1:19 I completely agree math is all about discipline. I never had above a 60 in mathematics in high school and blamed my attention span as I found it terribly boring. Now that I put a lot of time into learning math (on calc 2 currently), it really is possible to learn you just have to stay focused and this requires immense discipline.
@@JohnWilliamTech Im the opposite. I think math is easy (at least for those engineering math, not real math). You see your effort after mechanically training exercises. But for programming, it may take long time to find a small mistake that is quite random.
I call my haircut the 'working remotely for 4 months hair' - If my software career doesn't work out, I figure I can make money being the "before" photo at hair salons
Extremely relatable, down to earth and helpful advice man. I’m pretty new to this field and I’m a non traditional student starting my CS degree next month. I was in the Army prior so im putting my GI Bill to use now. Thanks for making this I’ve been thinking to myself that CS will be too hard for me to get through. But I really wanna be a developer so I’m just gonna give it my best shot.
Thanks for the comment man. My goal with this channel is to be the counter to all the, in my opinion, toxic CS CZcams channels that make you think you need to be coding from age 13 and go to an Ivy-league school to be successful. I too was a bit of a non-traditional student. Out of high school, I had the opportunity to play semi-pro Rugby for a year, and then went fully professional for two years after that. So I started my degree right before the age of 22. Which for other non-traditional students makes me still a baby, but for the majority of kids in the States, that is the age you’re supposed to graduate! I contribute the professional environment I was part of to why I succeeded in my degree because of the discipline it taught me, so I’m sure the Army prepared you 1000% times better than I ever could have been. It definitely won’t be easy all the time, but just having the discipline to sit down and do what you have to do is basically 90% of the battle. Just be sure to have fun along the way!
@@JohnWilliamTech Thanks a lot for the good words man. You definitely make it seem achievable for anyone willing to put in the work. Unlike a few other channels I’ve come across where everyone is just a natural born wizard with this stuff Lol. Looking forward to your new videos. Happy New Year brother.
No problem! Something that I did that helped, and eased some of those nerves, was to go through websites like Codecademy and just learn the very basics of Java. Going into my first CS classes thinking "Oh, I already know this" was a real self-esteem booster, and let me focus more on my Math classes. But as I say in the video, going in with 0 experience is completely doable!
Thanks for the helpful video! I don't know where or what your setting is in the video, but its awesome. The windows, plants, and lighting are beautiful!
Thank you! It was my old apartment's living room. It was a super neat building that had a bunch of greenery, huge patios, I definitely got spoiled there!
Thank you this was really helpful. I was terrible at maths simply because I didn't pay attention in high school. I am now considering taking a gap year where I can also focus on rebuilding my foundations in maths. Although I know it'll be extremely frustrating I love to learn and need to work on my self-discipline. I am then hoping to take a computer science degree!
I'm a big proponent to taking a gap year. Taking an entire year to just rebuild those math skills may be a bit overkill. But as long as you're actively doing something during the year, whether it be working, or pursuing a hobby, traveling, etc... I think that having the year to decompress and explore life makes it a lot easier to come into Uni. I know for a fact that the student I was in high school wouldn't have passed first year of Comp Sci, and frankly even in other majors I probably would have dropped out. If you're in the states (if not, translate this to your local equivalent), it may be worth looking at nearby Community College classes where you can get structured learning. It may sound like a pain, but it'll also be an easy way to stay accountable and on a proper track. Also, while you're at it, you can try to take other classes that would work towards your major.
Thank you for these golden tips!! Now I know there's nothing to worry about as long as we put in hard work and determination to master the basics of it.
It definitely won't be easy! But it's incredibly possible. There will be periods of time where you it'll be stressful, and overwhelming, but there will be plenty of times where you'll feel like you're coasting by. Enjoy the coasts, work hard during the stress. Don't forget to enjoy the social aspect of university. Find friends, hobbies and discover a bit more about yourself. Having a balanced life makes it way easier to endure the stressful times when you know afterwards you'll have things to do and people to have fun with.
