Comment by speedplane
6 years ago
University CS programs are designed to produce professors, not programmers. Many students who graduate from these programs and go into software development are over-qualified. Many students that flunk out of them have their careers needlessly derailed for a few years.
Well, for what it's worth, I am now a programmer by trade.
I took a silly path and spent all my 20s in school, largely working on a PhD in English while I raised my kids.
> I am now a programmer by trade. I took a silly path and spent all my 20s in school, largely working on a PhD in English while I raised my kids ...
"silly path"? What exactly did you miss out on? Raising children is one of life's great joys. Working towards an English PhD (regardless of whether you obtained one), provides a unique experience that many dream of.
Would you trade that for a few extra years of a larger salary at a tech company? Sure, maybe you would be making 20% more now, but would that give you a significantly different life? It sounds like you used your time as a "CS dropout" wisely, or at least productively.
I'm more concerned for folks who drop out of unnecessarily challenging technical degrees and end up working at fast food shops for ten years, when they can be doing something far more gratifying and lucrative.
I think that most people here would think I took a sub-optimal path.
It hasn't been until the last couple of years that my undergrad degree in Philosophy started to pay off.
But yeah, it's not a bad life.
And you're right about CS education, in general.