Fascinated by many things, but particularly focusing on history, literature, computer science, and chemistry in high school, Frank entered UBC and elected to study political science.
“I was interested in how people work together in a variety of settings and I wanted to understand how to apply what I was learning to some of the many social problems facing the world.”
Finding much to like in his studies at UBC’s Department of Political Science, he helped launch and become an assistant editor at the peer-reviewed UBC Journal of Political Studies. Frank spent his third year at UBC on exchange at the University of Nottingham. Taking that year expanded his outlook and offered new avenues for exploration and learning. By this time he was becoming increasingly interested in political philosophy and had begun contemplating graduate school.
Complicating his decision was the fact that computer science was exerting a draw on his interests again. While studying at UBC, Frank had developed his programming skills by designing and maintaining various websites while working as a political science research assistant. Though he enjoyed this experience a great deal, he felt limited in what he could do.
“I knew HTML and CSS, but I really didn’t know much at all about how to build a fully-functional web application, with all its technologies, databases, web programming languages, and servers.” This was frustrating, as he’d begun to really enjoy his role in managing websites and facilitating online communication and in applying what he was learning in political science to these online realms.
Mulling over his post-graduate options, he ran across a flyer for UBC’s Bachelor of Computer Science (Integrated Computer Science) Second-Degree Program (BCS). Frank saw that the program could help him gain the computing skills necessary to engage with online technology. He entered the program in 2005 and from the start found it exciting and challenging. What he found very appealing in BCS was its ability to deliver to students a first-rate co-op work experience. Frank did two co-op terms during the program, one with Business Objects (now SAP-Business Objects) and another with OneMove. Tying together what he learned in class and his co-op terms, Frank was now able to work in new programming languages, such as C# and Visual FoxPro, to design database schemas, and work on frontend development in HTML, CSS and JavaScript.
After graduating, Frank was hired by TELUS as a Developer/Analyst and enrolled in TELUS’ Business Transformation Leadership Development Program, a program oriented toward recent computer science and computer engineering graduates. There, new employees work on various short-term projects that take classroom knowledge and apply it to the workplace.
Frank’s experience with the BCS program has helped situate him in an exciting place in the marketplace of technology and ideas. “The BCS program is a standout. It’s a relatively quick investment of your time and it can be tailored to your own interests. In my experience, companies treat the BCS degree as they would any other computer science degree, so having it makes a person very marketable. IT skills are relevant everywhere these days and many of those skills are transferable between jobs as well. What’s more, starting salaries are quite high across the industry. All in all, the program sets you up for a lot of opportunity in the future.”
Arts students interested in Computer Science have several options at UBC. Students can major in Computer Science (BA) or incorporate Computer Science courses into their degree. Alternatively, students can obtain a Bachelor’s of Computer Science (Integrated Computer Science) as a second undergraduate degree (BCS). Visit the Department of Computer Sciences website for more information.
Read more about other students’ journeys in the BCS program here, or potential careers in Computer Science here.
