Looking for some advice.

[telefrancais]

Here's the situation: I'm 26 years old and hold an English degree. I haven't taken math since highschool (8 years ago), but I did take calculus and data management when I was there. I'm working an unfulfilling job in finance and I want to go back to school for computer science. Ryerson is still accepting applications for the fall, but I really want to go to UofT for their Computers and Communication specialization.

Here's a few questions:
1) Is it worth it to apply to Ryerson for the fall and then transfer to UofT the next year to get things done faster? I know I'm not old, but I would still like to finish up as quickly as I can. Would the first year courses be about the same? I'm confident I would get in based on my previous marks.
2) Is Computers and Communication worth it? Is there another area that would be more profitable to specialize in?
3) Should I take calc again? I'm pretty sure the answer is yes, but I'm not sure how heavily math-focused the material will be.

Any advice or experiences you could share would be much appreciated.

[mirhagk]

It is difficult to transfer sometimes, and you might lose credits, so verify that you can transfer credits before you select your classes. Also with computer science the title of the degree has very little to do with the kinds of jobs available compared to other fields. Universities still haven't unified on whether to give out bachelor's of science, math or computer science yet, even for programs that are nearly identical. More important is that the courses you take are interesting, and teach you skills you will need.

I can't stress this enough that you can't expect the university to teach you, you need to take charge of your own learning, by doing courses online (udacity, khanacademy etc) and by exploring by yourself. You will take calculus courses in university, but if your good enough with calculus you probably don't need to take any courses to prepare for computer classes (other than refreshing using khanacademy).

[[Gandalf]]

1. I wouldn't count on transferring in any situation. It's theoretically possible, but it's almost exclusively more of a headache than doing it right the first time. I'm not sure you would even get the transfer credits, because the first year courses are quite different between Ryerson and UofT. If you get into Ryerson or any other university, look at it as if you were going to most likely stay there.
2. I'm not familiar with Computers and Communication. "Profitability" is mostly up to you anyway, and not what you specialize in.
3. There will be a giant chunk of courses that are very math heavy, and not exclusively Calculus. However, you'll be using Calculus directly in at least a few courses at least in first and second years so it's probably worth it.

[Tony]

What Gandalf said. Also

telefrancais @ Wed Jun 06, 2012 12:44 pm wrote:

I'm confident I would get in based on my previous marks.

What previous marks? If you go to Ryerson first, the transfer will likely be based almost exclusively on the marks that you'll start getting at Ryerson (which might or might not stay as good as the ones that are giving you all this confidence right now).