JOIN USA degree in computer applications gives ample scope for an excellent career development, writes Santosh Katti .
One program, which is a three year degree (one year less than Engineering) with various course of studies, suitable for any kind of career is, the Bachelor of Computer Application (BCA). Even though, the course content varies from one University to another, a major portion of it gives ample opportunities and scope for an excellent career development.
BCA may not be the final solution, but it is surely the best ladder to take you to the top of your career. It can help you achieve and realise your goal with a more realistic and practical approach.
BCA comprises of four divisions :
n Soft skills& Personality Development, n Basic Mathematics & Logic building, n Core computing technologies andn Project work (applying knowledge).
Most of the institutions follow this routine structure. To encourage students to take up career of their choice, some institutes in private universities have introduced certificate courses. Since, the Universities can update the syllabus, new subjects can be introduced at par with industry requirements. This can help students to keep abreast with changing technologies.
The following justification may inspire a lot of students aspiring for a non-Engineering IT career. This will also guide a lot of students to become aware of such a course which can be a stepping stone to any career of their choice.
n First, a large number of IT companies are diverting their choice from BE graduates to BCA graduates, because they claim that, BCA graduates are capable of doing the most kind of jobs that BE graduates have been doing so far. A significant point is, there are a lot of opportunities and demand in the IT industry specifically for BCA graduates, who will be sharing the work along with Engineering graduates on the same projects.
This point also gives an impression that, BCA graduates are more reliable for the jobs they have been recruited for. The Companies will start recruiting BCA freshers as soon as they step into their fifth semester. Further, the number of Engineering graduates every year in Karnataka State is counted in lakhs and their employability is hardly 15 to 20 percent. The rest of the Engineering graduates will be doing the jobs in which they are not specialised.
n Second, if you have an inclination towards Computers, you will have a lot of fun time which can fulfil your desires in three years.
n Third, a few core subjects coupled with a few certificate courses, delivers a lot of skills to elevate your interests in developing gaming software and animation. Such specialised certificate courses come handy to a BCA student over other non-IT degree student.
n Fourth, if you are looking for a descent job in software industry immediately after the BCA degree, you require developing that extra bit of programming skills. That can lead you to jobs like software developer, software test engineer etc. Further, you can also find jobs like Technical support engineer, Technical Writer, Web Designer, Software Sales Engineer and many more.
n Fifth, a few core subjects on computer networks coupled with network certifications like Cisco certified CCNA, Microsoft certified MCSE etc., can provide high paid challenging jobs and research options in Networking domain as Network Engineer, Server Administrator etc., at various levels.
n Sixth, the workshops conducted periodically on various newer technologies include Mobile Application (Apps) development, device independent programming languages, cloud computing, etc. Students are encouraged to develop mobile applications, Robot building, Web-designing and other interesting domains, outside their regular course-work. These mini projects will be a value addition in their Resume for a bright future. Any smart project may also attract Top-tier companies like Google, Facebook, Yahoo and many more, to hire you.
Seventh, if you are not a core programmer, and you still are passionate about computers, any job under the sun that requires / uses computer technologies can be yours. For instance, Banks, Fashion Designing, Sound Engineering, Advertising, Marketing, Billing & Inventory, BPO's and many other industries at various verticals, need Computers and knowledge of Computer Applications. BCA graduate has all these options open and calling.
A graduate from BCA is also eligible to join armed forces like Army, Navy and Air-force by applying for Combined Defence Services (CDS) entrance examination.Eighth, if you have a dashing plan to set-up your own enterprise, BCA degree will give that technological edge for what an entrepreneur should have. BCA, can be a foundation for pursuing MBA with a technological back-up.
As icing on the cake, the top IT companies hire BCA graduates and also encouraging them to pursue their post-graduation, MS degree from BITS-Pilani or Vellore Institute of Technology, which are fully sponsored. This will give a leading edge to BCA students to start an IT career and also continue with their higher studies from prestigious institutions. It not only gives a handsome job with salary, but also the required Post-graduation from reputed Universities and most important, experience.
A few well known colleges provide Certificate courses, some of them are mandatory and some of them are optional. Industry visits are organized for students to understand the industry culture. Some colleges conduct regular workshops, certified courses on networking, mobile application development and IT-Fests which are very popular among the student community.