100%, Thank you for the feedback! I've actually just began recording new videos with an updated setup. Believe it or not this video was just on my phone. My newer videos should be a lot better balanced audio wise. Best of luck on starting your comp sci degree! Kick its butt!
You commenter, yes you! Thank you for your kind comment! I would give my left pinky (my least favorite of my two pinkies), to be able to go back in time and tell high school me to dive into the world of CS.
Allow me to be the first real commenter: there are two specific math concepts that I think keep coming back over and over - and they are both in Discrete Math: 1) recognizing patterns and series; 2) graph theory. The graph theory never dies. Things that you never thought were modeled as vertices and edges ARE modeled as graphs, and n(n - 1) / 2 never goes away. Ever. You are correct that math is a completely doable, very linear study progression. There is a reason trig and algebra are taught before calculus! And wow, calculus will make you better at both trig and calculus than you ever where in your actual trig and calculus classes - you have to be, or you will drown. So yes, you put the work in and you get through it, and when you learn that something like the length of the days of the year is a sine wave, you might actually smile.. But then on the other side of the house you have to think through pointers to pointers in C in order to swim around the Linux kernel and, well, that is not such a linear "just work hard and you will get it" endeavor. I had an assignment where the Linux OS took Python objects and turned them into C objects in some sort of alchemistic process that when you asked the TA for help all you got was a lot of "hand waiving." While the math side is elegant and beautiful, the coding side is not. Read one Stackoverflow thread and you can understand that.
I really appreciate the thoughtful comment, especially from someone having pursued a higher education in CS! What class was that kernel assignment for? That just sounds like pure witchcraft to me. I very much agree with your sentiment though. The video was more focused towards the people who I come across who cite Math as the reason they didn't pursue or changed out of Comp Sci in undergrad. I'm currently taking 434 - Networking, and I'm bashing my head against the wall programming a socket project in C++. On quizzes I can understand (or at least regurgitate) the content in the textbook. But actually implementing it in a language that I still have a horrible grasp in is kicking my butt.
@@JohnWilliamTech The Python/C interface was in 420/520 (same exact class) Architecture II related to an assignment using a gns3 chip simulator and "trying" to code a cache replacement policy that was based on a brilliant yet never actually done tree-based structure presented in a 3-page conference paper. Let me put it this way: if you know and can bang that DEEP into the machine code out, you are a g-d. Paging, caching, etc is where the magic happens. It is also where brilliant people spend 7 years working on a PhD and being absolutely miserable. So glad you to 434 - I mean come on, EVERYTHING is networked! I made the dumb mistake of coding the little fake twitter assignment in C because one of the earlier assignments mandated C. Only got through it with the help of an old school C tutor. Then I heard that the people who did it with Python said "it was really easy" because the socketing work is already done. Hey no one ever said I knew what I was doing. But knowing what I am doing in CS is a lot less of a worry now because - wait for it - I GOT A JOB! A job doing what I want which is data privacy regulatory work. The reason I went back to school for CS in the first place was I was thinking having technical knowledge might make me more of an attractive candidate for a data privacy job, so mission accomplished! Still going to work on the MS but just one class at a time (and even that is a bit of a pain - I admire you folks who can work AND take a lot of classes - my bandwidth is limited). BTW, for anyone reading: ASU has a new undergraduate major called Applied Computer Science. It is kind of like CS-lite in that the math is not as heavy, and it has more of what I would call and IT focus (what plugs into what). So anyone who wants to get into the security business (and you SHOULD as it is on fire hot right now and you WILL get a job) or be a network person I would look into the Applied CS. Step above IT our MIS, but not completely theoretical and mathy.
