well i start college in a couple weeks and my first class is the Basics of Computer Programming. My major is Information Technologies. Im real excited ive loved programming for awhile now

A piece of advice: take some networking and hardware classes from the CS department. IT by itself doesn't do so well these days.

JAVA is a blast, be sure to take it.

If you haven't ever taken any computer science classes it might be hard to get into it in college, just make sure to pay attention. I went though pascel and java in high school..fun stuff

my only advice is to select another major

if you are dead set on computers

comp sci major in college
some colleges offer a information systems type side 2 year degree. go for it as well.
vocational training in IT, networking, databasing or whatever it is you really want to do.

finally you must, and i mean ABOSLUTELY MUST have internships and jobs through all four years of college. go get a job as a IT help desk rep... like... now.

Yea this field requires 2 tings. Certifications "not school" and on site work so intern or get a job and get a banging resume or you will go no ware.

Just go to colodge for cologe it helps but the computer degree means didaly in this field.

Companys ask you this and this alone. What certifications do you have. What have you done.

GET A PORTFOLIO!!!

My expierence have been totally different around here....I went for a two year degree for networking and hardware software support. I have my degree and a few certifications. But never once in an interview they have asked about the certifications.

I have worked in manufacturing and office enviroments and it seems that if you mesh well with their team, are able to work on your own and are seen as trainable your chances increase.

but this is also the technical side nothing to do with programming

all recruiting here focus more on having an AAS or B.S. and doesn't give a crap about certifications. In fact, I got 2 e-mails from a professor earlier for 2 Network Admin jobs from a recruiting agency. It had one qualification, "AAS degree"... one was 55-60k a year, the other 65-75k a year.

Certifications certainly help, but you can buy a book and study for a month and pass one if you understand concepts. I think a degree proves that you're willing to stick with something for a long term goal.. taking classes you really don't want and not quitting and crying "ILL JUST GET THE CERTIFICATIONS" like 50% of IT people do in the first semester of classes.

Certs do help, but a degree will go a lot further in the long run than certs will any day of the week, and i'm not talking about some Associates Degree either. B.S/B.A and higher.

Sure you can make a decent salary with certs, but you'll bounce off that glass ceiling a lot quicker than one might think, which is exactly why you should avoid having certifications as your only means of education at all costs.

I have A+ and my CCNA, both of which are pretty easy to get. CCNA is a little harder now, as mine dates back to 2003, but A+ is just basic hardware bullshit and hasn't changed much at all. Both will get you a job at around $15/hr, but you'll be making that same money for the next 5-10 years with the occasional cost of living raise at maybe 3% if you're lucky.

Higher Education > Certs any day of the week

I think aznpoopy alluded to experience being the #1 thing... I'd have to agree there also. I've heard horror stories of qualified people not getting IT jobs because they had nothing to say when asked. "I don't care about your education, what have you done and how have you performed in the real world?"

I think aznpoopy alluded to experience being the #1 thing... I'd have to agree there also. I've heard horror stories of qualified people not getting IT jobs because they had nothing to say when asked. "I don't care about your education, what have you done and how have you performed in the real world?"

Funny that you said that, I was gonna go into that in my last post...

A good friend of mine just graduated with his B.S. in Computer Science. Never had a job, has been spoon fed money all though college, and outside of the classroom, he has no experience.

He's catching hell trying to find a job right now.

Having a diverse resume means a lot to the guy behind the desk reviewing your resume. My recommendation, get at least one cert, a degree, and get some real world experience. Find internships, help desk jobs, etc. Anything is better than nothing.

No experience = helpdesk job until someone notices you.

when i entered university for a bsc in comp sci, i fully expected to leave with enough skills to work as a programmer. turned out that the degree was actually very theoretical. i was lucky that i liked the math and enjoyed the program. but i came out of university with little more than a lack of fear of computers and the ability to write elegant proofs.

an it degree will probably be less theoretical, but it doesn't hurt to spend your summers getting certified. alternatively, you can travel and list the countries you've been to under international experience on your resume to pad it.

getting an internship is good, but only in the last couple of years of university. if you have a work/study program at your school, definitely apply for it in your junior or senior year.

yaagh! sorry about that!

As just having finished my BS in CIS (aka Comp Sci Lite), I can say this: don't get married to a language, and understand that college doesn't teach you how to code in the real world. College does NOT prepare you for work. College teaches you to be a good trained monkey, sit down, face the front, and pay attention to the man at the whiteboard. Don't question what he says, just take down notes, and do the tasks he tells you (or she, whatever).

However, like was said above, getting the degree shows that you're willing to stick out a lot of bullsh*t to attain your goal, and employers do like that. When it comes down to weeding out resumes, degree vs. no degree is a very easy way to send a bunch to the round file.

However, college MIGHT have helped this guy spell the word "Experience" correctly on his resume. Can you imagine hiring this guy? Even if he knew what he was doing, how could you tell if he was just wrong or if it was a typo. :D

Yea this field requires 2 tings. Certifications "not school" and on site work so intern or get a job and get a banging resume or you will go no ware.

Just go to colodge for cologe it helps but the computer degree means didaly in this field.

Companys ask you this and this alone. What certifications do you have. What have you done.

GET A PORTFOLIO!!!

I really wish I knew more about programming. I took two weeks of it in High School and I loved it, but from then it just never went anywhere.

I enjoy the embedded stuff.... getting programs to run on little tiny things.... redundant code means wasted clock cycles, resulting in more wasted energy (battery-based systems), less battery life...

worked on some PIC code today.... like it more than software because there's no UI to deal with... got a few inputs, a few outputs, and an A/D converter.