Hi, I have being checking for schools that offer a bachelor degree in Information Technology. The two I found I like are UMass Lowell and Baker College. I want to ask for advice from people that have taken a degree from this two schools, from what I see both have very similar programs so I really have no idea to which one to choose. By the way I have a bachelor in Economics and a Master in Business so I expect that they will transfer a lot of credits. Any advice will be helpful. Thanks
UMass Lowell Hey Quito60 I am in the middle of UMass, Lowell's, graduate certificate in the Foundations of Business and am extremely satisfied. I plan on getting an MBA, but I am not sure where. The reason I chose this certificate is that I do not have a business undergrad and most of the MBA programs I was looking at required 4 to 6 classes of foundation coursework before beginning the actual MBA courses. I figured I might as well save some money and get a cert that I can put on my resume after 6 classes instead of 16. Plus, it should open up more options for me as far as getting into the better online MBA programs out there, provided I do really well. So far, I have taken 3 out of 6 classes and gotten A's in all 3. I study my butt off, though, so don't think these will be cake classes. I have learned more in these classes than any other classes I have taken anywhere. In order to succeed, you will have to have the discipline to study alot. I have read all the books all the way through and the coursework has been challenging, but in a way that has really fascilitated my learning and understanding of the subjects. The school's delivery design is very simple and reliable and I can't see how it could be improved. Are there weaknesses? Yes. My program consists of 6 classes that are 8-weeks long each. A full semester at the school is 16 weeks, so I figured I could take 2 classes each 8 week term and be done with the cert in a semester and a half. Not so. Most of the classes were offered the first 8-week term but not the second. That was a huge downfall in the program because it effectively negated the benefit of offering 8-week classes. In essence, even though I completed the class in 8 weeks, it still took 16 weeks before I could take the next classes...does that make sense? I was angry when I first found out about that (when I tried to register for my second set of classes!) but have since accepted it. It will now take me 10 months to get the cert. The IT program you are looking at may offer 8-week classes. If so, make sure you understand that your scheduling of classes may not fit with theirs. Get the schedule ahead of time, as much as possible. I highly recommend the UMass Lowell program. I have never been to Lowell or Andover, but the towns look really nice and I hear the campus is nice enough. Not that its important, but I will visit the school someday and I hope it isn't a dump. UMass Amherst has a nice program, but the campus looks like a parking garage...how can I be proud of that? Still may go Amherst, though for the MBA. Scotty
Why not get a masters instead? Look at Virginia Tech's Master of Information Technology or East Carolina University's MS in Industrial Technology (some IT concentrations), both are 100% online. Why get another Bachelor degree when you already have a solid one in Economics? That wouldn't be.... well, economical . IMO a masters in IT will carry more wieght than a BS, plus the prereqs for masters in IT do not include a bachelor in IT. Just my two cents. Good luck with whatever you decide! Heres the links: East Carolina List of Online Programs Virginia Tech Master of Information Technology
Hello Quito, I'm a recent grad of the UML program which I give rave reviews. I switched from the UMUC BSCIS program which proved to be an excellent decision. I found the faculty to be well-informed and very accessible. I rarely waited more than overnight for a reply to my queries. Like you, I have a graduate degree (in my case PhD psychologist) and the university was remarkably generous in offering transfer credit for decades old coursework. If you encounter any difficulties contact Steve Tello; a great advocate. If you're at all like me -- a real newbie w/ little IT background -- you should be aware of a dynamic I encountered in all three online IT schools I attended. Many of your classmates will be gifted IT types who skipped undergrad to go directly into the workforce. Some years out, upon discovering the lack of a degree to be a problem, they turn to DL. In many cases these folk could teach the course and are for all intents and purposes (as one of my instructors so aptly said) "ringers." It can make the playing field pretty steep. But don't let this intimidate. As another poster said you have the option of doing a bridge MS program which is certainly a legitimate route. I elected to start from the ground up which worked well for me. Feel free to PM me if you need more info. David
