Need advice: CS or Business or Both?

<p>I will advise you to get a minor or some experience in business, and while doing this take only classes you will need. Like: Entrepreneurial ones, definitely take a Corporate finance class (this is probably the most important class in a business school), Marketing, and Management.</p>

<p>Classes such as accounting are irrelevant, and finance will cover most of the accounting you need. (I am not sure but I think finance has an accounting pre-req)</p>

<p>If you’re interested in starting a type of internet company like facebook, youtube, etc. Take MIS/IT class(es).</p>

<p>And definitely you need your programming and computer science degree.</p>

<p>My advise is not for someone interested in just writing “I got a degree in …” on a Resume, it is for someone who is motivated to start an entrepreneurial career. If you are looking up to Zuckerberg, Gates etc. getting a degree wasn’t there business, but all they wanted was the knowledge inorder to start such a career.</p>

<p>If you are really motivated, you should have already started (or start soon) on a mediocre project till you do something much more challenging (after enough cs background).</p>

<p>A business background helps develop your personality to a much more confident one, you would really understand how a major organization works (honestly, the econ 101 classes do not always incorporate anything relevant in the typical company/organization, except from understanding the economy (of which most people understand while or when they are out of college, like what is GDP? , and this is why they are mostly a liberal arts course.) if you are looking for just a single course to take then Corporate Finance. It will cover things like (how you may start a business (with finances etc), the legal aspect of things, how to run them etc…</p>

<p>Wow… for your third post on these forums you gave great advice.
I had never thought about taking only the business classes that I need! It’s a good idea, but i would need someone to pick out those specific business classes that an entrepreneur (in the tech business) would need.</p>

<p>And yes, i definitely do plan on starting my own internet company like facebook, youtube, ect. I know it sounds like a long shot, but that’s how things get started: with a goal. </p>

<p>Up to date info about me: Right now I have completed an introductory course in Java and c++ at my community college and got A’s in both. And right now I’m on winter break which is 1 month and a half long. What have i been doing during this break besides working and leaving a day or two for a social life? I’m reading books on c++, calculus, and html/css(I’ve always wanted to learn how to make websites by the way). So as for the motivation… it’s there.</p>

<p>I am contemplating getting an mba with a concentration in entrepreneurship (after my cs degree) to learn how to create a business plan, how to find investors, how to pitch the idea effectively, and how to run a company. But I also discovered that UCLA has an extension program in entrepreneurial topics, but i don’t know how good this program is or if i should even bother… here is the link by the way
<a href=“https://www.uclaextension.edu/r/ProgramDetails.aspx?reg=CF265[/url]”>https://www.uclaextension.edu/r/ProgramDetails.aspx?reg=CF265&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p>I have both backgrounds because I changed my major from Acct to CS, and it has being going pretty well.</p>

<p>It seems like a relevant certificate, but with too many classes. Some classes that may seem irrelevant are Mathematics for MGMT, considering that you will have enough math background (matrix, calc, diff eqn -not sure if it is required for your CS degree, but it is just more calc, etc), you may have already taken STATS etc. Also for Basic Managerial Finance the prereq is Acct or instructor consent.
I have taken a similar class (with the same exact textbook as this one) but I took the acct prereq, so I will say it was not too hard for me to grasp the concept. But I knew some engineering students who just wanted a minor in business, and where allowed to skip the prereq. Although they had problems in only about 1/3 of the material, all the remaining aspect where okay because of the Math involved (of which most business students had problems with). So your background with less business experience is not too much of a problem, in addition some classes may be similar to liberal arts like leadership communication, management theory etc. that also do not require much of a background in business.
It may all come down to if you have enough time to get the degree, and hopefully, the degree does not distract whatever you’re doing.</p>

<p>PunchLine: Although you want some business background try to focus your attention on your CS/programming skills.</p>

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<p>If your company is sufficiently attractive that you can hire a (software) engineering manager that can grow and lead a team who will respect the manager, you don’t need to be the leader, or even have a CS background. However, this will vary quite a bit with the job. If you don’t have a CS background, you at least need to familiarize yourself with the notions of what the (software) engineering manager and/or team members will tell you about the projects they work on, and how to weigh those considerations financially.</p>

<p>CS skills are relatively hard to learn. It requires both theoretical training and on-the-job experience. Business skills, otoh, can be learned in your spare time. Relatively easy skillset to acquire. </p>

<p>The CS skillset will get your foot in the door. The business degree, unless it is from Stanford/Wharton/Harvard, probably won’t. </p>

<p>Look at the founders of recently successful tech companies. How many are coming from technical programs vs. business programs? It’s fairly lopsided towards one. Guess which.</p>