I so much agree with you on your emphasis on basics and discipline. I'm a web engineer with two years of experience. I am self-taught and I don't have any degree. Given that I live in Pakistan, I decided to teach myself math and get a BS degree in Computer Science so I can have more opportunities in life. For anyone reading this comment, whatever JayDubs is saying in this video, you should take it very seriously. It is true that you need a certain level of IQ to be good at a complex field, this doesn't mean that it makes it easy, learning basics, studying for hours on end every day is very crucial. Pray for me and my journey. I'm enormously excited about it. I hope you are doing well and making your life better each day by learning. Peace :)
In Finland these classes go over new theory so fast that it's very hard to keep up. Theory itself is doable if you have already high level understanding of high school math. Otherwise you will not have enough time to keep up.
for me, hardest thing is my motivation, i learned web development w myself(its not really hard, everyone can do this) but sometimes i lose my motivation :((
I'd be lying if I said it was easy. Currently a 3rd year student and it's far from easy but if you work hard enough, you'll get through it. Mind you I came from no programming background and I made it this far. It really isn't a problem if you put in the work.
This is the absolute right attitude to have towards it. The people I saw drop out of the major almost always did it because they just couldn't keep up with the work. Not because the work is impossible. But because they'd spend days dicking around and then they'd try to cram everything in last minute. It'll work short-term, but it definitely won't work long-term.
I want to go to that honors ASU I think it’s called Barrett! Currently I’m high school what do I need to do to get into that school? And study computer science!!
The honors college within ASU is Barrett! The first thing you need is to make sure you have the requirements for the general computer science degree. If you don't fulfil this, that is the first step. The honors college will look at things more carefully such as your GPA, essay, letters of recommendations, etc... What they want to see is A) Can you handle a rigors program, B) Will you, as a person, add value to the program. It definitely seems more holistic in nature. If you aren't about to be applying to schools, basically just keep grades up and do things that look good to all colleges. If you are applying to schools, I strongly recommend you taking a look at the course load for computer science, and then look at how Barrett changes that. I personally would never recommend anyone to go to Barrett if they are doing Computer Science, unless your goal is to go straight into a masters program. I'm happy to elaborate why if you're interested, but I also don't want to talk you out of anything if you're already set on it!
The only exposure I have to AP CS are practice exams I've taken for poop and giggles while in school. It's weird in the sense that it's a Computer Science course, but almost mimics a Java/Data Structures exam. For Java, Object Orientated Principals & Code Walkthroughs: I think having a fundamental understanding of Java would help greatly. It's a lot easier to learn recursion and OOP when you implement those solutions yourself. Reading and writing code is the best way to get better at walking through code. For data structures / searches, when you get to this section just make sure you truly understand how all of them work. For me personally, I kind of imprinted those searches by practicing them on physical playing cards. So that when I have to recall how a certain search works, I can picture myself sorting through cards. Otherwise, just like other AP classes, pay attention in class and stay ahead. The good thing about Comp Sci is the crazy amount of online resources like Codecademy, which may be a good way to get a head start on Java and programming principals.
I am so terrorized by coding that 511 Data Processing at Scale and its Python-to-control-PostgreSQL assignments had me on the verge of quitting. Then I found a class for the Fall that does not require coding, which got me to thinking, now that my Foundations, Systems, and Applications requirements are done, if I ditch my concentration my electives will be wide open, and after Fall 2021 (I only take one class at a time now that I have a job) I will only have three classes left. Question then becomes, can I find three more CSE graduate classes that do not require coding and get done? Math-type classes maybe? Can you believe I am thinking of math classes as the easy way out?
Are there CSE grad classes that are more math based than not? So many CSE grad classes sound super interesting to me, until I realize that I'd have to actually do the stuff on the syllabus. Now that I'm done with school, I'm going to give it a little while before I consider any higher education :P Looking back, I always avoided the theory classes like plague and went for coding classes. Except this last year I took more theory classes. I thought I enjoyed the coding classes more, but having experienced both heavily. I was way less stressed for the theory ones. Instead of being graded by test cases using a programming language I'm not interested in, or doing a bunch of OS stuff in C that I'm too dumb to understand, I much preferred learning about computer science theory, where I can apply that knowledge to my learning and understanding in anything I do within that classes domain.
