http://techliberation.com/2007/09/19/falling-cs-majors/ Keeping politicians' hands off the Net & everything else related to technology Tue, 14 Feb 2012 12:51:08 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.2.1 http://techliberation.com/2007/09/19/falling-cs-majors/comment-page-1/#comment-48535 Jim Lippard Fri, 21 Sep 2007 01:10:46 +0000 http://techliberation.com/2007/09/19/falling-cs-majors/#comment-48535 <p>I switched from computer science to philosophy as an undergraduate because I was already employed as a computer programmer and was being forced to take courses that they should have given me some way to test out of, and I took a strong dislike to actually building circuits in hardware which was also a requirement. I think the last straw was a LISP instructor who refused to let me do my assignments on Multics (I was employed as a Multics programmer at the time), but insisted I do them on an IBM mainframe. I dropped the class and changed majors. In grad school I had a tentative plan to teach philosophy (symbolic logic was my favorite course to teach), but minored in cognitive science and really wanted to find something that could mix philosophy and technology. While ABD, I discovered the World Wide Web and talked a local ISP into creating a position for me, and I ended up doing information security for a living.</p> I switched from computer science to philosophy as an undergraduate because I was already employed as a computer programmer and was being forced to take courses that they should have given me some way to test out of, and I took a strong dislike to actually building circuits in hardware which was also a requirement. I think the last straw was a LISP instructor who refused to let me do my assignments on Multics (I was employed as a Multics programmer at the time), but insisted I do them on an IBM mainframe. I dropped the class and changed majors. In grad school I had a tentative plan to teach philosophy (symbolic logic was my favorite course to teach), but minored in cognitive science and really wanted to find something that could mix philosophy and technology. While ABD, I discovered the World Wide Web and talked a local ISP into creating a position for me, and I ended up doing information security for a living.

]]> http://techliberation.com/2007/09/19/falling-cs-majors/comment-page-1/#comment-39403 Jim Lippard Fri, 21 Sep 2007 00:10:46 +0000 http://techliberation.com/2007/09/19/falling-cs-majors/#comment-39403 <p>I switched from computer science to philosophy as an undergraduate because I was already employed as a computer programmer and was being forced to take courses that they should have given me some way to test out of, and I took a strong dislike to actually building circuits in hardware which was also a requirement. I think the last straw was a LISP instructor who refused to let me do my assignments on Multics (I was employed as a Multics programmer at the time), but insisted I do them on an IBM mainframe. I dropped the class and changed majors. In grad school I had a tentative plan to teach philosophy (symbolic logic was my favorite course to teach), but minored in cognitive science and really wanted to find something that could mix philosophy and technology. While ABD, I discovered the World Wide Web and talked a local ISP into creating a position for me, and I ended up doing information security for a living.</p> I switched from computer science to philosophy as an undergraduate because I was already employed as a computer programmer and was being forced to take courses that they should have given me some way to test out of, and I took a strong dislike to actually building circuits in hardware which was also a requirement. I think the last straw was a LISP instructor who refused to let me do my assignments on Multics (I was employed as a Multics programmer at the time), but insisted I do them on an IBM mainframe. I dropped the class and changed majors. In grad school I had a tentative plan to teach philosophy (symbolic logic was my favorite course to teach), but minored in cognitive science and really wanted to find something that could mix philosophy and technology. While ABD, I discovered the World Wide Web and talked a local ISP into creating a position for me, and I ended up doing information security for a living.

]]> http://techliberation.com/2007/09/19/falling-cs-majors/comment-page-1/#comment-48534 Sam Thu, 20 Sep 2007 15:52:26 +0000 http://techliberation.com/2007/09/19/falling-cs-majors/#comment-48534 <p>The falling numbers are no big deal. Students are just responding to supply and demand. The demand has dropped for CS since 2001. If the demand goes up, either salaries will go up (increasing the incentive for kids to major in CS) or corporate America will pay congress to increase the H1B visa limits and we can import all the CS types we need. Either way, no problem.</p> The falling numbers are no big deal. Students are just responding to supply and demand. The demand has dropped for CS since 2001. If the demand goes up, either salaries will go up (increasing the incentive for kids to major in CS) or corporate America will pay congress to increase the H1B visa limits and we can import all the CS types we need. Either way, no problem.

]]> http://techliberation.com/2007/09/19/falling-cs-majors/comment-page-1/#comment-48533 Tony Thu, 20 Sep 2007 14:58:53 +0000 http://techliberation.com/2007/09/19/falling-cs-majors/#comment-48533 <p>People like me are also an indicator that the degree isn't necessary to go into CS-type careers. I majored in Finance, but took my first job in IT consulting. Not exactly the same thing, of course, but I've programmed a few times in my career. As you say, the aptitude is what's important. And I've spent most of my career designing financial software, since so few in my field had the functional skills necessary.</p> People like me are also an indicator that the degree isn’t necessary to go into CS-type careers. I majored in Finance, but took my first job in IT consulting. Not exactly the same thing, of course, but I’ve programmed a few times in my career. As you say, the aptitude is what’s important. And I’ve spent most of my career designing financial software, since so few in my field had the functional skills necessary.

]]> http://techliberation.com/2007/09/19/falling-cs-majors/comment-page-1/#comment-39402 Sam Thu, 20 Sep 2007 14:52:26 +0000 http://techliberation.com/2007/09/19/falling-cs-majors/#comment-39402 <p>The falling numbers are no big deal. Students are just responding to supply and demand. The demand has dropped for CS since 2001. If the demand goes up, either salaries will go up (increasing the incentive for kids to major in CS) or corporate America will pay congress to increase the H1B visa limits and we can import all the CS types we need. Either way, no problem.</p> The falling numbers are no big deal. Students are just responding to supply and demand. The demand has dropped for CS since 2001. If the demand goes up, either salaries will go up (increasing the incentive for kids to major in CS) or corporate America will pay congress to increase the H1B visa limits and we can import all the CS types we need. Either way, no problem.

]]> http://techliberation.com/2007/09/19/falling-cs-majors/comment-page-1/#comment-39401 Tony Thu, 20 Sep 2007 13:58:53 +0000 http://techliberation.com/2007/09/19/falling-cs-majors/#comment-39401 <p>People like me are also an indicator that the degree isn't necessary to go into CS-type careers. I majored in Finance, but took my first job in IT consulting. Not exactly the same thing, of course, but I've programmed a few times in my career. As you say, the aptitude is what's important. And I've spent most of my career designing financial software, since so few in my field had the functional skills necessary.</p> People like me are also an indicator that the degree isn’t necessary to go into CS-type careers. I majored in Finance, but took my first job in IT consulting. Not exactly the same thing, of course, but I’ve programmed a few times in my career. As you say, the aptitude is what’s important. And I’ve spent most of my career designing financial software, since so few in my field had the functional skills necessary.

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