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the rest of the time is yours, program as much as you want to program. On this point I disagree. I think that much of the value of college comes from things t
by mos1 17y ago
the rest of the time is yours, program as much as you want to program.
On this point I disagree. I think that much of the value of college comes from things that don't really seem valuable at the time: sports, clubs, experiences with friends, or even study groups. As such, I'd really recommend limiting the programming a bit, and forcing himself to engage with other students first, and program second.
And as a corollary to that, I'd recommend trying to find ways to get to know students who aren't other people with identical interests and socioeconomic backgrounds. The more one stays in one's bubble, the less one is going to get out of school.
"I am insufficiently motivated to do clearly beneficial things when they require non-trivial amounts of actual work.
This is huge. Absolutely huge.
I have very little interest in hiring somebody who thought, at age 18, that he knew everything college could teach him; nor one who could not spare the time to give himself such a clear advantage.
- jbarciauskas 17y agoIf there's one regret I have from college, and let it be known I have many, but of them all it's that I didn't join clubs and intramural sports from the beginning. I realized junior year what I was missing out on, and took an active role in the ACM, but I missed out on a whole set of potential experiences and relationships. It seemed stupid and I couldn't get over myself to go out on a limb and try something completely different and new. Boy was I wrong.
- jhancock 17y agoYep, I was lucky and got sucked into one club my first year, which led to another, and another (all nothing to do with my studies). It was very rewarding and my closest friends from college (20 years later) are the ones from these extra activities.
- rick_2047 17y agoI feel lucky that my college offers a robotics club (of which I surprisingly, even to me, a turn to man for circuits to solve interesting problems) and a IEEE student branch, which is one of the most active in my section. Apart from that there is always the magazine which is run by students independently. Boy, if these things were not around I would have died of boredom. There is just so much to do, organize workshops take part in projects. We even opened another club so we can encourage new projects. I am in center of all this and am just in the first year. Sometimes it feels too much to do, and also maintain and improve my grades, but I think all this has made me more mature as well as professional. One of the main advantages of joining clubs like IEEE is that you get to know other people from different colleges also. Now when I enter other student branch colleges I have a plethora of contacts who can help me.
- rw140 17y agoI'd particularly recommend being part of one of the smaller sports clubs - as well as being part of a different social group from those on your course (it's really useful to have a group of friends who aren't all exactly your age and who won't be massively stressed at exactly the same time) you get to learn new skills and even get some exercise. From a more clinical point of view, it's also a good place to get proof of 'can function as part of a team' - which is another thing employers care about.
- wdewind 17y agoI've had no problem getting employment in NYC (I've actually had 2 different jobs since I graduated and a total of 5 offers between two job searches since last april). It matters much more who you are as a person: college is one path to what employers are looking for, but you don't necessarily need the training wheels if you can sell yourself. "I am insufficiently motivated to do clearly beneficial things when they require non-trivial amounts of actual work." This is huge, but it has nothing to do with college...