I took both paths. First I went to a technical school (Brown Institute) and got a programming certificate in 7 months and become marketable. With this I was able to stay employed and later afford to get my BS degree at Northwestern College.

The tech school gave me programming skills, the BS degree got me in the door for interviews.

Both have been valuable.

John R. Morency
763 546-2137

The benefit of a tech intstitution is speed of entry. They can get you into the field in a year or two. College/university can be quite longer, and even with a degree, might not get you where you want. To top off a tech program, get a certification. CompTIA has several street-level certs (A+, Net+, Security+, etc.) that probably go a long way for entry into field. I hesitate to call them entry-level certs.
When money is no object (either due to your income or your employer), go for the “core” certs like MCSE, MCSA, CCNA, RHCE, and so on. Use them to demonstrate what you know. IMHO, certs should be a proof of knowlege and experience, not something to go to class and bootcamps to get (sadly, this is not the typical story). These certs prove what you know and what you have done. The elite certs like CISSP, CCIE, CISM, CISA and so on are very specialized and require specific proof of experience and knowlege as well as minimum time in those roles. These are (some of) the certs to get ahead and lead with.

Also with all schools, check to see what their placement outcomes are like – where their graduates go, do and make.

Again, I say this with your goal of upper management in mind. If your goal were to be a technician in the long term, then the technical school would probably be more beneficial to you.

I graduated from ECPI.
I made a career change at 28 and needed a fast track into the IT field. I chose ECPI because their credits transferred (most of them) at the 4 year universities I spoke with and had an accredited 2 year Associated degree. Plus they had a fast track where you could graduate in about a year and a half. I also got my A+ and MCP certs during my time at ECPI to go along with the 2 year degree.

I then got a full time entry level job in the IT field, gaining valuable on the job experience while completing my Bachelor’s at night. I am now a Director in IT.

It was a long process (8 years in total) and a lot of hard work but has truly paid off.

Assess your situation. Can you afford to go to a university for 4 years full time? Are you older and want to make a career change? Then figure out a plan. If technical college then get a list of classes you will take, go to a local/online university where you might complete your Bachelor’s and show them the classes and ask. Will the credits transfer? Which ones won’t? If some credits won’t transfer maybe the technical college will let you change the classes to ones that will? Colleges have flexibility. They want your business/money!

Make sure you have a long range plan, goals to attain. That will keep you focused on what is important.

Frankly, if you’re heading for upper management (and CIO is on that list), even a four-year degree won’t be enough. You’ll need some graduate education on top of a bachelor’s, and given your interests both a master’s in a technical field (like CS, MIS, IT, etc.) and an MBA wouldn’t be out of the question.

Advancing to the top levels of management usually takes most people, even fast-trackers, 10-15 years to achieve. I say this because you have time to take the interim steps necessary to move yourself in that direction. But I believe strongly you should not only go to the best university you can afford for undergraduate education, but also plan on pursuing graduate education at the best institution you can afford there, too.

If you’re lucky you’ll get on with employers who’ll grant tuition support to help you get more educated as you advance up the career ladder. But even if that’s not the case, it’s still worthwhile pursuing multiple degrees because they really do open a lot of doors.

How do I know this? Because I attended an Ivy League school, I now recognize more than 30 years after graduating that it got me a lot of opportunities I never would have had otherwise. And even though my MA is in anthropology, it got me hired in the 1980s at Schlumberger Research, where an MA is required to get a job interview.
It really DOES make a difference, and I can attest to that not only from observing and advising people in IT, but also from my own personal experience.

HTH and good luck with your career planning and development.

–Ed–

Ed Tittel 2207 Klattenhoff Dr, Austin, TX 78728-5480
Series Editor, Que Exam Cram 2 & Training Guides
Technology Editor, Certification Magazine
Editor/Writer: “Must Know News” CramSession.com
Expert Q&A/content for 6 TechTarget.com Web sites

From browsing the responses I’ll probably just be reitterating what has already been said, but here’s my two cents anyway.

The best educational path for you is really going to depend on you. What are your short and long term goals, what is your comfort level with taking classes, how much time (and money) do you have budgeted for education.

If your long term goal is upper management, then by far an acredited University will have the best programs and carry the most weight in today’s job market. The down side is University requires a longer commitment of time and money as you will be required to take several non-IT related courses (English, Social Sciences, etc.) which are requirements of a degree.

If your goal is a fast path into the job market, then technical schools especially those that offer the certification paths are a good choice.

Since the IT world changes so rapidly, it’s not a bad idea to set both short and long term goals for yourself meaning maybe take a shorter certification path so that you can become marketable in IT, then once you have a foot in the door and are employeed in the field, then work toward your University degree. This way not only can you pace your self to get the most out of your classes, but by working your gaining vital on the job experience which in my opionion, is by far the best education.

As for schools, I am not familiar with ECPI but in Michigan ITT and DeVry both hold great reputations and degrees from either are worth having. As for University, well there are many options out there which all seem to have good IT degree programs as well as a variety of methods to complete the course work ranging from the traditional classroom to the more modern on-line studies.

As long as you have a plan and are committed you should do just fine!

Good Luck!