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Discussion on: Can you become a successful software developer without a CS degree? My opinion

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northbear profile image
northbear

As for me, The first question should be what do you mean by saying "being a successful developer"?
Do you mean having a decent salary without a degree? Sure, There is a lot of examples. For instance, Bill Gates is one of those guys. And by the way, he wasn't a great programmer.
Do you mean it is respect from your colleagues? Most creators of the first computers Atari, Commodore, and so on mostly had no any degree in CS. But No doubt there are very respectful guys. And so on...
If you are enthusiastic, love to learn, and share your knowledge, becoming successful it will be a point of the time. The CS degree may help you. And may not...

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anfibiacreativa profile image
Natalia Venditto

Thank you for commenting. I think being a successful professional, at least for me, means that you (and two points you mention)

  • are able to perform at the same capacity and get the job done
  • can aspire to equal pay for doing the same job
  • are respected and trusted by your colleagues
  • are respected and trusted by management and clients
  • can benefit from identical career progression opportunities

just as those who do have the CS degree. Of course, not all organizations will provide that. But usually the organizations that treat professionals with experience and without a degree like second class, also treat their juniors as less. It is all about the culture.

I still want to stress that at entry level the degree will definitely help, especially to land a first job, and will give professionals a baseline and important foundations, that otherwise they will have to work very hard and sacrifice a lot of personal and leisure time to attain.

After a certain point, professionals with and without degrees will level out, providing they have the same amount of experience, and again, opportunities.

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