help with future computer student

[myusername]

i am planing on majoring in something for computers....not being a devoloper just an technician (like setting up servers and stuff like that)(well maybe a dev if i like it i have never tried) what would this major be called and would you make good money?

[tamoneya]

I believe that is called computer systems engineering most of the time. At least that is what they call it at my school.

[myusername]

cool...thanks for your reply

[jdong]

I think they call that Computer Systems Engineering or some other "something that's not an engineering field" + Engineering type name...

It's undoubtedly easier to pursue than computer science or software engineering but I'm not sure how the job security will be with stuff like that. I know plenty of high school students younger than me who are way more adept at performing sysadmin type tasks than myself... I don't feel if I worked for someone as a system administrator I could say to myself at the end of the day: "My company depends on me. It's not possible for me to walk into work tomorrow to find my job replaced by someone else"

But then again, that's just my 2c.

[myusername]

thats true...maybe i will look into being a developer...does anybody have some online material that i could read?

[FuturePilot]

I think they call that Computer Systems Engineering or some other "something that's not an engineering field" + Engineering type name...

It's undoubtedly easier to pursue than computer science or software engineering but I'm not sure how the job security will be with stuff like that. I know plenty of high school students younger than me who are way more adept at performing sysadmin type tasks than myself... I don't feel if I worked for someone as a system administrator I could say to myself at the end of the day: "My company depends on me. It's not possible for me to walk into work tomorrow to find my job replaced by someone else"

But then again, that's just my 2c.
That does make sense especially with some basic computer knowledge being almost required for office type jobs. But it doesn't hold up if you're a system admin working for a company that has a lot of computers all networked together and a couple servers thrown in. Being a system/network admin is more than just figuring out why someone's computer is giving some error. That is involved but that's just the tip of the iceberg. There's a lot more involved especially when it comes to the network. I doubt the average Joe is going to go trouble shoot why he can't connect to the network. As a system/network admin it's your job to make sure the network is as reliable, secure, and efficient as possible. And if something breaks you need to fix it as quickly as possible. I'm currently majoring in Computer Networking which is basically a system/network admin. And from what I can tell so far, there's a lot more that you're responsible for than what it appears. Hence why a lot of people will say the IT department gets no respect ;)

[PetePete]

developers tend to get paid more than sys admins, maybe because your average low paid MSCE helpdesk support staff is included...

anyway take a look at this
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2007/08/28/salary_survey_200708/

[rickyjones]

i am planing on majoring in something for computers....not being a devoloper just an technician (like setting up servers and stuff like that)(well maybe a dev if i like it i have never tried) what would this major be called and would you make good money?

I call that CIS - Computer Information System - which is what I'm currently working towards. No programming, just actual technical knowledge of computers and how they operate in addition to the information management that is becoming important in this day and age.

-Richard

[jdong]

And from what I can tell so far, there's a lot more that you're responsible for than what it appears. Hence why a lot of people will say the IT department gets no respect ;)

I'm not saying that a sysadmin's job is trivial or just consists of troubleshooting errors, but I personally haven't seen anything in the curriculum or in practice that could not be learned by the average computer-literate person in the matter of at most a month. Sure, it's not child's play, but I also don't think it's all that complex as to ensure job security.


Ok, fine, maybe if you're the lead network architect at Akamai, that's a different story :)

[myusername]

i think the best job to have is a microsoft photographer...there backgrounds are alway beautiful

[jdong]

You know what? The best job would be a plumber or refrigerator repairsman. I had an argument with the guy who came to fix our fridge because he literally charged some $300 of parts+labor for a 15-minute replacement of a plastic hose.... That's a better rate than I can probably hope to make unless something miraculous happens to my career :)

[myusername]

lol thats true...but you get PAID to go to random beautiful places and all you have to do is TAKE PICTURES!!

[zorocke]

i think the best job to have is a microsoft photographer...there backgrounds are alway beautiful
Ha, that would be cool. I wonder how they do get those photos? If they buy them or if they hire a photographer.