classes that cover probability, hardware classes for low-level programming and memory storage, software classes for designing algorithms, and higher level classes that cover advanced topics such as artificial intelligence and networking.
TABLE 2-1 CS Select Core Curriculum at Stanford and Penn State
Until recently, universities generally did not teach web programming courses. As web programming has increased in popularity, this has begun to change – for example, Stanford offers a web programming class (CS 142) that teaches HTML, CSS, and Ruby on Rails, and Penn State has a similar class that teaches web programming with Java.
As you look at the courses offered in the Stanford and Penn State CS programs, you’ll notice that the overwhelming majority speak to the theory of computer science and aren’t always used every day. For example, as a person interested in software development, you likely aren’t going to use much if any of your hardware systems courses. Note that some classes will be very relevant – algorithms and databases are two topics frequently used in web programming.
However, understanding the theory is useful. For example, database systems were initially created assuming that storage was expensive and the amount of data that needed to be stored would grow linearly. The reality turned out to be different – the cost of hardware plummeted and hard drives became bigger and cheaper, while people generated more data at a faster pace than ever before. Computer scientists, with a solid understanding of databases, took advantage of cheap hardware and created distributed databases, which store data across multiple computers instead of a single one.
Whether or not you should learn programming in college comes down to your goal. If you want to one day be in a position to change the industry or work on cutting-edge technology, the theory you learn studying computer science is without substitute or comparison. There are few other places where you can engage with a professional, in this case a professor, of a high caliber to push the limits of fundamental understanding. Also, specific programming languages and technologies are constantly changing, while the underlying concepts and theories stay the same. Python and Ruby, for example, are only 20 years old.
On the other hand, if your goal is to use these concepts to make a living in the industry instead of trying to change the industry, you could learn to code in a less expensive and less time-intensive way than obtaining a computer science degree.
Doing extracurricular activities
Many students complement their coursework by applying what they’ve learned in a tangible way. Your coursework will include project work, but projects assigned in class may not have changed in a few years to make it easier for the instructor to provide support and grade your work. Also, with so many technologies constantly popping up, using your coding skills outside the classroom will help build confidence and skill.
One option is to code side projects, which are personal coding projects that perform some small basic utility and can be built in a short amount of time, over a weekend to a few months at most. For example, not many people know that before Mark Zuckerberg built Facebook, he had coded many side projects, including an instant messaging client for his dad’s dental practice, an MP3 player that suggested the next song to listen to, and a tool that helped students choose their semester schedule based on which classes their friends were enrolling in. In another example, three students at Tufts University wanted an easy way to find the cheapest place to buy all their textbooks. They created a site called GetchaBooks, which lets students select the classes they would be taking in a semester and then retrieved the full list of books needed and the total prices across many stores to find the cheapest price. Although the site is no longer actively developed, all the code is open sourced and can be viewed either at getchabooks.com or github.com/getchabooks/getchabooks.
In addition to coding on your own, coding and discussing technology topics with others can be more engaging. On-campus clubs are usually formed by students and cater to almost every interest. You can find clubs on robotics, financial technologies such as bitcoin, technology investing from the venture capital stage to the public equities stage, and more.
The most intense extracurricular pursuit for a student is participating in hackathons. A hackathon is a one-day to weekend-long event with the goal of brainstorming, designing, and building a small useful app. Hackathons are most popular among students, who often stay up all night coding their apps, while the hosts are often technology companies. However, some of the largest hackathons, such as Cal Hacks, which is hosted by UC Berkeley, and PennApps, which is hosted by the University of Pennsylvania (see Figure 2-2), are organized by students and attended by thousands of students from schools around the country.
Credit: Andrew Mager via Flickr
FIGURE 2-2: Students show a mentor their mobile application at PennApps.
Two-year versus four-year school
You may not be able to afford the time, expense, or commitment demanded by a four-year degree. Even though some colleges offer financial aid, not earning money for four years or earning a far-reduced wage may not be feasible, especially if you have to support yourself or family members.
One alternative to the Bachelor of Arts (BA) degree is the Associate of Arts (AA) degree, which is typically granted by community colleges or technical schools. You can complete an AA degree in two years. In addition to taking less time, according to the College Board, tuition and fees are on average $3,200 per year, compared to $9,000 per year at public four-year institutions. Courses are also offered during evenings and on weekends, so students can work while attending school. When evaluating an institution that grants the AA degree, review the instructors teaching the courses and make sure they are experienced practitioners in the field. Additionally, see the types of jobs recent graduates went on to do and the employers they worked for to make sure that both match with your goals.
A close relative of the AA degree is a certificate granted by a school of continuing education. Certificates are noncredit offerings completed within a year. They usually cost less than $10,000 but don’t result in a degree. To get the most bang for your buck, get your certificate from a school with a good regional or even national reputation. For example, NYU has a Certificate in Web Development that teaches web development basics with HTML, CSS, and JavaScript along with more advanced topics such as PHP, a popular programming language for the web, and SQL, a language used to query databases. (See Figure 2-3.) Learning these topics in a structured way from an instructor can help jumpstart your learning so you can teach yourself additional topics on your own.
FIGURE 2-3: NYU’s Certificate in Web Development offers classes in SQL and PHP.
