I’m a high school senior admitted to Cal Poly SLO for Biomedical engineering. I can’t decide if I should do Bmed or CS. I am super interested in both, and after looking at Cal Poly’s graduate survey for the past few years it doesn’t look like either major has trouble finding jobs. Any thoughts or insights on the strength of the programs at SLO or the difficulty in finding a job afterwards would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!
The good news is you can’t even initiate the process until you have a quarter under your belt. You will be in the trenches so to speak where you can speak to your dorm mates, RAs, advisers and instructors and get much better information than you would on CC.
Personally, I’d consider two things. Job advancement in BME isn’t very good without a graduate degree. I wouldn’t do CS though unless you really like the idea of coding.
Good luck!
Thanks! I definitely was planning on getting more information than on CC, it’s just nice to hear everyones’ thoughts. And yeah I have heard that BME jobs are hard to find without a graduate degree but that hadn’t had a big impact on what I wanted to do because I’m planning on getting a masters regardless of the field.
Don’t assume you’ll go to graduate school unless you choose a major where you have to in order to get a job. You may get near the end of a CS degree, see your classmates getting good offers and decide you’ve had enough. Each in relation to its own field, a masters in CS won’t be as beneficial as a masters in BME. You can get a very good job with a BS in CS and the job market isn’t that much improved with a masters. In BME you’ll need it. Good luck!
@eyemgh I know getting a masters in BME is basically essential, and it’s not in CS, but getting a masters in computer science doesn’t improve the job market much at all? What about software engineering? And I’ve tried to find a good definition of the difference between CS and software engineering, but everyone’s is different/bias in some way. Would you mind telling me the basic differences between the two?
It isn’t that a masters is useless in CS. The job prospects are so hot right now without that it is really of little added benefit. I’d be inclined to jump right into a job with CS and then go back for a masters or MBA on the company’s dime after you start rising through the ranks.
Here’s a good analysis of CS/SE/CE.
I agree with @eyemgh for anything related to CS (CS, CPE, SE) a masters degree won’t make much of a difference. I work for a large company in the industry and I have new CS/CPE/SE graduates working for me. There is no difference in start pay for a masters holder in this area, and frankly in additional knowledge that I could see. What we’re lacking is enough qualified candidates. I have personally witnessed new graduates playing my company against our competitors on sign up bonuses and other perks before accepting an offer. Also, it does not make much of a difference is your degree is CS, CPE or SE. That gets you in the room for the interview. Getting an offer is based on how well you do on the interview, and/or during your internships. That’s where what you learn in school in the basics of coding and engineering will help you the most.