Did you go to University / College? Does it matter? - Developers

i'm in uni right now majoring in CS (first year), and it does help me learn better practices, but i've still learned more on my own so far. however, i have no idea what i want to do out of college, and that's what i'm really here for, to figure that out.

As far as education is concerned, how much it matters is dependent on you. Personally, I didn't learn anything new or useful that changed how I approached programming. However, in terms of job acquisition, it most definitely matters, no doubt about it. Conversely, if anyone wants to argue that you can get a computer science job without a degree based off of anecdotal evidence, you should probably stop. Sure, there are people that can get well-paying jobs without degrees in a lot of fields, but the second you perpetuate a statement along the lines of "if you know how to program, you don't need to go to school!", you're spreading misinformation which can prove harmful to a programmer's professional aspirations. The degree is a formality and tends to be a requirement at most reputable companies, don't speak otherwise just because Joe Schmo got lucky and made a start-up with no degree.

Thanks for the replies everyone, I am deciding that I should go to University and see how it goes, I'm thinking that having a degree is definitely a good thing, and will help getting a high paying job. As some of you said, it may not be the best for learning something new, but it's an experience that is good and will give you something to put on a resume that looks good. Thanks guys, it's been really good hearing from peoples perspectives.

[QUOTE=AnonTakesOver;47290601]Thanks for the replies everyone, I am deciding that I should go to University and see how it goes, I'm thinking that having a degree is definitely a good thing, and will help getting a high paying job. As some of you said, it may not be the best for learning something new, but it's an experience that is good and will give you something to put on a resume that looks good. Thanks guys, it's been really good hearing from peoples perspectives.[/QUOTE] My advice, don't force yourself into a field just for more money / because you started in that major. Take a little extra time / a little money to try things our until you find yourself engrossed in. Like staying up until 3am with your peers to solve some bullshit problem you swear must be a trick and laugh about it. Also, network as much as you can while there. Talk to professors / faculty you like after class, join clubs and shit related to things that interest you or that have cool people in them. This is especially important if you ever need letters of recommendation. Do not skip class unless you are really sick, even if it is a shitty prof with a boring topic. I saw people fail a pass/fail, one day a week, "welcome to uni 101" type course just because they didn't feel like going. Even if it seems easy, study for an hour or two each day across all the subjects - even if it is just reviewing that day's notes. Obviously some days / weeks will require LOTS of study, but one to two hours per day is a minimum - practice problems in addition where needed. Go full time, try to live on campus if possible (or very close to campus). Commuting sucks and makes is really hard to do a lot of the things above. Well, those are my words of advice. I don't know if they are 100% good but hopefully they help.

[QUOTE=AnonTakesOver;47290601] I'm thinking that having a degree is definitely a good thing, and will help getting a high paying job.[/QUOTE] Not really. I left school when 16 passed with 10 GCSE at C. Currently manage a large ISP network and on a better wage than anyone I know who has been at Uni at my age. It all depends what field you want to go into.

From my own experiences I found that University isn't there to teach you, it's there to open your mind to new concepts and ideas; they expect you to do the learning. One of the benefits of a degree is you always have it and it'll always look good on your CV; even I know it can be tempting to not go for it because its another 3 years in education. Just putting it out there, if you want to get a degree but you want to get experience then either take a sandwich year or do your degree through the Open University from home and then work alongside it. Just ideas, but if you've any questions feel free to ask. [editline]11th March 2015[/editline] Also, for people (at least in the UK) saying that a degree is expensive, I think that's the worst excuse in the world. Sure, my university fees are £9,000 a year but that's covered by the government it doesn't matter even if you owed £100,000 you're not going to be paying a larger sum at a time back, instead you're just paying it over a longer period of time. It's such a small percentage of your salary too, if you earn over the threshold of £21,000pa then you only pay £30 a month. A tiny amount, when that degree could have been the deciding factor in you getting the job to start with. [editline]11th March 2015[/editline] [QUOTE=AnonTakesOver;47290601]Thanks for the replies everyone, I am deciding that I should go to University and see how it goes, I'm thinking that having a degree is definitely a good thing, and will help getting a high paying job. As some of you said, it may not be the best for learning something new, but it's an experience that is good and will give you something to put on a resume that looks good. Thanks guys, it's been really good hearing from peoples perspectives.[/QUOTE] I wrote my reply before seeing this post, I know I have already said it but if you're doing a course which permits a sandwich year then I would take it. Also take into account the name of the course, Computer Science sound better than Games Computing even if the modules your take in either course are pretty much the same.

[QUOTE=MatheusMCardoso;47246556]Go. You've got nothing to lose.[/QUOTE] [b]$ $ $[/b]

I do not go to college,nor can.I haven't been in school for 5 years.and my education was poor. Though I been determined as hell as of late 2014 to pick my tools to learn and create content. tbh,I just wish I can just learn how any coding for game making functions and can be set to function.Rather than just learning online or some scratch site every bit of mathematics over an over. And have a dictionary for words i don't get they mean. I know what ya might say"You maybe way over your head","that being said,you shouldn't learn programing","you need to find a different hobby then" Well.Look here.I have been Wanting or liking to make 3D games,as I see more potential charm to them.And the fact with what could be achieved.Even if its the most standard 3d game to date that don't bring out much.I feel If I can pull it off.I can do something that others don't try. I have concepts written and some bits drawn. ITs giving me hell with the learning certain software ,some i want more but need to save up with commissions(im a hobbyist.) and hardware(current pc is garbage.Cant afford another at this time.yet.) I do not aim to make full final games or something,just small alphas,betas,and poorly modeled,textured "exercises" (anything gose long as it functions,and is kept simple,just a practice,not a actual game.) Even applies to me making mods.... Sofar.I am Gonna for the time being push.Even if idk the roads pathways well due to lack of knowing my patch choice.

