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I'm 20 years old now and just left school to work and so far it's been the best decision I've ever made. I had many of the same issues with school and put it t

by wdewind 17y ago

I'm 20 years old now and just left school to work and so far it's been the best decision I've ever made. I had many of the same issues with school and put it to myself like this: At the age of 22 will I be a more valuable programmer by staying in school, or by entering the work force? Couple that with the price of NYU and the choice was clear... I've been working since I was 15, so I had/have a pretty decent resume to drop out on, so I wouldn't suggest it if you don't have significant intern (programming intern, not coffee xerox intern) experience probably stick with school: it's a safe path to at least a $60k a year job when you graduate. But since I've dropped out I've had a chance to work with really smart people and learn at a much faster rate, and I have a LOT more freedom. YMMV of course, but for me I just wish I'd done it sooner.

ahlatimer 17y ago
I'm also 20, and I'm about a little over a year away from finishing my degree. If I had to do it again, I may have very well skipped school. I'm awfully burnt out on the whole thing. It seems like a series of bars I have to jump, some high, some low, in order to get a decent job. Well, I already have a decent job, and I'm turning down job offers to stay in school. If I wasn't this close to finishing, I'd definitely go the same route as you and drop out. That being said, college can do wonders if you don't already have a social network. I already had plenty of connections in the (albeit small) technology world in my hometown, but getting close to professors has opened a few more doors. I'm definitely appreciative that I stuck around long enough to get to know a few professors and work for them. I'd imagine that's going to pay huge dividends when I do actually graduate as professors often have connections far beyond their city of residence or college. For most people, I'd suggest going to college just as proof that you are able to finish something non-trivial. If you already have proof of that in pet projects or work experience, and you really don't feel like going, don't. College is a lot better than high school, but there are still similarities. There are classes I have to sit through that I could easily teach myself because the professor keeps attendance. Then there are the classes that I'd go to whether or not I had to, just because the professor and the material are both interesting to me. You'll have a few classes you love and a few classes you abhor. Hopefully the ones you love outweigh the ones you don't.
dkersten 17y ago
University is, IMHO, less about learning what the jobs want and more about learning the things that you may find hard or dont have the opportunity to do in your own time - this includes things unrelated to your career choice (eg, I learned to snowboard), build your social network (especially with people on other complementary career paths), learn and do things you may not have the resources to do yourself (electronics, robotics, any exotic hardware (I built an (location aware, 3D audio centered) augmented reality headset, for example), learn those theory subjects that a company isnt going to spend time teaching you but that will ultimately help you understand and solve problems better (computability, statistics, computational complexity, compiler construction, whatever!). Theres no reason you can't do this things on your own, but Universities provide an environment which makes these much easier, puts you in touch with other students and professors, provides you with resources and also helps you prove to future employers that you have the drive to stick with something. For these reasons, I think University is more valuable than the paper you get at the end.

by wdewind 17y ago

ahlatimer 17y ago

I'm also 20, and I'm about a little over a year away from finishing my degree. If I had to do it again, I may have very well skipped school. I'm awfully burnt out on the whole thing. It seems like a series of bars I have to jump, some high, some low, in order to get a decent job. Well, I already have a decent job, and I'm turning down job offers to stay in school. If I wasn't this close to finishing, I'd definitely go the same route as you and drop out. That being said, college can do wonders if you don't already have a social network. I already had plenty of connections in the (albeit small) technology world in my hometown, but getting close to professors has opened a few more doors. I'm definitely appreciative that I stuck around long enough to get to know a few professors and work for them. I'd imagine that's going to pay huge dividends when I do actually graduate as professors often have connections far beyond their city of residence or college. For most people, I'd suggest going to college just as proof that you are able to finish something non-trivial. If you already have proof of that in pet projects or work experience, and you really don't feel like going, don't. College is a lot better than high school, but there are still similarities. There are classes I have to sit through that I could easily teach myself because the professor keeps attendance. Then there are the classes that I'd go to whether or not I had to, just because the professor and the material are both interesting to me. You'll have a few classes you love and a few classes you abhor. Hopefully the ones you love outweigh the ones you don't.

dkersten 17y ago

University is, IMHO, less about learning what the jobs want and more about learning the things that you may find hard or dont have the opportunity to do in your own time - this includes things unrelated to your career choice (eg, I learned to snowboard), build your social network (especially with people on other complementary career paths), learn and do things you may not have the resources to do yourself (electronics, robotics, any exotic hardware (I built an (location aware, 3D audio centered) augmented reality headset, for example), learn those theory subjects that a company isnt going to spend time teaching you but that will ultimately help you understand and solve problems better (computability, statistics, computational complexity, compiler construction, whatever!). Theres no reason you can't do this things on your own, but Universities provide an environment which makes these much easier, puts you in touch with other students and professors, provides you with resources and also helps you prove to future employers that you have the drive to stick with something. For these reasons, I think University is more valuable than the paper you get at the end.