4 ms·

I just graduated from WGU 2 days ago, after almost 20 years in the industry. I didn't rush through it was quickly - I finished in just under a year. I studied f

by suresk 4y ago

I just graduated from WGU 2 days ago, after almost 20 years in the industry. I didn't rush through it was quickly - I finished in just under a year. I studied finance my first time around in college and have tried to do a CS degree a few times since, but juggling a full-time job and now a family makes that tough. The flexibility the WGU program offered was honestly more important than the raw speed at which I could go through it. Some of it was stuff I knew really well and only spent an hour or two on, some of it was filler (I now have ITIL v4 and Project+ certifications that were annoying to get and mostly useless?), and some of it was new and interesting (Discrete Math, Computer Architecture, etc..). Overall, it didn't feel like markedly different curriculum from the in-person courses I took at other schools. Aside from a few terrible classes (the AI course is just a horrendous waste of time), most of them were decent and I felt like I learned something from them. The overall curriculum is a little odd and probably not ideal for someone who has little programming experience. For example, the very first "scripting and programming" course uses C++ to build a simple command-line application, but then you never do anything with C++ again. What is the point of that? I understand how C++ can be useful in a learning context, but I don't think a brief introduction to it really does any good. Two of the biggest courses are big JavaFX projects, which ughh.. fine, but I think there are probably more useful things to teach. I understand that a CS degree is more about theory than getting job-related skills, but a few of the decisions made serve neither very well. So if I had one knock on the program, it is that someone who comes in with little programming experience is probably going to come out of it without having written much code that resembles what they'd be doing in a job. Overall, it was a really good experience and it feels good to finally finish up after all these years. I am currently applying for the Georgia Tech OMSCS program, which is a common route for WGU graduates. That one is fairly rigorous and cannot be sped through, so looking at several more years for that, but at the end of it all, a BS + MS in Computer Science in around 5 years and under $20k total seems like a decent result?

triyambakam 4y ago
Can you share more of your reasoning behind getting the degree after so long in the industry?
- AviationAtom 4y ago
  I know in my field (Information Security) it ends up being a check the box. Having it sets you apart from those that don't.
- suresk 4y ago
  That's a good question, given that it hasn't been a huge deal so far in my career. Two things: First, I realized I wanted to dig deeper into CS topics. I love this field more every year I am in it and wanted to round out my knowledge in some areas. Getting a master's degree and the courses that are part of that seemed like a good way to accomplish that - I've taught myself a lot over the years, but that route leaves some areas untouched. You don't always know what you don't know, plus having deadlines, goals, etc helps keep me on task even when something feels like it isn't immediately relevant. So, getting a BS was the first step in that goal. Second, as I progress more through my career, there are some interesting positions that require, or at least favor, some kind of degree. I feel like having one or both gives me more options and flexibility.

by suresk 4y ago

triyambakam 4y ago

Can you share more of your reasoning behind getting the degree after so long in the industry?

AviationAtom 4y ago
I know in my field (Information Security) it ends up being a check the box. Having it sets you apart from those that don't.
suresk 4y ago
That's a good question, given that it hasn't been a huge deal so far in my career. Two things: First, I realized I wanted to dig deeper into CS topics. I love this field more every year I am in it and wanted to round out my knowledge in some areas. Getting a master's degree and the courses that are part of that seemed like a good way to accomplish that - I've taught myself a lot over the years, but that route leaves some areas untouched. You don't always know what you don't know, plus having deadlines, goals, etc helps keep me on task even when something feels like it isn't immediately relevant. So, getting a BS was the first step in that goal. Second, as I progress more through my career, there are some interesting positions that require, or at least favor, some kind of degree. I feel like having one or both gives me more options and flexibility.