Hi, I'm a self employed UK computer consultant/software engineer. I am considering my future employment. Employers for a lot of the jobs/contracts I look at seem to require a degree, so, this is what I want to obtain to give me some options in the future. Looking through this site and some others, it seems that most of the offerings are US based. This does not bother me, as I have/am quite prepared to work in the US anyway. I guess as long as it is a properly accredited organisation, this won't matter? I don't have any formal school qualifications. I decided to go straight into the career I always wanted as I already had a perfect job offer. A mistake! With regards to relevant experience, I have spent the last 10 years running my own IT business (does this count for anything?), and a couple of MCP exams under my belt. I know I can probably get a couple of points for the MCP's. I live on an island with no way to take conventional exams (or MS exams) without traveling to the mainland. This is both expensive, and with running my own business, very difficult. What I am looking for is some pointers to legitimate educational establishments that will a) perhaps take into consideration some of my 'life-experience' b) able to complete the entire course on-line c) properly recognised (Regionally Accredited?) There are so many organisations on the web offering this, but perhaps some of you could recommend some organisations/paths that will help me in the most efficient manner? Thanks for any advice. Paul
From a UK perspective your best options are either the Open University or London University External Degree Programme. Both of these will enable you to complete a BSc studying entirely at home. Both would require you to do a few exams at some suitable centre. For OU this would be one or two exams each year in October. Both will take about six years to get a BSc. Neither will give credit for "life experience". You will need to investigate what you could get for your other certifications. Malcolm S Jenner
Paul, What exactly are you looking for the degree to provide? Are you looking at this to make yourself more attractive to a prospective employer? If so, you may not need a degree in Information Technology. Given your previous experience, you may want to take a business degree or perhaps even an Arts degree... Economics or something like that. What you plan to do from a qualification perspective has a great deal to do with what the qualification is going to be used for... In my opinion education is about the outcomes. What is the knowledge you want to gain? In the IT field, first degrees range from Management Information Systems (business uses for computers) to pretty deep engineering specialties like Scientific Computing and Financial Engineering (usually a post graduate degree in the US). Give the group a better idea of what you want to accomplish and I bet you will get a wealth of good and actionable advice. John
Thanks for the replies. I personally don't think a degree in IT will give me a better ability to do my job. Several of my friends have degrees, some in IT, and I am way beyond their capabilities. In my field anyway. I've never believed that a degree beats good experience and an intelligent person, but on the other hand, with a degree/MSCE, I would be able to backup my experience to employers with a piece of paper. It's employers I would be trying to impress. Many of the positions I've looked at state that they require a person with a degree for that position. The degree is often not job specific so I imagine it could be a degree in almost anything. I think that having a degree will open up a lot more possibilities for me. I will use any qualification I get to simply backup up what I say I can already do. I have the experience. With paper to back that up, I should be much more attractive to employers. I guess I'm really looking for the most efficient way for me to gain the title.
Paul, Aside from the title, perhaps a different approach might work if you are in a current job search. Trying to attract employers on one's own with a résumé can prove fairly futile with the overall downturn going on in the tech sector right now. There is a great deal of competition for positions at the moment -- people with and without degrees are readily available. You may want to contact some of the better recruiting firms who might be willing to sponsor you and your credentials into companies doing formal searches. These firms specialize in screening candidates carefully and they can help you successfully get in front of the right decision makers whether or not you have a degree. Another pitfall to be careful of is companies that place ads for positions without any intent of hiring now or ever. This is done for a many reasons: testing the market price of people on the street, creating a pipeline of possible candidates, and satisfying statutory requirements regarding equal employment opportunity. This is all the more reason to work with a third party recruiter. John
Hi, Paul. Given your experience, it may be advisable for you to seek direct entry into a UK master's program. If I understand correctly, this is fairly common practice in the UK, for "older" individuals with significant experience. In the US having a master's without a bachelor's would probably raise eyebrows, but if it's not looked down upon in the UK then it would seem like a good option for you. Honestly, I really don't know if it is considered normal in the UK for people to obtain a master's without an undergraduate degree, I just know that people from the UK have mentioned it, and I've seen that option when investigating UK schools. I believe people have stated that most UK schools offer this option (direct entry into a master's program), but do not advertise it. This is mostly secondhand information, and is just from memory (I haven't done anything to verify it), so I apologize if it's inaccurate. However, it seems that it would at least be worth investigating the possibility by contacting some UK schools that offer distance programs.
Paul, most likely the Open University would be one of the best choices for You. http://www3.open.ac.uk/courses/bin/p12.dll?Q02F05_computing They have a MSc in Computing for Commerce and Industry. No formal entry requirements and well respected. Good luck
Thanks. This looks good. Online, no entry requirements, and reasonably short time to completion. Many thanks for pointing this one out to me. I'd looked over some of the OU courses but not seen this one. Paul
Within that programme there is also now an MSc in Software Development. That requires courses chosen from a more restricted list than the general MSc in CCI and must be completed within a limited time frame. Malcolm S Jenner
