5 ms·

What's with all the free CS programs? How about a free law or pre-med curriculum?

• fma 4y ago
  Maybe because HN is skewed towards CS topics. But I agree, there are other careers that I think deserves attention for the benefit of society besides trying to cram everyone into an IT career. I keep reading of shortages in medical and trades fields. If we are short CS degree holders for the benefit of society, simply pivot them to meaningful software work rather then driving clicks.
  • ghaff 4y ago
    There really isn't a pre-med curriculum though biology, chemistry, biochemistry, etc. are common majors for an undergrad planning to apply to medical school. The shortages probably have more to do with residency slots and things like that then too small a top of funnel. Law in the US is primarily a more or less required graduate degree for someone who actually wants to go into practicing law. For someone mostly wanting to learn a bit about IP law or constitutional law, there's a fair bit of material out there.
  • b20000 4y ago
    my theory is that they want more programmers to lower the cost of making software. law prevents this kind of race to the bottom via a bar exam and an actual law degree etc. tech does not have these important career protections in place yet.
    • eddsh1994 4y ago
      That’s my thoughts too. Hence Googles free courses on Coursera.
  • mym1990 4y ago
    Would love to learn to do a trade really well in my lifetime, whether it is carpentry or being a mechanic, if only to mess around with my own projects.
• passwordoops 4y ago
  As a parent member of a PTA, I can say most parents I speak with or attend the meetings demand coding, robotics and chess as part of the curriculum. My questions about increasing arts, drama, music, natural sciences, mindfulness, civics, etc etc are usually met with polite nods and comments along the lines of "I thought you said you have a science PhD and worked at like Cal Tech or something?" So, supply and demand and a total lack of appreciation of non-tech fields
  • eddsh1994 4y ago
    As a chess player myself, why are parents demanding chess in the same category as coding and robotics?
    • throwayyy479087 4y ago
      all get categorized as "things smart people do"
      • eddsh1994 4y ago
        Ah they must not have met your average chess club player then! :P
    • passwordoops 4y ago
      The people I talk to associate it with math skills. No evidence, they just assume
• anonporridge 4y ago
  Unlike law and medicine, software engineering has yet to setup it's own guild that works to maintain its high salaries by gatekeeping entry into the profession with endless hoops to jump through and student loans to laden yourself with. It's relatively meritocratic and in many cases you don't even need a degree at all if you can otherwise prove you can do the work. Sometimes those people are even better than the degree holders who may have just been really good at checking boxes in school rather than learning. Don't worry though, I think quite a few in the field now are ready and willing to start pulling up the ladder they elevated their lives with.
  • mym1990 4y ago
    If anything software engineering and development has been going the other way with the advent of bootcamps in the early/mid 2010s.
• 908B64B197 4y ago
  Don't you know? Everyone with a 3 month bootcamp can be an engineer now!