@@JohnWilliamTech There are mathy graduate CS classes but they sound scary: Combinatorial Algos and Intractability, Randomization and Approximation Algos, Theory of Computation (extension of 355 with same Canuksian instructor), Game Theory with Applications to Networks, Modeling and Simulations Theory and Applications, and some that sound like math heavy but probably have coding like Statistical Machine Learning, Data Visualization, and Knowledge Representation and Reasoning. In any event, after this Fall it is going to get ugly again for me.
@@MSneberger Who is the professor for Data Visualization? I took CSE 494: Introduction to Data Visualization. The class was pretty interesting, a good mixture of coding and theory. There was a few nights of me yelling at my computer due to JavaScript and D3 being jerks. I'm not sure how much of a jump a 494 topic class would be to an established grad class though.
@@MSneberger And actually now that I think back. It was a lot of coding. One of my final projects was like 1500 lines of JavaScript. I'm sure that it could have been written in less, but it certainly could not have been written in less by me :P
Sorry for the late response, it was non-stop over the holidays! I personally don’t have any experience with an MIS degree, so I don’t want to give advice that I’m not qualified to give. But in terms of getting a degree, here are the things that really helped me. - If you are still looking at schools, try finding a Major Map that shows you what courses you’ll be taking. This is the best way to compare what the degree will be like school to school. - Consider Money. I don’t know if you’re in the USA, if you’re 17-19, what your financials look like. But if you’re taking on student loans. Realize that the more you take on, the more beholden to them you will be. It’s hard to really appreciate how much money school is at a younger age, and the opportunity cost included with it. I was fortunate enough that I only had to pay for the last year or so of my school, and money wasn’t too much of an issue. This allowed me to do free-lance web development in my Sophomore year, not worrying about how much I was getting paid, but to focus on forming connections and learning as much as I could, sometimes doing work for nearly free. Which led me to have enough experience to eventually charge 20-30 an hour, which for a Sophomore felt like big time money! Be aware that you’ll have these opportunities throughout your degree and after, and not having a $50,000 student loan bearing over you will enable you to make choices for your professional development, and not survival. - Other than that, I don’t know what other tips I can give you just because I don’t have that much information. End of the day, the important thing is that you are interested in the topics being covered. If you’re going to online school, do your best to find others in your degree and form connections with them. It’s hard to stay accountable when everything is remote/online. Practice good time management skills, develop good life habits. Best of luck!
If you are comfortable with maths, then I would go the CS route. I was contemplating a shift in major half way through to avoid some of my math classes, and when I asked people who make hiring decisions at both a Fortune 100 company and a small ~100 person company, both expressed the exact same opinion. It boiled down to: "I'm sure the Software Engineering degree is fine if it's from a reputable school, I probably wouldn't discount the degree, but a CS degree is still the industry standard", and they advised me to stick with the CS program. Plenty of jobs don't care about a degree, and when I look at ASU's SWE degree I definitely think it's interesting and relevant. However, seeing as some jobs do care about your degree and you aren't shy about the math classes, then I see no upside in a SWE degree over a CS one.
Nope! There aren't any artificial barriers that kick in at a certain age. Ageism does exist, and but not in any way where a 28 year old would be on the receiving end of it. At 23 I ended up getting an internship my junior year, that converted to a fulltime role. And I credit getting the internship to be that I was the only person, out of a bunch of 19-20 year old's, who thought about reaching out directly to the recruiter. I'm not sure if you have previous work experience, if you do, it'll show that you're capable of being in the workforce. And if you don't, your resume will just be stating the fact that you started and finished school in the given period of time. No indication of age. Don't doubt yourself if this is the path you want to go down. You will be 28 regardless of what you do, so if you want to be in tech in 4 years, you're already on the first step :)
Just saw this amazing figure today: in the description of an ASU CS masters thesis by Akshay Kumar Dileep I see this statement: "Calculus has high failure rates which corroborates with the data collected from Arizona State University that shows that 40% of the 3266 students whose data were used failed in their calculus course." Ouch!
