<p>I graduated college with a History degree and decided to sign up for a bridge program in CS to catch me up and prepare me for the Master's program in that field. The bridge program was only 4 courses. Apparently it's designed to prepare non CS undergrad majors for a Master's program. I don't feel ready though.. While I did well in those courses, I still feel like a newbie. I honestly don't know how I'm going to excel in a Master's program when I can barely code. Right now I'm signed up for Web Development, Human Computer Interaction and Robotics. Do I have a snowball's chance in hell succeeding in a Master's program when I still feel like an utter noob as a programmer? I'm worried I'll flunk and be in debt. </p>
<p>Students who still don't feel ready after completing the bridge program have the option to take undergrad courses to better prepare for a MS. </p>
<p>Before I comment on this bridge program… what kind of Master’s program in Computer Science only needs 4 courses? What college is offering this? Maybe that would be the explanation of why you don’t feel ready enough. </p>
<p>Besides, Computer Science is not only programming. There is a lot of theory, a lot of math, and a lots of electronics (if you have to take some CE courses.) There are many computer scientists who don’t specifically enjoy programming, some who enjoy math more, and there are these who make a living off of their degree by either becoming a software engineer, teacher, professor, you name it.</p>
<p>Taking an average state university as an example, the typical Master’s Degree has the following prerequisites:
OOP & Data Structures: CS201-203
Web programming: CS320
Discrete Structures/Analysis of Algorithms: CS312
Programming Language Paradigms: CS332
Formal Languages/Automata Theory:CS386
Operating Systems:CS440
Individual Project: CS496ABC
Software Engineering: CS337/CS437
Others: CS120, CS122, CS245</p>
<p>Source: CalState LA</p>
<p>Not to mention the pre-prequisites, which include the typical calculus sequence, discrete math and/or linear algebra, if not combined, and a few physics courses. </p>
<p>Edit: I believe this topic should be moved somewhere else</p>
<p>Thanks for the response. I’m not sure where to move this discussion. </p>
<p>I don’t want to name my college, but it’s a state school in New Jersey. It’s an accredited institution… It’s a pretty nice school.</p>
<p>The Bridge program was 4 courses that were “condensed” to give us enough background. I took Java, Data Structures, Discrete Math and Assembly Language. </p>
<p>I enjoy programming, but my fear is the Master’s program will expect me to be an expert in that area, especially when most of the people in my classes got a BS in CS, and didn’t do the bridge program. But if what you say is true, I feel a bit better. I’m confident I can learn new concepts, I just don’t think I can do complicated coding yet. </p>
<p>Next semester I’m taking Robotics, Web Development and Human Computer Interaction. I’m a noob in all those areas. </p>
<p>Would those courses require extensive programming knowledge?</p>
<p>Well if it’s your first time taking a web development course, then you will be required to learn how to develop web applications with a particular server-side or client-side programming language (depends.) I never heard of Human Computer Interaction as a course, although it sounds interesting and probably emphasizes design more than programming, I guess. Robotics, if it is related to an AI course, which typically is an upper-division elective, typically requires the prerequisites you already have taken. I myself haven’t taken the course yet, but I’m guessing there could be some light programming if you are dealing with robots.</p>