Second baccalaureate: UC vs CSU, Software Engineer vs Computer Science vs Game Development

College Majors Math/Computer Science Majors
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Hello everyone, I was hoping to get some feedback regarding my second journey through higher education. I already have a bachelor’s in Business Administration; Information Systems from UCR and am thinking about going back to school to follow my original passion for video games. I’m thinking about taking some classes at my local community college and then transferring into a 4-year university that accepts students seeking a second baccalaureates, but I’m unsure of which school and major would be the best path for me. I’ve come up with four potential schools in my area that accept second baccalaureates: UCI, CSULB, CSUSB, and Cal Poly Pomona.

Coming from UCR, my top choice would naturally be UCI as I’ve always been told that the general opinion from employers is that a degree from a UC generally looks better than a degree from a CSU. However, because I already have a bachelor’s degree, I plan to not get much financial assistance if any at all, so I was thinking that a CSU might be a better choice in terms of finances, but a UC would be a better choice in terms of networking and finding a job. The other problem that I have with UCI is that they only offer a select few programs for second baccalaureates and the closest program they have to Computer Science is Software Engineering, which I fear wouldn’t look the best competitively in the video game industry because the program requires no Physics courses or multivariable calculus which concerns me. I know UCI has a wonderful Game Science Program, but I sadly can’t major in it because I’d be going for a second baccalaureate. :frowning:
http://catalogue.uci.edu/donaldbrenschoolofinformationandcomputersciences/#softwareengr

The next school on my list would probably be CSULB. Unlike UCI; Nursing, Engineering, Mathematics, Foreign Languages, and Natural Sciences are applicable majors for students seeking a second bachelor’s degree. So my plan for CSULB would be to enroll in their Computer Science program which indeed does require Physics but no linear algebra or multivariable calculus. Which again makes me fear that the degree may not look very competitive.
http://catalog.csulb.edu/preview_program.php?catoid=2&poid=508

My third choice would be CSUSB. I’m beginning to this that this school may be my best choice because it’s the closest school to me. It’s only 30 minutes away with no traffic so I was planning on commuting to this school from my parent’s house thus saving a tone of money in terms of housing. This school also doesn’t seem picky about students seeking a second bachelor’s degree and offers two programs that I’m interested in: Computer Science and Game Development.
http://bulletin.csusb.edu/colleges-schools-departments/natural-sciences/computer-science-engineering/computer-science-bs/
http://bulletin.csusb.edu/colleges-schools-departments/natural-sciences/computer-science-engineering/computer-systems-ba/

The fourth school on my list would be Cal Poly Pomona as a last resort option.
https://catalog.cpp.edu/preview_program.php?catoid=36&poid=9570&hl=%22computer+science%22&returnto=search

I wanted to get some feedback, Would it not be worth it to pay the high price of attending UCI just because it’s a UC? A big positive about UCI is the fact that there are some pretty good video game companies in the Irvine area such as SEGA and Blizzard, but I’m not sure if it would be worth taking the financial hit to move out there especially since I probably won’t be getting any financial aid from FAFSA. I also wanted to ask, what major would be the best to study in order to help me accomplish my goals of getting into the video game industry? I’ve heard that having a general computer science degree is better than pursuing a degree in game development because its more flexible and will allow you to get other jobs than just games. But should I be concerned if one program focuses more on Physics and another program focuses more on math? UCI’s software engineering program doesn’t really focus on either math or physics and is made up of mostly computer classes.

I’m trying to figure out which school and which program I should pursue now so that I can make sure I take the classes that I need this Summer and not waste time and money on classes that are unnecessary. Thank you for your time.

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If the physics and math courses that you are concerned about are lower division courses, you can take them at any community college, even if they are not required for the degree that you want to pursue.

The game industry can be a tough one to get into and stay in. However, the usual upper level courses for computing in general (operating systems, databases, networking, algorithms, security, software engineering) also apply to games, though some additional CS and non-CS electives will be useful for games.

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Going to chime in here and I have to say your plan might be kind of misinformed.

A former coworker of mine finished his master’s degree here at University of Louisville after completing a theater degree at UCLA. I myself do not have a computer science degree but am also completing a master’s degree at the University of Louisville in computer science. I got a degree in mathematics & statistics at Cal Poly Pomona. IMO, it’s a great school if you’re doing STEM. Interestingly enough, I’ve never met a UC grad outside of UC Berkeley or UCLA that I’ve worked with and I’ve met other Cal Poly Pomona or SLO grads where I’ve worked at. Maybe UCI has strong prestige if you want to do grad school or something, but your education matters next to zilch a few years into your career as a software engineer. The only time it begins to matter is when you’re heading into a management position (having a master’s degree) and it’s more of a check box that you have one than anything. Plenty of people become senior software engineers simply because they’re good at what they do, whether or not they even got a degree. You’ll also learn that your school is not your greatest network but your coworkers are wherever you end up working. Smart people end up recommending other smart people and then you get referred and contacted. That’s how I got my current job.

Therefore, I would suggest you try to get into a master’s program, take the prerequisite catch up classes you need (which was only three for me), and then move onto the master’s classes. You will get financial aid in terms of loans.

Also, no one gives a crap about where you got your degree in computer science if you’re working as a software engineer. No one is going to hire you over a state school kid if you’re not as good. This is a skill based profession and you either demonstrate it or you don’t. There’s no hiding behind a university degree.

In addition, you need to be very bright and lucky to get a job in the video gaming industry. You need to REALLY research the industry and the extreme difficulty you’ll have working in the industry because although I love video games a lot, I would never work in the field as volatile as it is when it comes to having a career in it. You can easily make 80K at a more chill job.

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Since you already have a Bachelor’s degree, have you considered and ruled out other options? For example, RIT has an MS degree in Game Design & Development (in addition to their undergrad BS GDD degree.) https://www.rit.edu/gccis/igm/ms-game-design-development-overview

I don’t know if you meet their admissions requirements, but if you already have a BS degree and really want to get into game design, an MS degree sounds like it might be a faster/cheaper way to do a career shift.

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Thank you for the feedback everyone. People have suggested me to do a masters program before, but I’m a bit confused regarding the whole masters program thing, wouldn’t I need a bachelors in computer science before I could apply for a masters program in that field?

@ucbalumnus Yes I plan to take my math and physics courses at my local community college this year and then transfer to a 4-university next year.

@CalDud Thank you for all of your feedback. I’ve done some research and have decided that I’ll aim for enrolling in CSULB or Cal Poly Pomona as they are cheaper than UCI and offer the Computer Science degree for students returning for a second bachelor’s. That’s great that you’re able to continue your education to pursue a masters in Computer Science. My bachelor’s however was in Business Administration, not STEM, so I unfortunately have quite a bit of prereqs that I must complete before I can go for a masters in Computer Science from what I understand.

@jrm815 Thank you for the suggestion, I checked out the website but from what I’ve seen, they don’t really explain what kind of degree you need to enter their masters program. All that’s stated is that you need a high GPA and GRE score, I don’t know if my Business Degree would give me a shot at applying for their masters program though.

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You don’t need a Bachelors in CS to get into a lot of CS Masters programs. The Masters programs will make you take some prerequisite CS courses if you haven’t had them yet before you can officially start the Masters classes.

I did a quick google search on “masters in cs for a non cs major” and the following popped up first. It’s just a place to start.

https://computersciencems.com/resources/computer-science/masters-computer-science-no-cs-background/

You should go for a Masters rather than a Bachelors.

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Thank you, I’ll check out your link.