DEV Community

Discussion on: Why Not Having a CS Degree is Awesome

Collapse
 
_ezell_ profile image
Ezell Frazier • Edited

It's interesting that you have a degree in psychology. I say that because quite a few folks I've encountered on my journey are in IT and were psychology majors.

I wonder where the correlation is sometimes, but it may be how one is able to "get it", or "see the bigger picture", and if they can't, they'll probe until they do.

And starting a project with that perspective is big because there's nothing worse than encountering 'scope-creep' or discovering additional use-cases more than halfway through development.

If I had to guess, this is one thing a CS degree or a Bootcamp will not provide for someone. Sometimes it takes a failed project or a few missed deadlines to gain this level of insight. Others may have this trait inherently.

I can't say I'm all-in on Bootcamps or colleges, but I will say the journey to becoming a developer is hard. Very hard. So I always tip my imaginary hat to recent CS majors and Bootcamp grads, and again for those who transform them into successful careers.

However, the common thread for all devs I look up to and admire the most?

  • Big picture view (always trying to connect the dots)
  • Humility (always willing to learn)
  • Perseverance
  • Inclusivity (knowledge sharing, encouraging others)

And, some of the biggest career-traps I've spotted along the way here?

  • A Strong focus on implementation details before all-else
  • A big ego
  • Stagnation (getting too comfortable with only one solution, system, role, etc.)
  • Gate-keeping

Thanks for the great read!

Collapse
 
drdrwhite profile image
David R White

When I read this it just occurred to me:

I wonder where the correlation is sometimes [between Psychology and programming]

Could it be thinking about thinking? Meta-cognition, computational thinking? Analysing thought processes, etc.

Collapse
 
readyready15728 profile image
readyready15728

I initially majored in CS but after discovering that I was primarily good at coding per se and not the more theoretical aspects of math / CS I switched over to linguistics, on the cognitive science track. Computer science / AI is considered to be part of cognitive science. In either case (CS or linguistics) I am dealing with subjects that have at least the rudiments of a mind. We absolutely need people who are dedicated to solving problems like blocks sliding down an inclined plane but I just couldn't quite get into this sort of thing.