[Poopsilon]

So basically I have my undergraduate degree in math and I have the option to spend another two years getting a masters degree at the same school in computational science (also through the math dept.). I would probably make my interdisciplinary emphasis physics so it would be like a math modeling / computational physics masters degree. Does anyone think this is a wise or unwise decision? I have done some extensive searching online and basically every job post in modeling and comp. sci requires a phd and they all seem to be connected to universities, can someone enlighten me on my likely prospects with this type of degree, as of right now it seems like a pretty bad idea job prospect wise. Thanks.

[DrRocket]

Poopsilon, on 11 January 2012 - 05:15 AM, said:

So basically I have my undergraduate degree in math and I have the option to spend another two years getting a masters degree at the same school in computational science (also through the math dept.). I would probably make my interdisciplinary emphasis physics so it would be like a math modeling / computational physics masters degree. Does anyone think this is a wise or unwise decision? I have done some extensive searching online and basically every job post in modeling and comp. sci requires a phd and they all seem to be connected to universities, can someone enlighten me on my likely prospects with this type of degree, as of right now it seems like a pretty bad idea job prospect wise. Thanks.

As always, I recommend following your interests. If you are doing something that truly intersts you, you are likely to be good at it.

That said, if you are thinking in terms of how industry would view such a degree then I can say a couple of things, which might seem contradictory. 1) Industry tends not to understand non-traditional degrees very well. Thus you may well receive a cool reception in and industrial interview. 2) Industry doesn't really care all that much about what it says on a diploma, so long as it is not fraudulent, if they believe that the holder of the degree can make a significant contribution to the enterprise. So, if you can convince them that you can do something that will be of value to them, then they will hire you.

So, your problem will be in convincing someone that you can contribute to the company. That would probably be easier with a traditional degree that says "engineering" or "computer science", but if you really know what you can do and can explain it to an interviewer you can overcome the initial problem of lack of understanding of your degree. Once you have been hired what counts is what you do, and no one will ever remember or care what the diploma said.

Academia is a different ball of wax. But even there what you produce is more important that what your diploma says. Eugene Wigner had a degree in chemical engineering -- and a Nobel Prize in physics.