MIS from US or Government job in India?

S

sahib

Disciple
Hi fellows,

Now i've been working in the ' Indian IT' industry for an year after graduation and was planning to change my course of direction. I had appeared for GRE and got a decent score and wanted to pursue management of Information Systems which is a blend of technical and management insights.Now i chose this course because of the simple fact that i am not interested in coding profile. I certainly believe that my career trajectory would not be benifited by coding job so i chose MIS for soemthing that would deal with IT but not coding primarily.Now my fellow colleagues have appeared for SSC (Staff Selection Commission) which recruits in Income Tax,CBI ,MEA and other government departments. This has got me thinking as SSC exam involves LR,Quant,English and other topics which i think i am pretty good and can definitely crack the exam.It is alucrative option as it has great sets of advantages going its way.But amongst the 'options' that i have created for myself (yes!earlier it was only MIS),i am perplexed.Both have sets of Pros and Cons .
MIS from USA
Pros
1. Living in USA sounds great specially the kind of environment and standards they have.
2. Gets me into Analysts/BTA profile which sounds interesting although i am not sure about the work inloved.
3. US of A!
4. Earning in dollars mean great income.

Cons

1. Great risk involved in terms of money.Its HUGE!
2. Job security. I mean whatever people say "believe in your talent" and stuff,at the end of the day you are a foreigner in a alien land with volatile economic situations lingering everywhere.
3. Life is tough but that is not a big issue.

SSC

1. The position and respect.
2. Money is not that bad as well. I mean it cant be compared to dollar earnings but then it is good amount for living in India.
3. Job security!!
4. State+Central benefits are good.Pension plans and PF etc etc.
5. Working for government organisation means a predefined career growth. Now that is a positive as well as a negative.For me it is a positive.

Cons
1. Public offices are rife with politics and red tape.
2. Cant ignore corruption or your life ends in transfers from one state to another.

Now with this analysis i would also like to add that after working for an year, i am sure i dont want to take coding as a career plan. But i am also not very sure what i want to do either!
Inputs to really solve the already obfuscated matter would me much appreciated. I mean all the time in office,house even while asleep this confusion bogs my mind. Whatever needs to be done ,needs to be done fast!

TIA
 
Develop a secondary skill-set that will guarantee good opportunities in US.

Are you considering Maryland for MIS ? It's easier to get there but the I'd recommend that you go for the more mainstream degrees considering you are not going to take chances.

What's your GRE score ? I too gave GRE 2 year back, got 1450 but haven't applied yet due to some personal issues.
 
psygeist said:
Develop a secondary skill-set that will guarantee good opportunities in US.

Are you considering Maryland for MIS ? It's easier to get there but the I'd recommend that you go for the more mainstream degrees considering you are not going to take chances.

What's your GRE score ? I too gave GRE 2 year back, got 1450 but haven't applied yet due to some personal issues.
Click to expand...
I have a score of 315 in new pattern with 4.0 awa. Maryland has lil or no street cred for MIS. I wasnt considering it an option.And what exactly do you mean by mainstream?

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v.Na5h said:
You missed one biggest con of SSC
3. Competiton!! esp for general category
Click to expand...
But then competition is everywhere!Competition in packages,positions,universities and every effing step!
The advantage in this competition is that you can very well make it if you have clarity in Quant aptitude and English as they are the primary subjects.
 
I believe MIS is a great career path now days for people going into techno-management profiles.Consultants and analysts pursue this degree AFAIK.MS in CS would again take me to a career am not interested in .Seniors please pour in your comments.
 
If 'coding' is what is bothering you, why not take a side-step? You should consider testing roles, or system/network administration. IMHO, getting into a 'sarkari' job will likely destroy whatever technical skills you do possess.
 
^^Well i certainly think the skill set in the INDIAN IT Industry are sub standard at most of the places.Even in one year all i've learnt is google and CTRL+C and CTRL+V. Can someone comment on the situation of MS grads in US?Also how is the life out there?I've had mixed reactions from my college seniors.Also how well does clearing SSC fare in comparison to someone slogging in MS?
Some vague questions out there i know,but i am all obfuscated.
 
^ Don't take me the wrong way, but you are comparing apples to oranges. I can't think why you would compare working in a government sector to working in the private sector. It is not a matter of appearing for exams, which are similar according to you. That is just the first step. It's what you will be doing for 20-30 years after that what matters.

It seems that you are quite familiar with the pros and cons of both. It would be better if you first decide where you want to work and what you want to do and then worry about cracking the competitive exams.

PS: You feel that the Indian I.T. sector is sub-par? Why not take a shot at getting into the good companies like Google, Microsoft and other U.S. MNCs? I can vouch for the fact that you will find that an interesting and challenging journey.
 
I f you are absolutely sure you will be able to pick up a job in the States after completing the MIS, there is nothing like it. Not saying this cause the US of A is every Indian's dream, but see the conditions here. They are totally shiat. And it is going to get worse. Go abroad, live a better life, earn better, and get paid for what you do. Have security of life, your offspring will have nice schooling, and you will not have to worry about a ton of things, which we all do. And that alien abroad thing, is nothing. When you pine for India, just fly back. :)

Also not fair to compare Indian government jobs to working abroad. Apples to oranges. It is what you really want to do, and achieve in life. You are thinking long term which is nice.
 
