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...My degree was supposed to make me qualified as a programmer, but by the time I left school, all of the software and programming languages I'd learned had been obsolete for years...
I find this hard to believe unless the "graduate" was totally oblivious to emerging technologies. The Java programming language has been around for quite some time, is taught at universities, and is used to create applications for many platforms.
There are many programming languages based on C/C++ constructs and syntax, so taking a C++ and/or Java programming course should have been a common sense decision.
Earning a college degree gets you a "union card" to work in that field - to excel you need to be passionate about what you do and take the initiative to learn the skills that are in demand. Working in the IT fields requires you to be in a constant learning mode - the more nimble you are, the better your prospects in the job market.
These days a Master's Degree is the new bachelor's.
If you look for a white collar job without a BS, there's a good chance the recruiter will throw your resume in the trash, regardless if the job actually requires one.
A college degree is the Ante. It's up to you to play the cards.
These days a Master's Degree is the new bachelor's...
Well, it depends on the field. When I'm looking for a software developer, I may hire someone with a Master's over someone with three years of work experience. However, three+ years of relevant work experience and a BS wins every time - it's hard to top a purple squirrel.
For some of us, the degree is more so to check off a requirement. They'll surely want experience too for some fields and positions.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Dirt Grinder
I find this hard to believe unless the "graduate" was totally oblivious to emerging technologies. The Java programming language has been around for quite some time, is taught at universities, and is used to create applications for many platforms.
There are many programming languages based on C/C++ constructs and syntax, so taking a C++ and/or Java programming course should have been a common sense decision.
Earning a college degree gets you a "union card" to work in that field - to excel you need to be passionate about what you do and take the initiative to learn the skills that are in demand. Working in the IT fields requires you to be in a constant learning mode - the more nimble you are, the better your prospects in the job market.
I was going to chime in too... what did they teach you that became obsolete in the next 2 to 4 years? Web OS? These days, there are other viable scripts and languages to find work in, but Java and C++ still aren't bad foundations. If they teach you Object Oriented Programming, how to use Unix, basic theory, syntax, good programming practices, you can use those to learn other languages that share many similarities.
If you want to learn how to make Iphone apps, someone I knew took a week-long course on that which one should consider too if that's more so all you were interested in. You don't need to pay 4 years of tuition for just that.
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