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Ask HN: I want to get a Bachelor's in CS online. What are some good programs?

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Re: Ask HN: I want to get a Bachelor's in CS online. What are some good programs?

#11

Post by aplummer »

sorenn111 wrote: post #8
ohaideredevs wrote: post #5

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I have a degree in something entirely unrelated. Always wondering if I should bother getting a Masters in CS if I plan to stay in the field long term. Seems to only be worth it if I get into a top 5 school, and even then, it seems like a year of study might be worth more than a degree.

I disagree. Degrees matter in terms of credential signalling. I wish the world were a different way, but degrees are a signal that employers do NOT ignore no matter what the HN crowd says about autodidactic CS learning (even though I agree with them on that). Georgia Tech has a great online Master's program which many of my peers took which I think is more readily accessible.

On the anecdote train I studied fine arts and work as a dev in a FAANG. 5 years practical experience and a few months optimizing for leetcode. Nobody seemed to care about my degree and getting final rounds was easy enough.

Re: Ask HN: I want to get a Bachelor's in CS online. What are some good programs?

#12

Post by jstarfish »

Not saying this is the best course for you, just something to consider--

If your endgoal is simply "get into AI/ML" for the fun of it (as opposed to strictly for the money), you might be better served pursuing a BS in Data Science itself. There are some online schools that offer it and they dump you straight into the fun bits you're interested in. Depending on your career ambitions that may be good enough.

You've already committed 4 years to a Bachelor's. I see you planning on another 2 for a generic CS and another 2 for a MS. You'll have wasted a lot of time and money if you only find out in year 7 that AI/ML isn't for you after all.

Regardless of what you intend to do, be wary of cost balloons with all online courses. A lot of online courses tell you it's $x for the course, but after the fact they require you to purchase subscriptions to third-party online services or new-only textbooks with software license keys. Sometimes financial aid covers that, other times not.

Best of luck!

Re: Ask HN: I want to get a Bachelor's in CS online. What are some good programs?

#13

Post by robbrit »

tranced wrote: post #6
robbrit wrote: post #4

You might be able to get into a Master's program without a Bachelor's in CS, provided you can demonstrate understanding of the material. OSSU has a great curriculum for replicating that: https://github.com/ossu/computer-science A Master's or Ph.D. will help you get into more research-oriented programs where you're working at the cutting edge. If you don't care too much about reading papers and that sort of thing, you…

I have an associate's in CS and think this might be the best route for me since transferring for a BS/BA might be too much time commitment. You think this is possible without a bachelor's in hand? Any recommendations?

Are you looking to get into a graduate program in CS? Or just move into a different field?

Re: Ask HN: I want to get a Bachelor's in CS online. What are some good programs?

#14

Post by leesec »

codewritinfool wrote: post #9

WGU

Yeah this the best option IMO as a college dropout who went back.

-Pay by the term not credit hour (3750~ for 6 months!) AND test out as much as you want

With this combination you could realistically have a Bachelors within a year.

I've personally completed 60 credits in 6~ months while working full time.

People also use this program to get into OMSCS.

Re: Ask HN: I want to get a Bachelor's in CS online. What are some good programs?

#16

Post by jki275 »

You don't absolutely have to have a BSCS to get into the OMSCS. However, without it (or something like it, or equivalent experience) you will be at a major disadvantage and will probably not be successful. So your desire is the correct one.

-Regis University has a good BSCS online program. 8 week semesters, relatively inexpensive, ABET accredited.

-Regional accreditation and ABET accreditation are the standard for a BSCS program. Don't go to any program that doesn't meet that criteria.

You don't need a degree to get into AI/ML, you can study and learn it on your own. Udacity has courses to cover the basics of CS, edX has course from MIT and Harvard, etc.

Re: Ask HN: I want to get a Bachelor's in CS online. What are some good programs?

#17

Post by jki275 »

tranced wrote: post #6
robbrit wrote: post #4

You might be able to get into a Master's program without a Bachelor's in CS, provided you can demonstrate understanding of the material. OSSU has a great curriculum for replicating that: https://github.com/ossu/computer-science A Master's or Ph.D. will help you get into more research-oriented programs where you're working at the cutting edge. If you don't care too much about reading papers and that sort of thing, you…

I have an associate's in CS and think this might be the best route for me since transferring for a BS/BA might be too much time commitment. You think this is possible without a bachelor's in hand? Any recommendations?

GA Tech will not entertain applications for their OMSCS if you do not have a BS. They don't require that it be in CS, but they are quite clear that you have to have a BS to get in.

You may find other programs that have other requirements, but I'm not aware of any.

Re: Ask HN: I want to get a Bachelor's in CS online. What are some good programs?

#18

Post by zxcvbn4038 »

Something you might not have considered is to forego the time and expense of the degree altogether. Particularly in IT most employers don't care if you have a degree or not - the ones that do can always use your existing degree to check the box. If you can pass the interview questions for development or systems engineering then more than likely you'll get hired. You might have to do temp to hire if you don't have a buddy to vouch for you, but you'll get in the door. There are a number of times I've been the most senior person ever hired without a degree, one Fortune 100 even changed their rules specifically so that they could hire me without a degree. The key phrase to remember is "equivalent experience" and you can usually imply that will be accepted. You will run across the occasional HR robot or insecure manager that thinks otherwise, but they are a slim minority. All of that money you spend on college is more or less a waste unless you are planning to be a doctor, lawyer, or something else heavily regulated where state or federal laws don't even allow you to take certification tests without a degree. (For example, in my state you can't take the bar exam without a J.D. degree and a number of hours as an unpaid intern)

Remember also, particularly in IT, that educating yourself is going to be an ongoing task for you. It doesn't have to be formal but you have to keep up. Read Hacker News and High Scalability, when you see things discussed that you don't understand then take it upon yourself to go understand. I probably spend sixteen hours a week on my own research.

Re: Ask HN: I want to get a Bachelor's in CS online. What are some good programs?

#19

Post by rayalez »

jki275 wrote: post #16

You don't absolutely have to have a BSCS to get into the OMSCS. However, without it (or something like it, or equivalent experience) you will be at a major disadvantage and will probably not be successful. So your desire is the correct one. -Regis University has a good BSCS online program. 8 week semesters, relatively inexpensive, ABET accredited. -Regional accreditation and ABET accreditation are the standard for a…

Thank you very much for your advice!

Some people recommend WGU. From what I see, WGU "is accredited by the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities (NWCCU), a regional accreditation". Is having NWCCU instead of ABET accreditation an issue?

Between Regis University and WGU, which one would you choose?

Re: Ask HN: I want to get a Bachelor's in CS online. What are some good programs?

#20

Post by notus »

Check out the program through University of London, Goldsmiths on Coursera. I'm currently halfway through the first term. It was a little buggy at first but it is getting better. The teaching style is pretty engaging. It is about 3k USD per term and there are 2 terms per year and the program is 3 years total.

UK CS programs are a little bit lighter on math than US programs but they still try to cover quite a bit. The first term courses are:

- an introductory programming course taught using P5.js. I was initially skeptical of that approach but it turned out being a lot of fun.

- a numerical mathematics that attempts to cover pretty much everything

- web development course

- how computers work course (similar to a computer architecture course)

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