Introduction
According Daniel Gelernter's article about how companies are not looking to hire computer science majors, the whole pretense is universities are ill-preparing computer-science major students for companies rather they are more geared towards research. The most talented computer scientists are mostly taken from big-name companies, such as Google and Facebook, and those candidates/employees are more wide-versed on hands-on applications, such as web and mobile development. Unfortunately, majority of universities do not offer these courses. This brings up the question on the title of the blog: Is a computer science degree really worth it?
A Computer Science Degree Is Not Worth The Money
By relying on college as a surefire way to land a well-paid job after graduation, opportunities would be missed, such as the entire dot-com boom (if a student was there during that time). According to Andrew C. Oliver, who has had experience working with large companies, his stance is that computer science degree should be skipped and should be self-taught. With the current economy's situation with education being the most deadliest trap into debt, it's best to save the stress and money to learn everything online and by themselves. He also explains that many recruiters who are reluctant on hiring computer science majors is that they are most likely the ones who don't know theory and cannot code. Some may argue that with some knowledge on computer science learned from college, companies should be providing training and mentoring to help new employees transition to the new environment. However, that is not the case. Companies do not find it their responsibility to prepare their employees. They believe that by not helping them, it creates a mercenary culture: "'Now that my employer paid me to learn a new skill, let me check to see if there's an ad for it on Dice or Craigslist with a higher rate of pay.'"
A Computer Science Degree Is Worth Every Penny...For Graduate School
I believe that having a computer science degree depends on a person's motive. I believe people who are interested in computer science and make it to big named companies should skip college. I believe that for those who are interested in graduate school and focus on research should stay for that degree. I believe being in college helps a (potential) computer scientist grow from failure. In other words, college should be for those who want to learn and fail with others. While if a student were to self-learn they will need to exceptional confidence, and know that going into companies, failure can cause setbacks, and not growth.
Work Cited:
1. "Is a Computer Science Degree worth the Paper It's Printed On?" InfoWorld. N.p., n.d. Web. 19 Feb. 2016.
2. "The Single Most Practical Reason for Pursuing a Ph.D. That I Can Think of (and I've Thought a Lot about This Topic!)." Philip Guo -. N.p., n.d. Web. 19 Feb. 2016.
