will need to take TECH 1010 and TECH 1505. So, if you are not sure what major you want to pursue in freshman year, you should take TECH 1010 in the first or 2nd semester. TECH 1010 will become a free elective if you decide to major in CS.
JoinACM, ACM-W, National Cybersecurity. They are student clubs for CS/IT students. There are many activities for you to attend. It is a great opportunity to explore new technology and meet other CS/IT students for networking. Please consider to become an officer in sophomore and junior years. Companies are looking for leadership skills.
Explore the horizon and taste different areas by taking interesting courses, not just to fit your schedule.
Pay attention to the department emails and participate in the speech, career related workshop.
Join Kean SCST Slack,download/install Handshake App for internship and full-time job, download/install Suitable App for Cougar Pathway.
Start working on the assignments ASAP. Study hard and seek help earlier from the instructor, classmates, or SI (CPS 1231, 2231) and Code Samurai if you need help on other CPS/TECH/ID 1400 courses. Do NOT wait until the last minutes.
Time management - In addition to the study, you might need to work, have some personal/family issues, interviews, run student clubs, etc. You will need to manage your time very well. Study and do the assignments as early as possible. Do not wait!
Do NOT overload yourself. . For example, if you work part-time for 10-20 hours a week, you should take only 4-5 courses/semester. If you work full-time (35 hours or more), you should take only 2 courses a semester. You should spend at least 10 hours/week on a 3 credit course, and 12 hours on a 4 credit course. If your GPA is below 3.0, you should NOT take more than 18 credits/semester. A good GPA is very important to find an internship and a full-time job.
Do NOT cheat! Do NOT copy programs from your friends. It won't help you at all. Don't forget why you come to study at Kean - learn something to have a better career.
Keep in touch with your CS faculty advisor. Every CS/IT student has a SCST faculty advisor assigned. If you are not sure which courses to take, you want to change your study plan, or you are confused about the career/major, you should talk to your SCST faculty advisor.
Next summer internships are open in August. Build and polish resume in the spring semester.
Identify the positions they might be interested in through monster.com, indeed.com, glassdoor.com, know what skills the positions are required, and take the corresponding courses or self-study during the semester. Some industrial required skills and knowledge are not offered in colleges. Self-study and problem-solving skills are important skills companies are looking for.
Topic: Graduate study, Master's degree?
Is a Master's degree worth it? According to this article, the average annual master's in computer science salary is $102,039 vs a bachelor's degree in computer science earns an average yearly salary of $84,925. That is a $17,114/year difference.
The School of Computer Science & Technology offers the following programs related to the Master's degree:
M.S. Computer Information System (CIS)
5-year B.S. CS/MS CIS
5-year B.S. IT/MS CIS
5-year programs are for students who are interested in learning advanced topics and polish their CS skills.. A GPA 3.0 and above is required for admission, or GPA 2.8 - 3.0 with good grades (B+ and above) in CPS/TECH 2xxx/3xxx courses.
Students should contact Dr. Jing-Chiou Liou for applying for the CIS Master's program, 5-year programs, an taking any graduating courses.
Check this job related page to know different job functions in CS/IT, salary, resume, interview, etc career-related topics
Think about what to put on your resume earlier - projects, research, leadership, etc.
Think about why employers should give you an interview opportunity and hire you.
Search your dream jobs at Monster.com you might be interested in and see what skills are required.
You might need to study and prepare for these positions for more than one year in advance. Many applications of internship/full-job positions open from August for the next June/summer. For example, if you are looking for an internship/full-time job in June/summer 2022, you should submit your application by September 2021. That means the projects/required skills should show on your resume before August 2021. So, you will need to work on that project/skills from January 2021 or earlier.
Practice! Practice! Practice! Polish your resume, prepare the technical and behavioral interviews, do mock interviews with your friends.
If you want to be a software developer (software engineer), you should master at least one computer language (Java, JavaScript, Python, C++, C, C#, PHP), do at least 50 code challenge questions on Leetcode. You should take several programming courses for the major electives.
If you want to be a database developer, you should be very good at database design, SQL, stored routines, NoSQL, database API, and a language (Java, Python, PHP, C#, etc) that can interact with the database. You should take database and programming related courses for the major electives.
If you want to be a web developer, you should be good at HTML, CSS, JavaScript, Ajax, PHP, database, Node.js, or other web frameworks. You can take web-related courses for the major electives.
If you want to do project management, you should be a club leader and learn how to communicate, coordinate, and lead a team. You should also take some communication and management courses for the major electives and free electives.
If you want to be an analyst, you should explore the specific fields and take some related major elective courses. For example, if you want to be a cybersecurity analyst, you should take CPS/TECH 3498, CPS 4498, etc. If you want to be data analytics, you should take CPS/TECH 3740, CPS 4721, Math 3700, etc.
You should send/submit at least 50 internship/job applications within 2-3 weeks so you can schedule all interviews within 1-2 months, and receive/compare offers.
Build networking and communication skills - Become a Code Samurai, be an officer/speaker in clubs, keep good relationships with your classmates, attend conferences and professional events, etc. You need to be active, not waiting for people to reach you.
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