BY Meghan Malas on July 22, 2022 at 1:54 pm
View, looking east across State Street at DePaul Center, \ store. (Photo: Interim Archives/Getty Images)
Computer and information scientists are among the highest-paid professionals with master’s degrees, earning an average salary of $131,500 in 2021, according to the U.S. Department of Labor. So it’s no surprise that more and more people are gravitating to the area; According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, 3,200 jobs are created each year for scientists engaged in computer and information research.
“Computing has a huge impact on society and has become an indispensable — if not central — part of society,” says Ljubomir Perković, professor and director of the School of Computer Science at DePaul University. DePaul was ranked #4 on Fortune’s list of the best online master’s programs in computer science.
A master’s degree in computer science is one promising way to break into this field or to upgrade your current skills. To learn more about who is best suited for a master’s degree in computer science and what career opportunities await graduates, Fortune spoke with Perkovic and three master’s in computer science alumni.
You don’t need a computer science background to get a master’s degree in the field
You don’t need a bachelor’s degree in computer science, or even a background in technology, to earn a master’s degree in the field. Take it from Daniel Steilen, who spent seven years as an editor at an educational book publisher after graduating with a degree in English in 2007.
Although Steilen enjoyed his job, he wanted more opportunities – so he started thinking about a career change. On the same subject : West Branch’s music program wins national honor. He had been interested in programming for a while, so he decided to try it himself by working through an introductory book on the subject.
“The master’s degree helped me move into a new field with more opportunities and better compensation,” says Steilan. “Even if I had managed to learn the skills through alternative means, I think it would have been difficult to convince employers to take me seriously without a degree.”
Steilan graduated from DePaul University with a degree in computer science in 2017. Shortly after graduation, he got a job as a software engineer for a company that manufactures devices for the telecommunications industry.
And Steilan’s indirect path to a career in computer science is hardly unique. “A number of universities have created pathways for students with a bachelor’s degree in non-computer science disciplines to earn a master’s degree in computer science,” says Perkovic. “DePaul University, for example, offers a master’s degree in computer science that is accessible to graduates who have never programmed before.”
In this version of the program, students attend introductory classes that prepare them for graduate work in computing. And more than half of the 2,500 students who have graduated from DePaul’s master’s program in the past five years have taken this route.
In addition, it is also common for students to already have computer experience – and return to school to update their knowledge and skills.
“The program complemented my work experience as an engineer, providing technical skills and concepts that I did not acquire as a liberal arts major,” says Jake Gerstein, who graduated with DePaul’s master’s in computer science in 2019. “Compared to my professional work, the classes accelerated my learning of software development and IT functions,” he added.
Gerstein is now director of cloud strategy and capabilities for the financial services firm.
Skills learned in a master’s program provide opportunities for multiple career paths in computer science
The constant demand for people with IT skills also offers professionals with opportunities. Read also : What Degree Do You Want to Become a Business Owner?. “Choosing computing as a career right now is the best way to achieve financial security and a comfortable lifestyle,” Perkovic says, adding that 11 of the top 15 jobs on Glassdoor’s Best Jobs in America 2022 list are in computing.
Common occupations for people with a master’s degree in computer science include data scientist, full stack engineer, software engineer, and more specialized roles in machine learning engineering, cloud engineering, and enterprise architect—which ranked No. 1 in job satisfaction on Glassdoor’s list.
And the salaries for these types of roles are very high. According to Glassdoor, the average base salary for an enterprise architect, a person who manages the maintenance of a company’s IT networks and services, is $144,997. For a full stack engineer it is $101,794 and for a data scientist $120,000.
“Most students who enroll in the master’s degree in computer science have the goal of becoming a software developer,” says Perković. “Many graduates achieve this, and ‘software engineer’ is often their first job.”
Technology isn’t the only industry where computer jobs are on the rise; employers in all industries are looking to expand their computing capacity. The enormous increase in the amount of available data warrants the need for more experts to manage and create value from that data. Finally, as Fortune reported in June, cybersecurity is a growing concern across all industries—and more than 700,000 jobs still need to be filled in the US.
“Every sector of the economy now relies on computing and computer experts,” says Perković. “The master’s degree in computer science is a way for students to influence society, while at the same time ensuring social mobility and financial stability.”
