I’m a student and I need education advice badly. I’m at a turning point in my education. I’m *currently* going for a BS in Computer and Info Tech. It’s a broad based degree and recently I’ve narrowed down that I want to code or work with databases. However my school’s plan of study focuses heavily on system analysis and design, storage, and networking stuff – my school just doesn’t offer many programming classes. What they did offer, they offered in the first 2 years and now I’m in my 3rd year I’m already forgetting the code..
To sum it up, when I get out of school, all I will know is:
HTML/XHTML
Basic CSS
Basic C# and .NET
Basic Java
I will NOT know anything about C programming, scripting languages, etc.
By basic I mean we’ve made very simple regular applications and web apps. Plain, simple loan calculators were the toughest thing we were required to make, I believe.
Many of my fellow students who’re more into programming are also worried. They’re saying if we got jobs as programmers we’d be laughed at.
On the other hand, some people have said it’s learning the “programmer mindset” and basic programming concepts that are more important than specific languages. Yet on all the “entry level” job descriptions, they mention specific languages.
Basically, I’m really intimidated and am thinking about switching schools. I’m looking for some advice on what you’d look for when hiring a recent college graduate, and whether the languages I’ll come out knowing is good enough. (And yes, I know there are other factors, such as GPA, etc – My GPA is 3.45, but I’m worried about specific knowledge)
My Options:
1. Stay where I’m at (easiest obviously, and preferred if it’d be viable)
2. Stay where I’m at, afterward get a certificate of applied computer science from a nearby school which would only add 1 semester or so and give me a few more programming courses.
3. Switch schools, and in doing so have to start nearly from the beginning. I’m in my 3rd year currently so that would be a large setback.
Which would you pick? Any comments would be appreciated!
