Current Events > If I want to be a web design/programmer

(+) Yeah! (+)

It seems smarter to major in computer science, just because it's more versatile

Well would it be wiser to major in something more specific to web design or programming?
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Lots of community colleges have simplified Comp Sci programs that are a bit more practical than theoretical... But then you're just competing with people with degrees. Technically you don't need an education anyway

I think about this path sometimes too...

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MedeaLysistrata posted...

But then you're just competing with people with degrees.

Huh?

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SPE posted...

Huh?

If you do a computer program in community college you are competing with people with degrees. Sometimes you'll be looked over in favour of some people with degrees if you go the community college route

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Community colleges give degrees

You sound like you are talking about the coding boot camp route

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MedeaLysistrata posted...

If you do a computer program in community college you are competing with people with degrees. Sometimes you'll be looked over in favour of some people with degrees if you go the community college route

This is only a potential issue if you're new in the industry and don't have a portfolio. Most employers will favor someone with a couple finished hobby projects on his resume over someone with a degree. And once you're in the industry, the degree matters even less.

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Damn_Underscore posted...

Community colleges give degrees

You sound like you are talking about the coding boot camp route

i mean an associates or diploma in computer programming

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No one really cares what your degree is. Anyone looking to hire is scanning your resume for whatever keywords fit the job. Then they're going to make you do an technical test to prove you know what you do.

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Associates degree is not a good as a bachelors degree obviously but I think companies would still see it as a degree. Especially because an associates is basically half of a bachelors.

Whereas something like a coding boot camp is distinct

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I used to vet and interview front end web designers for a digital marketing agency. Both in-house and freelance.

Typically, we cared less about their degrees and more about their portfolio of projects/work. Partly because we wanted to see what style they had, but also because it was more useful in discerning what their actual skills were. We realised that some people had degrees and were useless while others had no qualifications at all but were brilliant. It can be a bit of a cowboy field, with all kinds of different learning pathways. That's why coding tests (simple ones, usually) are part of the interview.

Computer science doesn't hurt. It will give you a foundation that a lot of front-end developers lack as well. From there you can start your own coding projects, maybe start building some websites, etc.

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SevenTenths posted...

No one really cares what your degree is. Anyone looking to hire is scanning your resume for whatever keywords fit the job. Then they're going to make you do an technical test to prove you know what you do.

Umm... what? I've been in software development for over a decade, and have been involved with hiring many other developers. For someone looking for a junior development role, I look 100% at their degree. Computer Science degrees have yielded us the best results, but other related degrees are fine as long as their skills seem applicable.

We also definitely do coding exercises to gauge if they were being truthful on their resume. They aren't exactly brain busters, but you'd be surprised how many people fail them. Many, many IT companies do this. Google used to be infamous for their hard coding tests.

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You're looking at it for junior roles because there isnt much else to look atm

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scar the 1 posted...

This is only a potential issue if you're new in the industry and don't have a portfolio. Most employers will favor someone with a couple finished hobby projects on his resume over someone with a degree. And once you're in the industry, the degree matters even less.

Nope. Most companies still look at degrees first. My hiring managers almost all exclusively insist on at least a bachelors in CS. Unless the portfolio is really amazing. Most of which are not. Ive gotten so many resumes of web devs with hobby projects that are basic websites, arent responsive, and eye gouging to look at. The market is over saturated by web developers. They especially wont look at those who just did a quick boot camp over people with degrees. Anytime Ive worked on a web role, especially at the entry level, Ive gotten hundreds of applicants in days. And we pick out those with degrees and good portfolios first. Maybe smaller companies might care less though. Im not saying its not worth pursuing. But people without degrees definitely face competition with those with them.

Cleo_II posted...

Nope. Most companies still look at degrees first. My hiring managers almost all exclusively insist on at least a bachelors in CS. Unless the portfolio is really amazing. Most of which are not. Ive gotten so many resumes of web devs with hobby projects that are basic websites, arent responsive, and eye gouging to look at. The market is over saturated by web developers. They especially wont look at those who just did a quick boot camp over people with degrees. Anytime Ive worked on a web role, especially at the entry level, Ive gotten hundreds of applicants in days. And we pick out those with degrees and good portfolios first. Maybe smaller companies might care less though. Im not saying its not worth pursuing. But people without degrees definitely face competition with those who with them.

sadly also this, though

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Also part of why my hiring managers want degrees is because our roles tend to be more complex than just frontend development. They need to understand backend/server side coding fundamentals, which you learn more about in college. A smaller company who just wants frontend to spin up a quick website will be less picky. Or frontend for some small client side application. Also lots of agencies that hire a huge team of devs (usually on contract) can be less picky too. But the bigger tech companies that have live products or need to develop highly scalable stuff will want frontend devs that at least understand and can maybe even code some backend stuff.

Obviously YMMV but my experience is that the biggest threshold a degree will help you over is getting into the industry. Of course it's a bit more complicated than that because yeah, larger companies with tons of applicants can afford to cull away applicants more harshly. And then there's consulting companies who essentially sell your work to clients, of course they'll like it if you have a degree, do they can charge the client more.

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yeah my portfolio kind of blows tbh. i have some decent intermediate web design/programming knowledge but nothing to show for it. and i also dont understand basic fundamentals, so i think school would be a good fit for me.

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pojr posted...

yeah my portfolio kind of blows tbh. i have some decent intermediate web design/programming knowledge but nothing to show for it. and i also dont understand basic fundamentals, so i think school would be a good fit for me.

how old are you? Whats your tool set?


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Honestly, in this day and age experience is way more useful. If you can do some neat projects, the lack of formal education shouldn't hold you back too much. Probably will end up with a lower salary, but with more experience means you can jump from job to job and get good pay increases each time as your skills improve.

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SPE posted...

how old are you? Whats your tool set?

I'm 28. Intermediate HTML, CSS, PHP, Javascript. Computer knowledge is limited. Worked a helpdesk job, and I was able to get by. But my fundamental knowledge is pretty bad. I know random things but not other stuff.

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pojr posted...

I'm 28. Intermediate HTML, CSS, PHP, Javascript. Computer knowledge is limited. Worked a helpdesk job, and I was able to get by. But my fundamental knowledge is pretty bad. I know random things but not other stuff.

i am a korok. Koroks can send PMs too. Expect one, twee hee


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not to bump an old thread but...

CE should I major in Computer Science or Information Technology?

Thing is...if I major in CS, three of my classes will not transfer. They will transfer if I keep the IT major from my old school.

But...CS seems like a better fit. I'm strongly considering web design/programming, so CS seems better. And IT seems more like a helpdesk/customer service job (even though you can move up). I want to limit my customer interactions. I hate customers. I might go with CS even though I'm losing 3 of my classes.

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