IT conversion courses

[Guest me]

Sangat ji, I would really appreciate some career/study advice.

In short I graduated with a 2.2 in law, I had decided what career route to take after graduating (not in law) but I'm not sure if thats for me anymore. I was interested in looking into IT as this is a field I've not really explored but seems interesting.

I am aware there are MSc courses out there for graduates who have no prior background in IT, so was thinking about maybe applying for these.

I was hoping someone could help answer some of my questions:

1) How difficult/what type of maths is in the courses, eg. computer science? I don't have A-level Maths, but I have a GCSE grade B.

2) How can I pick which course is right for me and how can I know if I am cut out for it beforehand?

3) What are job prospects like?

Finally, can anyone please suggest any good providers or courses.

I would really appreciate any help? Sorry if some of these questions are very vague.

[SunSingh]

I don't know anything about the IT fields, but I recommend you google cal newport's blog study hacks and search around for his career advice. he basically recommends you combine your interests with your strengths to determine what career is suitable for you. read his blog for more details. i have researched study skills etc extensively and i think his blog provides the best teaching on that subject as well.

[Guru_Da_Chella]

To be honest I would do a Professional IT course if I were you. I have done IT up to MSc level, it hasn't netted me a job, professional IT courses are more employable than degrees, trust me!

The first course that you should start with is Comptia A+ , I would say its the foundation to an IT career.

[Balait_da_Sher]

I meant to reply to this the other day, apologies for the delay. Having worked as a software engineer for a number of years I can tell you that IT is not the greatest. Money can be good but the work is always quite demanding, unless you are working in a small IT department where there are not many IT challenges.

If you go down the engineering route then you will have to continuously upgrade your skills and also deliver what is required. Downside of engineering is that experience is required now days. Even if you have the qualifications, employers want some experience. With experience, you can find plenty of jobs but there is always the danger of jobs being outsourced.

If you go down the analytical route, then you could become a project manager, business analyst etc. I would recommend this route for you as your Law degree will provide you some benefit here and may even help you move ahead of other candidates.

If it was up to me, I would be doing something else right now which has a lot more interaction with people.

1) How difficult/what type of maths is in the courses, eg. computer science? I don't have A-level Maths, but I have a GCSE grade B.

I havnt had to do too much maths. If you do a degree in Software engineering then you will be required to do some maths but most IT jobs dont require complex maths unless you are working for a financial organisation.

2) How can I pick which course is right for me and how can I know if I am cut out for it beforehand?

No idea, you have to pick what sounds interesting to you. Report writing (meeting clients, writing reports, attending meetings) or Coding?

3) What are job prospects like?

They can be quite good with some experience and depending on how good you are. Most engineering job interviews contain a technical test which if you ace then the job is pretty much yours.

Good luck.