^^@asinghI'll apply to top Universities and would surely get through and hence land a job as to what i believe.
But then the kind of lives that is looming over private sector makes me a little wary in making a decision. IT's like pressure cooker syndrome prevailing everywhere.Project Managers o analysts to developers all have a very stressed out lives.That is something bothers me as i believe in living life which involves the minimal situations which can take toll on one's lives.Public sector would precisely provide something of that sort. but then the standard of living and conditions in US changes the equation equally. Please am just trying to exploit the ideas from a free forum to the fullest where people from various professions mingle together.I am no visionary but i like to do calculations before hand always.Please keep the suggestions flowing so that something would definitely strike a chord for me and hence a conclusion can be made.
 
^ Again, it is really a very personal decision.

Some people love the challenges of working in the private sector. There are plenty of jobs wherein you can manage the work-life balance yourself. That again, is a personal decision but I am not going to get into that.

There is not going to be much scope of innovation in a government job; though it might be challenging nonetheless.

Rather than listing the pros and cons objectively, you should list it subjectively, for yourself and take a decision. Once you do, stick to it and I am very sure you will do quite well.
 
I completely agree with what others are saying. It's a personal choice and you'll have to opt for the one that interests you the most. After all, that might be something you'll end up doing for the rest of your life. Don't let the stress and pressure associated with the work discourage you. Pressure and stress is everywhere, and you'll face it even if you choose either one.

Another thing I would like to mention is that - MIS does not mean freedom from coding. If that is your prenotion, then very well get rid of it, because you, my friend, will be sorely disappointed. I can say that because I have completed my MS in MIS. But in the end, everything boils down to the job that you finally secure. Business Analyst/Business Technology analyst is a very vague term here. A BA at x company might be responsible just for analytical and requirements gathering work, but a BA at y company might be involved in hardcore coding.

Do a thorough research of all the universities, courses offered. Check out the course structure that best aligns with your line of interest. Get in touch with seniors at those universities, heed to what they advise and trust me, it helps considerably. Grad Life is tough, but not impossible. It is going to be very different from the education back in India, but you'll manage. You'll have to be all on your own. I worked graveyard shifts at a cafe on-campus and spent 8 hours standing and doing labor work all night only to go and appear for a class quiz the next morning. It is going to be rough and time management is going to be the key factor. I managed to get a graduate assistantship and got a fee waiver and the salary was enough to feed my basic luxurious neccesities :p It is going to completely change you.

As for life here in US, I hate it. :bleh: You might not come across many people who say this, but I just cant live away from my family and friends. My parents don't want to settle in US and I don't want to settle without them. So I am going to get my much needed experience, pack my bags and head back to my very own INDIA very soon. Infact, I have already strated planning for it. If you can you'll adjust, but if you can't then you simply cant. ;) But to each his own and its how I think. Maybe I can't bear the silence here when my FnF are busy celebrating festivals in India. :lol: All in all a great journey.


As far as SSC is concerned, I cannot comment, just because I dont know anything about it. :unsure:

Hope this helps, if you are not already asleep by the time you reach the end! :p
 
@virtua_pirate[FONT=Verdana, Segoe UI, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif] may i know your grad school?And whatever you said was not boring at all. In fact i woke up in the morning and checked your comments and they were truly eye openers.Well to be honest,like any other fresh grad i really don't know what i want to do!In one year at my shitty work place the matters have further got tangled.Maybe i got exposed to an environment that isn't suited for freshers but i am not complaining. The cost of studies is too much and for someone who doesn't know where to align his career is like a little too much of an risk isnt it?Also how is the job situations for MIS grads in US?And add to that how is the work atmosphere?I know i get involved a little too deeply in matters but it's better to do calculations before hand i believe.[/FONT]
 
I pursued my MS in MIS from University of Arizona - Eller College of Management. I completely understand and can empathize what you are going through right now, because I was myself in the same situation. Well, the cost is high, but then you have Graduate Assistantships to take care of the expenses. I remember doing a thorough research about each university's GA/GTA scene since expenses were a priority for me as well. Like I said, seniors are the key here. Edulix is a place to be for this (if you are not already aware of it). With a detailed plan and even better execution, you may very well end up recovering your fees even before you graduate. :) But you might not get a GA and would have to recover from your salary. All is want to say is that research wisely on each university and calculate the return on investment.

Job situation actually depends. Depends on the location, depends on your profile, the hardwork you put in the job-hunt, how persistant you are and definitely luck to some extent. But nevertheless it has improved by leaps and bounds in the past 1 year. Work atmosphere also depends and is very subjective. But overall, definitely ought to be better than India.

Where I work we have fun fridays, fun games, PS3 and Nitendo WII :p, amazing co-workers - very friendly and outgoing. My internship experience was kind of mixed - very casual atmosphere, but not much of games and casual interaction. So it will depend on where you end up. I wanted a semi-coding job kind of techno-functional but ended up in totally functional role, but guess what - I am enjoying it. You never know when your interests might change. And there are tons of options, so get in touch with people on different forum, know about different profiles that you can get into, explore them, shortlist them and kind of go on from there.

I dont want to give you a rosy picture, there are other things that frustrate you or depress you - homesickness, no time for yourself and sleep :p, doing all the chores yourself right from cooking, laundry, cleaning, working, studying, etc. But then, you get everything as a package. Don't think it will be a cake walk but it wont be impossible either. Your friends might get job early on where as you might not even get a single interview call - but everything works out if you work hard. Have a neutral standpoint and start afresh is what I would say :)

Finally I would like to say that dont let anybody's opinion (including mine) to affect you. Its a personal choice - weigh everything and take a calculated decision. You cant come to this thread if you land up in US, dont get a job (god forbid) and come here and bash me :bleh:

ATB ;)
 
@virtua_pirate thanks for your opinions! I imbibed it all with a pinch of salt :). @Tanuj i guess job security is a very subjective term . if someone has the knowledge and skills to present them,they kind of become recession proof.
 
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