Holy crap, I wonder how that compares to other universities, and if COVID played a role. I also wonder how those numbers compare if you break it down by major. Are these failures coming from STEM majors where Calc is essentially the most fundamental math course of the major, or humanities majors where Calc may be considered a higher-math. I had to retake Calc. My first professor was possibly the worst professor I ever had, wouldn't let us take notes until after he had finished the lecture to the point where if he saw you writing he'd kick you out of class. Second professor would explain the theory behind calculus, would go over Algebra fundamentals if a sizeable proportion of the class needed a refresher as opposed to saying "You should already know this". I'd love to see data on if certain professors had a higher/lower fail rate than others too.
@@JohnWilliamTech I think there are quite a few majors that only Calc I or what I call Calc-light which is Calculus for Business or something like. I agree that probably most of the failures are from those historically non-technical majors. I mean even if it is hard, CS and engineering majors know Calc is coming so it is not like they are surprised to be in a Calc class where I bet some others might be.
@@JohnWilliamTech I remembered a data point I forgot about when I made the Calc failure comment: I had a woman in both my Pre-Calculus (Trig and College Algebra combine into one 4 credit class) and Calc I class. She was a Psych major and had EVERY ONE of here other classes done and could not graduate until she got at least a C in Calc I. There is an example of the majors that are probably getting a beat down in Calc.
@@MSneberger And I'm sure there are many others that are in a similar position of just having math classes stopping them from graduating. I truly believe that math deficiencies just start from a young age. If you struggle with Algebra, you probably struggled with basic arithmetic. But schools will move you to the next years math course, so then you have a flakey understanding of Algebra as you go into Pre-Calc, and it's just a viscous cycle. Either somewhere down the line you go back and fix those deficiencies; you manage to scrape by the higher math classes, or you end up failing/not needing to do high maths at all. (Or you had a core understanding as it was taught and it all builds naturally for you). My Pre-Calc/Trig class was harder than Calculus because I had to re-teach myself essentially everything I learned in high school!
@@JohnWilliamTech Did you see the recent Military Academy cheating scandal? I guessed it before I read about and sure enough - it was a Calculus test they cheated on! I would say that even the best and brightest struggle with Calculus, but then I saw a story that said most of the participants were on the football team. Do they have Psych majors at the military academies?
CS Is going to be rough if you don't like maths. So I'd ask yourself, do you not like it because you genuinely do not like it, or is it because it's challenging? I'm a big believer that a lot of us learn to hate math because we're poorly taught fundamentals and by the time we're in secondary school we have so many knowledge gaps that it feels like torture trying to figure everything out. If CS is something you're interested in, I think you could learn the math involved given enough time. But, if your goal is just to work in the tech industry and you can't do the math of a CS degree, then I'd look at alternative degrees that are adjacent to CS. You don't NEED a CS degree to become a software developer, but it certainly helps.
This is a good question to ask someone closer to your age (I'm 25), or someone who has made a similar career move later in life. For their personal experiences, but I can give an outsiders point of view: As for university, 100% never too late. Granted I went to ASU, a large public school, but most my classes had plenty of non-traditional students. I'm not too familiar with the computer engineering space, but for software development, I've had numerous co-workers who have shifted from other careers and landed in the software industry in their 30s. So it's definitely not impossible, or out of the question. Your narrative makes complete sense. "I did ____ for x years, then ____ for y years. I discovered I had a passion for computer engineering by _______. So I decided to pursue a formal education in it so I could become a ______" Especially if you have a previous degree or work experience, that's a huge plus. A lot of people are just bad at being co-workers, if you have experience that shows you are just good at being a person who can collaborate with others, then you're a step ahead any 18 year old starting out. Assuming you meant actual Computer Engineering, and not Software Development, my guess is a degree is pretty necessary. But if you did want to go into Software, at your age looking at reputable coding boot camps may be a more efficient time investment than a 4 year degree. As for working full-time while doing a CS, or similar degree: It'll be rough. I was able to manage working 32 hours a week during my last year, but COVID actually made it a lot easier since I didn't need to commute from work to school. So I'd recommend doing an online program if you think you can thrive in an online environment. Otherwise, the best route would probably be to just plan on taking a lighter course load and always take summer classes. So if your first year you are told to take 15 credits, then 15 credits. I would recommend taking 12, 12, then 6 over the summer. Etc... Look at local community colleges for cheaper summer classes for those pre-reqs. Or better yet, start doing some of your pre-reqs and the local community college ASAP, so that when you start school you don't need to worry about bull-crap classes like English 101. End of the day, your goal should be getting that first job, and if that requires a degree, it's definitely possible while working fulltime, it'll just be rough at certain points. Once you get that first job, the second and third will come exponentially easier. Best of luck!
