A stream is a series of area-specific courses that you take as part of your degree. It allows you to specialize in a particular field of study. If you intend to apply for a job within a particular field corresponding to one of our streams, then the stream will allow you to be more prepared/trained for that field of work. Some streams begin in first year, allowing you to take a stream-specific course during each year of the program. Other streams have course-specific requirements that only begin in third year.
- Do I Need to Choose a Stream?
No. If you do not choose a stream, you will still come out of the 20 credit program with a Bachelor of Computer Science degree. There are plenty of elective courses that allow you to tailor your degree to cover a variety of different topics. You do not need to be in the stream to take most stream-related courses, provided that there are no restrictions and that there is space for you in the course. Keep in mind, however, that some courses are restricted to students registered into a particular stream. Selecting a stream will help to guarantee that you will be able to take those required stream-related courses.
- How Do Prospective Employers View a Stream?
Taking a stream will allow you to specialize in a particular area. If that area matches the area of an employer, you may be better suited for that particular job. For example, having a degree with a Software Engineering stream designation will tell a prospective employer that you have a bit of a specialty in that area, so it may provide a slight advantage in getting your resume closer to the top of the pile for a job that requires a focus on software engineering. But then again, an “A+” student without that stream is better than a “B” student with that stream, since all students do courses in software engineering anyway. Therefore, high grades are likely more valuable than a stream designation.
Share: Twitter, Facebook
Short URL:
https://carleton.ca/scs/?p=1549