Advice needed - looking to earn CS credits

[bjcheung77]

Thanks a lot for your recommendations. Much appreciated.

All of the options you mentioned are great. However, U of Texas' MSCS requires GRE test scores which I do not have. And I don't think this requirement can be waived. Plus, the program expects applicants to have prior university coursework in CS which I do not have either. Same goes for ASU OMCS and UIUC OMSC. So these options are unfortunately off the table, at least for the time being.

For GT OMSCS - I reached out to the admissions office and 2 to 4 accredited core CS courses with good grades might be enough. I am still kind of leaning towards taking accredited CS classes via a college or university if I can find an affordable school offering online classes.

Another option is enrolling into a  BSCS program (not in the US) and taking as many courses as possible in the first year and drop out. The courses in the first year  may be enough to fulfill the undergraduate CS coursework requirement to get into those online MS programs. But that would be an additional year of studies which is a lot for someone who already has two degrees under his belt. And I am no longer in my 20s.... you know what I mean...

Hey, here are my comments to your paragraphs...

1) GRE scores aren't everything, it won't impact the admissions scoring too much.  Having CS undergrad might give individuals a slight advantage, but that's also not always the case. Essentially, they look for the "whole package", you'll see what I mean by reading the two links I send you at the bottom of this message.

2) You can try taking 2, 3, 4 or more courses at the community college to get the hang of programming or other CS related courses, it'll be great for learning and getting into the industry by diving into the core learning material, but this will not get you in, it may help but I doubt it, again - revealed in links below.

3) Getting into an undergrad CS degree is a great choice and I highly recommend it, but no - don't drop it after taking the first year.  Since you already have a Bachelors/Masters, you just need a "top-up degree" - "why waste that degree or year!"  As I mentioned in my previous message, get that second degree with the extra 30 credits or less!

I love reading success stories and here's an example.  See Jonesy20 thread below.  Further to that, you can see how Jonesy20 applied to GT OMCSC but ultimately ended up at an even higher ranked school.  This is hard work at play and a rewarding outcome!  My recommendation is to follow their lead... that's how I recommended StudentOLife in the thread below.

Success Story Jonesy20 Link 1:  https://www.degreeforum.net/mybb/Thread-...after-TESU
More from Jonesy20 Link 2: https://www.degreeforum.net/mybb/Thread-...Tech-OMSCS