@@enterallowed338 I am 34 and I am self-teaching (for the most part) programming for a career change. If you want any detail regarding how I am able to do it, let me know. Oh and yes, I get a 3 hour 1-1 mentorship a week to help out.
Lol what I know how to code and I made my own website and I don’t know how to do basic ass math. I know up to algebra, but honestly no matter how many times I took the final math exam, I still got a 70. No way im going to get a degree that’s bullshit 😂
I'm still a firm believer that anyone can learn math if they go far enough back and nail the fundamentals and build from there. But! If you still wanted a degree without the maths, some schools offer more technical degrees that don't require the same math as most CS programs.
@@JohnWilliamTech It's not a matter of wanting to learn it, I just really really hate math. I'm not even bad at it, i'm actually decent I just despise math. I don't know basic math because i block it out when I hear it
I'm telling you beautiful person to follow your dreams *a rainbow appears overhead and I vanish mysteriously, you feel a gentle breeze across your cheek and hear, in the most gentle of words... "CS or bust"* edit: Don't tell anyone, but I interned as a Sys Admin/General IT. Help desk sucks, but actual IT work is super interesting imo. Your job basically is to automate processes and improve upon business infrastructure.
Sorry for the late reply I don’t get notifications. I agree. Help desk I’ve heard is a dread, and I’m hoping with my degree plus a networking or security cert I can skip that. I see a lot of people go help desk because it seems you can generally get it with just an A+ cert.
1:19 I completely agree math is all about discipline. I never had above a 60 in mathematics in high school and blamed my attention span as I found it terribly boring. Now that I put a lot of time into learning math (on calc 2 currently), it really is possible to learn you just have to stay focused and this requires immense discipline.
Did all my math requirements at a CC, now I will be transferring to a real Uni and its time to grind on CS now :)
Wooooo! Math requirements were some of the most stressful classes for me, so I'm glad you got them all over with! Go forth and prosper :D
@@JohnWilliamTech Im the opposite. I think math is easy (at least for those engineering math, not real math). You see your effort after mechanically training exercises. But for programming, it may take long time to find a small mistake that is quite random.
W
I call my haircut the 'working remotely for 4 months hair' - If my software career doesn't work out, I figure I can make money being the "before" photo at hair salons
So witty and funny. Love this guy
hehehehehehe
You are both encouraging and honest, thanks!
Extremely relatable, down to earth and helpful advice man. I’m pretty new to this field and I’m a non traditional student starting my CS degree next month. I was in the Army prior so im putting my GI Bill to use now. Thanks for making this I’ve been thinking to myself that CS will be too hard for me to get through. But I really wanna be a developer so I’m just gonna give it my best shot.
Thanks for the comment man. My goal with this channel is to be the counter to all the, in my opinion, toxic CS CZcams channels that make you think you need to be coding from age 13 and go to an Ivy-league school to be successful.
I too was a bit of a non-traditional student. Out of high school, I had the opportunity to play semi-pro Rugby for a year, and then went fully professional for two years after that. So I started my degree right before the age of 22. Which for other non-traditional students makes me still a baby, but for the majority of kids in the States, that is the age you’re supposed to graduate!
I contribute the professional environment I was part of to why I succeeded in my degree because of the discipline it taught me, so I’m sure the Army prepared you 1000% times better than I ever could have been. It definitely won’t be easy all the time, but just having the discipline to sit down and do what you have to do is basically 90% of the battle. Just be sure to have fun along the way!