Yes I did go, and from my perspective if it matters or not depends on who you are. If you have an idea of what you want to do with your life then no, it doesn't matter. If you have absolutely no idea of what you want to do with your life then university is a nice path to go to while you wait to decide. I picked Computer Science because when I finished school I had no idea what I wanted to do, but I spent a lot of time in front of a computer and I was good at math, so I thought that CS was just the natural thing to choose. It turned out really well, I learned to program and I got a very clear vision of what I wanted to do with my life from it, so it was an experience that worked out. However, if I went in already knowing how to program and already having an idea of what I wanted to do then it would have been a huge waste of time, like, massive waste of time. And CS is one of the "best" courses to not waste time on in terms of actually learning useful stuff, so I can only imagine how much of a waste of time other majors can be. The point is, if you have absolutely no idea and you have nothing else you want to do with your life then just go with the flow and pick something that you think you'll like. Maybe you end up liking it, maybe you don't. The important thing is !!!!FINDING YOUR PATH!!!!, the thing you really like doing in life. University is just one possible way (that doesn't always work) to find that thing.

I'm in uni, and even though I had ~2 years of prior programming experience, I still went. I knew I wanted to major in CS, but I didn't know [I]exactly[/I] what field of CS I wanted to be in. I hope Uni helps this. My dream job is a game engine / game logic programmer, but I think that's a bit of a reach, and not really 'secure' as a goal. [editline]14th March 2015[/editline] Also I love math and I LOVE learning higher level maths in uni.

[QUOTE=adnzzzzZ;47324005]Yes I did go, and from my perspective if it matters or not depends on who you are. If you have an idea of what you want to do with your life then no, it doesn't matter. If you have absolutely no idea of what you want to do with your life then university is a nice path to go to while you wait to decide. I picked Computer Science because when I finished school I had no idea what I wanted to do, but I spent a lot of time in front of a computer and I was good at math, so I thought that CS was just the natural thing to choose. It turned out really well, I learned to program and I got a very clear vision of what I wanted to do with my life from it, so it was an experience that worked out. However, if I went in already knowing how to program and already having an idea of what I wanted to do then it would have been a huge waste of time, like, massive waste of time. And CS is one of the "best" courses to not waste time on in terms of actually learning useful stuff, so I can only imagine how much of a waste of time other majors can be. The point is, if you have absolutely no idea and you have nothing else you want to do with your life then just go with the flow and pick something that you think you'll like. Maybe you end up liking it, maybe you don't. The important thing is !!!!FINDING YOUR PATH!!!!, the thing you really like doing in life. University is just one possible way (that doesn't always work) to find that thing.[/QUOTE] couldent said that better.Im doing that.Following what I can.and learning what I need to know for what I am into doing.

[QUOTE=DarkZero779;47323852]I do not go to college,nor can.I haven't been in school for 5 years.and my education was poor. Though I been determined as hell as of late 2014 to pick my tools to learn and create content. tbh,I just wish I can just learn how any coding for game making functions and can be set to function.Rather than just learning online or some scratch site every bit of mathematics over an over. And have a dictionary for words i don't get they mean. I know what ya might say"You maybe way over your head","that being said,you shouldn't learn programing","you need to find a different hobby then" Well.Look here.I have been Wanting or liking to make 3D games,as I see more potential charm to them.And the fact with what could be achieved.Even if its the most standard 3d game to date that don't bring out much.I feel If I can pull it off.I can do something that others don't try. I have concepts written and some bits drawn. ITs giving me hell with the learning certain software ,some i want more but need to save up with commissions(im a hobbyist.) and hardware(current pc is garbage.Cant afford another at this time.yet.) I do not aim to make full final games or something,just small alphas,betas,and poorly modeled,textured "exercises" (anything gose long as it functions,and is kept simple,just a practice,not a actual game.) Even applies to me making mods.... Sofar.I am Gonna for the time being push.Even if idk the roads pathways well due to lack of knowing my patch choice.[/QUOTE] I'll stress that I'm not trying to belittle you or anything, I just want to help. Maybe you should take an English course or at least study it a bit. It's pretty important to have good literacy if you ever want to get anywhere in game development. Your spelling is ok, you just need to work on your grammar. Some quick observations you might want to work on: Commas and periods need a space after them. [quote] I do not go to college, nor can I. [/quote] Work on words that are contractions. [quote] I'm not Im, it's vs its. [/quote] [editline]15th March 2015[/editline] As for myself, I had 4 years programming experience prior to majoring in Software Development at Uni of which I am in my second year. The 4 years of experience makes a lot of the course a breeze but I still think it's worth it, Uni life is interesting and I get to try out new things like Maths and Mandarin.

[QUOTE=AnonTakesOver;47244804]I've read a few articles about how Uni is a waste of time, and you should just go and find a job. I'm in year 11 right now, and I'm stressing over classes and the realization that although I'm near the end, it's going to seem like a very hard and long time to get to the end of year 12, than there will be Uni. So, what did you guys do? What do you do for a living? Do you enjoy it? Do you regret going/not going to Uni? I need help guys.[/QUOTE] I saw you already made up your mind, but I'll answer anyway :v: I think the answer to your question depends on your own intentions. Studying at university is of course not a requirement to become a good programmer or even get a good job. In fact you may still be a shitty programmer after finishing university studies. But getting a degree significantly raises your chances to get a job. That's one of the reasons I'm going to uni. Studies at university has has also allowed me to touch the more "scientific" side of Computer Science and opens up doors to research related work which may be incredibly cool if you're into that kind of stuff.