<p>Omg, i can't decide what to
major in for sure. From one perspective,
information systems is ideal for me as
long as i don't have great math skills,
can't imagine myself programming for the whole life, and not sure that i am
able to code at all... From the other side,
computer science seems to be a more
concrete major, with pretty clear career
opportunities... I am really afraid that i
may fail all my courses if i attend school of computer science. Do i fear too much?
I don't know, maybe your advice would
help me make a right decision...</p>
<p>Computer Science. There is no question about it. Most will choose CS over IS (IS is considered the backup school to CS by people here at CMU)</p>
<p>IS is also a well-reputed program. But CS just happens to be more well-reputed than IS.</p>
<p>You should definitely choose CS since it is an actual rigorous discipline. Most of the stuff in IS can be easily learned on your own. For example, they do a lot of web development, which is something I could do when I was 8. In contrast, if you complete your degree in CS, you will have a rigorous mathematical background that will allow you to think clearly about your code. You will be able to work in fields that would otherwise be inaccessible, such as kernel programming. If CS ends up being too hard for you, you can always transfer to IS or ECE. However it may be more challenging to transfer in the opposite direction.</p>
<p>
I would beg to differ that any major at CMU (including IS) would be things that are easily learned on your own. That’s a rather big oversimplification.</p>
<p>
I concur with this sentiment. You pretty much have to be like, “I wanna transfer to IS, (insert reason why)” and you’re in. Not the same way with CS.</p>
<p>It’s not quite true that it’s ridiculously easy to transfer into IS. In the 2015 class, the IS program is oversized and transfers have been really challenging. I know plenty of people that aren’t going to be able to transfer in this year.</p>
<p>well in my opinion IS is not CS at all. just look at the two curriculums. they’re drastically different. IS only requires CS courses up to 15121, not even 15122. On the other hand IS requires much more non-CS courses which you can choose for yourself to gear towards your personal interest and career preparation. IS offers much more flexibility. If you’re into CS, then by all means go for CS. for me, i don’t feel interested in courses like 15213 into to computer systems or 15410 (can’t remember the course name; it’s something about OS). however, i’m into statistics, so i can make use of the content area requirement to take lots of stats electives. so IS is the perfect option for me. in short, i think it really depends on your interest and how each program could work out best for you and your future plans.</p>
<p>
You’re right, but I meant that it would be significantly easier for CS majors to transfer into IS.</p>
<p>Am I misinformed?</p>
<p>First, I don’t think that’s necessarily the case. If you’re currently in IS and have the skills to do well in 213 and/or 251, you shouldn’t have a problem beginning a transfer into SCS. From my experience, those who <em>are qualified</em> don’t have a huge problem transferring. </p>
<p>On the other hand, there are plenty of qualified folks that can’t transfer into the 2015 IS class because of limited seats.</p>