@@JohnWilliamTech Thanks a lot for the good words man. You definitely make it seem achievable for anyone willing to put in the work. Unlike a few other channels I’ve come across where everyone is just a natural born wizard with this stuff Lol. Looking forward to your new videos. Happy New Year brother.
Thanks for the video! This calmed some of my fears a little since I am planning to do computer science without much prior experience.
No problem! Something that I did that helped, and eased some of those nerves, was to go through websites like Codecademy and just learn the very basics of Java.
Going into my first CS classes thinking "Oh, I already know this" was a real self-esteem booster, and let me focus more on my Math classes.
But as I say in the video, going in with 0 experience is completely doable!
@@JohnWilliamTech Thanks for the quick reply and the advice! I'll definitely do that to get a head start!
Thanks for the helpful video!
I don't know where or what your setting is in the video, but its awesome. The windows, plants, and lighting are beautiful!
Thank you! It was my old apartment's living room. It was a super neat building that had a bunch of greenery, huge patios, I definitely got spoiled there!
@@JohnWilliamTech Oh, yeah! Thanks for the reply. Sounds like a really cool place :)
Thank you this was really helpful. I was terrible at maths simply because I didn't pay attention in high school. I am now considering taking a gap year where I can also focus on rebuilding my foundations in maths. Although I know it'll be extremely frustrating I love to learn and need to work on my self-discipline. I am then hoping to take a computer science degree!
I'm a big proponent to taking a gap year. Taking an entire year to just rebuild those math skills may be a bit overkill. But as long as you're actively doing something during the year, whether it be working, or pursuing a hobby, traveling, etc... I think that having the year to decompress and explore life makes it a lot easier to come into Uni.
I know for a fact that the student I was in high school wouldn't have passed first year of Comp Sci, and frankly even in other majors I probably would have dropped out.
If you're in the states (if not, translate this to your local equivalent), it may be worth looking at nearby Community College classes where you can get structured learning. It may sound like a pain, but it'll also be an easy way to stay accountable and on a proper track. Also, while you're at it, you can try to take other classes that would work towards your major.
Thank you for these golden tips!! Now I know there's nothing to worry about as long as we put in hard work and determination to master the basics of it.
It definitely won't be easy! But it's incredibly possible.
There will be periods of time where you it'll be stressful, and overwhelming, but there will be plenty of times where you'll feel like you're coasting by. Enjoy the coasts, work hard during the stress.
Don't forget to enjoy the social aspect of university. Find friends, hobbies and discover a bit more about yourself. Having a balanced life makes it way easier to endure the stressful times when you know afterwards you'll have things to do and people to have fun with.
Nice video!!!! Planning to pursue my com sci degree this yr! Love the video but you still can improve the sound quality. : )
100%, Thank you for the feedback!
I've actually just began recording new videos with an updated setup. Believe it or not this video was just on my phone. My newer videos should be a lot better balanced audio wise.
Best of luck on starting your comp sci degree! Kick its butt!
I completely agree with you 100%, Computer Science is really hard due to have some experiences with coding and strong math.
You sir! Yes you! Keep rocking, a passionate CS high schooler here. I ❤️ CS!!!
You commenter, yes you! Thank you for your kind comment! I would give my left pinky (my least favorite of my two pinkies), to be able to go back in time and tell high school me to dive into the world of CS.
Hello fellow passionate highschool cs student! Keep it up!!
Allow me to be the first real commenter: there are two specific math concepts that I think keep coming back over and over - and they are both in Discrete Math: 1) recognizing patterns and series; 2) graph theory. The graph theory never dies. Things that you never thought were modeled as vertices and edges ARE modeled as graphs, and n(n - 1) / 2 never goes away. Ever.
You are correct that math is a completely doable, very linear study progression. There is a reason trig and algebra are taught before calculus! And wow, calculus will make you better at both trig and calculus than you ever where in your actual trig and calculus classes - you have to be, or you will drown. So yes, you put the work in and you get through it, and when you learn that something like the length of the days of the year is a sine wave, you might actually smile..
