Going back to uni to study computers

Hi all,

I know that there are quite a few IT guys here so I'm wondering if any of you could offer me some advice. I'm thinking of going back to university to do a degree in computer science as I'm almost 40, just had a baby and need a bigger flat. I teach yoga, build bike wheels and do freelance web design but even though it's enough to maintain my lifestyle it's not enough to move up the property ladder.

What advice? Which university to attend. Thoughts on course content and job prospects. Seems like java and C# are the ones to learn but is a lot of the work being outsourced nowadays? I don't want to have to relocate from London but will do if the course is really good and has great prospects. I have a BSc in Chemisty from about 20 years ago which I reckon should be fine as far as entry requirements go.

Ah, the end of the laid back lifestyle, but have to think about my pension.

Thanks in advance.

Hi Arup,

I did a part time MSC in Computer Science at Birkbeck. 2 -3 evenings per week for 2 years. Its a very good course, excellent teachers and a good university.

I was already working as a Java developer when I started the course, so I found it easy to get promoted etc as I had quite a bit of experience which really is the main thing in the IT industry. However, almost all the people on the course managed to land pretty decent developer roles when the course was over.

If you want to train in specific technologies I would say look into Java, but above and beyond that, the high demand technologies right now are Spring, (AOP etc) Hibernate and AJAX.

I would not bother with C#, although I would say that, being an advocate of open source software and all.