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 Comp. Sci Masters - Thesis or No thesis? (ONTARIO)
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ali_dada




PostPosted: Tue Apr 22, 2008 8:42 am   Post subject: Comp. Sci Masters - Thesis or No thesis? (ONTARIO)

I will be applying for Computer Science Masters next year. I have been doing some research and this is what I found:

There are two types of computer science masters - thesis based and a non-thesis based (in which you basically take more courses instead of research).

Well, I get the feeling that the thesis based Masters would be more valued but at the same time, it kinda seems to be limiting me to one field (due to specialization of thesis).

On the other hand, if I take a non-thesis based Masters, I would have exposure to more fields within Computer Science but at the same time, I would just be 'Jack of all trades but Master of none'.

Also, are Masters' courses more difficult than the undergraduate ones? I am not talking about Waterloo, more along the lines of Lakehead, Windsor or Ryerson.

Which one would you suggest for and why?

Regards,
Ali Dada.
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jernst




PostPosted: Tue Apr 22, 2008 9:12 am   Post subject: Re: Comp. Sci Masters - Thesis or No thesis? (ONTARIO)

From what I understand, if you are interested in going to industry after your masters, the course based program is better, but if you are interested in getting a phd it may be better to take the thesis based one because it introduces you to how research is done as the graduate level. However I do know a few people in their phd program right now with course based masters. The course based programs also seem to be shorter than a thesis but I think it also depends on the person.

As far as value goes, I dont think one is any more valuable than the other, it just depends on what you plan to do afterwards.

In my experience with course work at the masters level, its not necessarily harder, but its a different style from undergrad courses. The professors know that every there can code well and should know what they are doing with the basic concepts so none of the courses really try to teach that. Instead the courses seem to try to focus on how research and experimentation is done in a particular area of computer science. For example I took a networks course this past semester and instead of focusing on fundamental networking concepts it was assumed that we knew this already. Instead we designed simulations for wireless and wired networks, and learned what to consider to make them statistically valid and how to interpret the results. So I guess the main point is that its not really harder, just different from undergrad. Theres a lot less hand holding in the courses so if you do have any weakness in prior knowledge its up to you to catch up.

By the way, I'm at Guelph so I expect its a pretty similar program to most of the universities you mentioned in your post. If you have any other questions you can msg me or email me and I'd be happy answer some more for you.
ali_dada




PostPosted: Wed Apr 23, 2008 12:50 pm   Post subject: Re: Comp. Sci Masters - Thesis or No thesis? (ONTARIO)

Thanks a lot Jason.
Vermette




PostPosted: Thu Apr 24, 2008 9:54 am   Post subject: RE:Comp. Sci Masters - Thesis or No thesis? (ONTARIO)

Hi ali,

I'm not sure if a non-thesis based Masters in CS exists here at Windsor, but I can certainly ask around for you, or you can try emailing. At to the relative merit of thesis vs. non-thesis, like jernst says what your plans are important. If you are planning to go all the way and become Dr. Ali Dada, Computer Scientist and I would discourage you from pursuing a non thesis-based Masters. You won't be able to get out of a dissertation, and if nothing else a Master's thesis is training for that. It's also a demonstration that you are capable to conducting research and creatively pursuing a problem in the field.

As for the difficulty of the courses, I would say generally that a master's level course would necessarily be harder than an undergraduate course, for the same reason that senior level undergrad courses are more difficult than freshman level courses. You're building from your previous courses and delving deeper into any subject. Without that previous experience you're more likely to get lost. There are exceptions of course when dealing with a new subject, but I would expect that you'd be expected to pick up new material faster as a more dedicated and intellectually mature student.
ali_dada




PostPosted: Thu Apr 24, 2008 4:33 pm   Post subject: Re: Comp. Sci Masters - Thesis or No thesis? (ONTARIO)

nah, PhD is not for me. I just plan on working after my masters degree.

Well, all this is pretty interesting. So far, I am kinda leaning towards non-Thesis masters. I know for sure that they are easier than the Thesis as seems to be the case at Ryerson with the Engineering Masters.

However, more than the difficulty, I am more interested in the applicability of the thesis/non-thesis when it comes to job market. Thanks for the answers.

So far, my only area of concern regarding thesis based is that it kinda seems to be tying you down to a single field and like some of you suggested, good for the PhD bound.

Granted, I myself am more interested in the areas of Networking, security, and programming languages and I know I can, if given time narrow myself down to one choice. However, the non-thesis appeals more to me as it allows you to take variety of different courses.

It should be enough to land me a decent job and that is what I am interested in.

My final decision to attend which university for graduate studies will I am confident bank only the matter of finance. Granted Ryerson's graduate is just thesis based, I am highly positive about it and might go for it as it will allow me to stay at my house and will thus not be a huge financial undertaking for me.
jernst




PostPosted: Thu Apr 24, 2008 5:14 pm   Post subject: Re: Comp. Sci Masters - Thesis or No thesis? (ONTARIO)

ali_dada @ Thu Apr 24, 2008 4:33 pm wrote:
nah, PhD is not for me. I just plan on working after my masters degree.
My final decision to attend which university for graduate studies will I am confident bank only the matter of finance. Granted Ryerson's graduate is just thesis based, I am highly positive about it and might go for it as it will allow me to stay at my house and will thus not be a huge financial undertaking for me.


If your concerned about finances, you might want to look into how much funding each school provides. Some of them provide next to nothing but Guelph provides $11,000 for all M.Sc. student. I think Waterloo gives a bit more than that. Some schools don't guarantee funding for every student, so that is definitely something to look into.

The other thing about the thesis as opposed to the course based may be the type of work you do afterwards, even if you don't plan to go for your phd. If you do a thesis based masters, you may get the chance to do technical reports and experiments and writeups in industry whereas the course work masters may give the opportunity to lead projects and such.
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