I apologize if this post is off-topic. I have been thinking about my academic future after I finish my BSCS degree. I know I should rather keep my mind on the present and concentrate on my current studies but I have a few questions that I believe are important for my future. I am a student at TUI on a CS degree path. I will finish sometime late next year I believe and what I am wondering is what are my chances of getting into a good MS(most likely CS) program at a respectable school. I have felt some negativity about my distance education from friends that believe that the brick and mortar school is far superior and more difficult. Basically they think I am getting an easy ride and that distance education in general is inferior. I tend to agree with them that distance education isn't as difficult as some brick and mortar schools, my only experience however are universities in my country(there are three) and they are all quite hard. Most of the people I have talked about this with usually believe that distance education is inferior(only my personal observation). My question is about my future and about how likely it is that I would get accepted into a relatively strong MS program at a respectable school based on a BSCS degree from TUI. For this question let's assume that my GPA from TUI is 4.0. Also could you give a comparison from other schools like Excelsior, COSC, etc, are the chances greater with those schools? I am just wondering what my chances will be after I finish my degree and whether you guys think I will get discriminated against in my pursuit for a further education once I graduate because of my distance education background, etc? Thanks a lot, Theodor Gislason
I assume TUI is The Union Institute. I doubt you will have a problem getting into a Masters program with a TUI BSCS. I did not have any trouble with my Excelsior (Regents/USNY) BS being accepted by both a state school and a private school. Re your friends: tell them that you are pursuing an accredited degree, and that today many universities , including very prestigous ones, offer distant learning degrees.
I can't speak for everyone, but I know several folks who went from largely exam-based Regents/Excelsior bachelor's degrees to J.D. programs; and when I looked into on-campus master's programs, I was given no indication that there would be any problems with my degree. (The chair of the Tulane University philosophy department was particularly kind and open-minded, as I recall.) Cheers,
I assume that your distance learning school is accredited (Union?). That being the case I don't believe that you'll have any problem getting into a good MSC program. Distance education has a bad reputation with many in the general public. I believe that this comes from the fact that most of the news and little knowledge that people have about distance learning involves degree mills. These degree mills have given distance learning a bad name in some people's minds because they associate distance learning with degree mills. Degree mills actually try to foster this misconception by trying to lead their customers into believing that credit for work/life experience, and even distance learning is not available at accredited schools. Hence the term "mail-order diploma", usually said with a disgusting scowl. Tell your friends that your school is fully accredited and that your degree will be considered comparable to any other accredited degree.
I would add.... I would add that almost nothing can be said about "distance education" that is true in every case, just like nothing said about "education" can be true in every case. Saying that "distance education is easier" and "regular education is harder" is like saying "business is a harder profession than law."
I was expecting this to be added, but so far it hasn't been. Getting admitted to graduate school depends as much (at least) on the applicant as the school. Let's face it. Some college graduates are NOT cut out for grad school regardless of where they went to school. The good news is that desire and drive have a lot to do in deciding who is cut out for grad school. Of course, the bad news is that neither 'Bob Smith' nor 'John Doe' may be ready for it. If you are a strong candidate and can articulate why you are, I think you will be fine. Tony FWIW
one clarification Hey, just to clarify one thing: TUI is Tourou University International and it is regionally accredited institution.
One of my concerns with going back to school through various delivery methods was the ability to go on to different schools. When I enrolled at Regents, I asked if it would be possible to get into Harvard with a degree from Regents and was told yes. I asked the same question when I enrolled at UoPhx. Now, there was no way I was going to go to Hah-vahd, but at least it was good to know I could- if I wanted to. I di dget into an AACSB program, and did quite well. So, keep your grades up, and do well on your GRE (if CS schools use that one), and you should do fine.
