I went to a university in my country (Nordic country) at the end of the 90s. At that time you could actually just sign up to anything you wanted. You could foll

I went to a university in my country (Nordic country) at the end of the 90s. At that time you could actually just sign up to anything you wanted. You could follow a course in database theory at the same time as a course in ancient Greek history. If you wanted a specific degree (like "system development") you were free to compose your own plan, so long as they met certain requirements I know several people who took a class out of curiosity and changed their career when they found their true calling. One effect of this was that you got a much broader set of people than the typical "nerdy guy". CS stole a lot of people who originally intended to focus on studies like sociology, law, economics, psychology and philosophy, but fell in love with CS. It was also much easier to combine work and studies when you could register for classes without committing to a full 3/5 year program. Today, the same university focus on full time students who "bind" themselves to a specific program. I feel bad for the students today who are forced to follow a much more strict program. They still have some freedom, but it's much more limited and it's harder to "cross over" if you want to follow a class that belongs to a different program. I'm not surprised that many decide to drop out.