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r/AskReddit•
Security_Gate

Reddit, would you please help me with my Educational Quandaries?

I am going to keep my story short. The gist of it is, I'm a senior in college, about to finish my degree in English. I have lost all real interest in pursuing anything particular in the English genre. I'd be much more content working with computers, but I'm unsure what to do at this point. Basically, should I get a second degree in Computer Science or would I be able to get a job, in computers with an awesome degree in English?

Posted Aug 13, 2009, 12:50 AM UTC

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[deleted]•

IMO, computer jobs have very little to do with schooling.

As long as you're already in college, go for more! :)

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akatookey•

That is some ridiculous dissonance.

My advice is to self teach yourself. A degree shows employers dedication, teaching yourself coding or tech support shows even more. All the information you need is readily available, and much of it is easy to learn without a teacher. Don't waste more money or go deeper in debt, you'll be fine without the comp sci degree.

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tertialtom•

Depending on your school you could look into getting another degree in a computer related field using your gen ed credits you might be able to get another degree in a year or so. Just an idea

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Security_GateOP•

That's what I was thinking about. The only thing is, will it be worth the time/money spent?

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[deleted]•

[deleted]

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Security_GateOP•

So it pretty much comes down to the old saying, "It's not what you know, it's who you know."

I can see myself in terms of being the Russian History major. I'm not an engineer, but I'm still an integral part of the team.

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[deleted]•

[deleted]

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soniaghm•

When you say "working with computers," what exactly do you MEAN? Are you already a self-taught programmer, or do you think you have an affinity for programming, or... what?

What about tech writing/editing? With a good English degree this might be a place to start... it isn't programming, but I have some friends who do it, and they seem to find it lucrative and fairly rewarding for the most part.

I have two degrees in English and an unfinished PhD (ABD!). I spend about half my time teaching (college comp) and the other half editing. I'll never be rich, but it's a pretty good life!

So anyway, what kind of work do you envision yourself doing? Tell us more!

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Security_GateOP•

When I say work in computers, I mean programming. Even when I started at an early age, I was always been infatuated with them. I spend WAY more time on them than I really should.

Honestly, I've only heard bad things about technical writing. And actually it sounds horrifically boring.

Where do I see myself in the future? I really do see myself working in computers, because it just seems to come naturally. What it really hinges on, is whether staying in school for the extra year or so would be worth it.

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[deleted]•

[deleted]

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onmach•

If you are looking to avoid graduating, go back to school.

If you actually want to program for a living and have done programming for fun in your spare time, just go get a job. You will find one eventually. Always keep an eye out for something better.

If, on the other hand you don't know anything about computers, then it gets tricky. I would personally just start trying to program stuff while searching for a job. That first job will suck, but a year of experience far outweighs several additional years at college, in my opinion, and the positive cash flow won't hurt either.

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Security_GateOP•

I'm actually looking forward to getting out of college, and actually making money! Just like every other Redditor, I'm quite sick of the Collegiate system at this point, I'm just worried if the getting a degree in Computer Science would be worth the time/money.

I know a bit about programming, granted I'm not that good. I have really been enjoying my time doing it, and I have been trying to teach myself, these last few months.

What I'm mostly afraid of is when I do graduate and I go in front of a Software firm, and they say, "You don't have a CS degree? No jobs for you."

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onmach•

Don't worry about it. I've worked with music majors, english majors, cs majors, high school grads, and once I even worked with a kid who hadn't even graduated high school, but worked part time doing web development (he was particularly gifted). In this industry, paper doesn't matter. People are ranked by their ability. Just get experience in an area you have interest in.

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