But then on the other side of the house you have to think through pointers to pointers in C in order to swim around the Linux kernel and, well, that is not such a linear "just work hard and you will get it" endeavor. I had an assignment where the Linux OS took Python objects and turned them into C objects in some sort of alchemistic process that when you asked the TA for help all you got was a lot of "hand waiving." While the math side is elegant and beautiful, the coding side is not. Read one Stackoverflow thread and you can understand that.
I really appreciate the thoughtful comment, especially from someone having pursued a higher education in CS!
What class was that kernel assignment for? That just sounds like pure witchcraft to me.
I very much agree with your sentiment though. The video was more focused towards the people who I come across who cite Math as the reason they didn't pursue or changed out of Comp Sci in undergrad.
I'm currently taking 434 - Networking, and I'm bashing my head against the wall programming a socket project in C++. On quizzes I can understand (or at least regurgitate) the content in the textbook. But actually implementing it in a language that I still have a horrible grasp in is kicking my butt.
@@JohnWilliamTech The Python/C interface was in 420/520 (same exact class) Architecture II related to an assignment using a gns3 chip simulator and "trying" to code a cache replacement policy that was based on a brilliant yet never actually done tree-based structure presented in a 3-page conference paper. Let me put it this way: if you know and can bang that DEEP into the machine code out, you are a g-d. Paging, caching, etc is where the magic happens. It is also where brilliant people spend 7 years working on a PhD and being absolutely miserable.
So glad you to 434 - I mean come on, EVERYTHING is networked! I made the dumb mistake of coding the little fake twitter assignment in C because one of the earlier assignments mandated C. Only got through it with the help of an old school C tutor. Then I heard that the people who did it with Python said "it was really easy" because the socketing work is already done. Hey no one ever said I knew what I was doing.
But knowing what I am doing in CS is a lot less of a worry now because - wait for it - I GOT A JOB! A job doing what I want which is data privacy regulatory work. The reason I went back to school for CS in the first place was I was thinking having technical knowledge might make me more of an attractive candidate for a data privacy job, so mission accomplished! Still going to work on the MS but just one class at a time (and even that is a bit of a pain - I admire you folks who can work AND take a lot of classes - my bandwidth is limited).
BTW, for anyone reading: ASU has a new undergraduate major called Applied Computer Science. It is kind of like CS-lite in that the math is not as heavy, and it has more of what I would call and IT focus (what plugs into what). So anyone who wants to get into the security business (and you SHOULD as it is on fire hot right now and you WILL get a job) or be a network person I would look into the Applied CS. Step above IT our MIS, but not completely theoretical and mathy.
I so much agree with you on your emphasis on basics and discipline. I'm a web engineer with two years of experience. I am self-taught and I don't have any degree. Given that I live in Pakistan, I decided to teach myself math and get a BS degree in Computer Science so I can have more opportunities in life.
For anyone reading this comment, whatever JayDubs is saying in this video, you should take it very seriously. It is true that you need a certain level of IQ to be good at a complex field, this doesn't mean that it makes it easy, learning basics, studying for hours on end every day is very crucial.
Pray for me and my journey. I'm enormously excited about it. I hope you are doing well and making your life better each day by learning. Peace :)
I appreciate the comment Hasnain!
Best of luck in your next steps!
Well done bhai
In Finland these classes go over new theory so fast that it's very hard to keep up. Theory itself is doable if you have already high level understanding of high school math. Otherwise you will not have enough time to keep up.
for me, hardest thing is my motivation, i learned web development w myself(its not really hard, everyone can do this) but sometimes i lose my motivation :((
thanks for the warning for the beginners, it is dam correct.
I'd be lying if I said it was easy. Currently a 3rd year student and it's far from easy but if you work hard enough, you'll get through it. Mind you I came from no programming background and I made it this far. It really isn't a problem if you put in the work.
This is the absolute right attitude to have towards it.
The people I saw drop out of the major almost always did it because they just couldn't keep up with the work.
Not because the work is impossible. But because they'd spend days dicking around and then they'd try to cram everything in last minute.
It'll work short-term, but it definitely won't work long-term.
Procrastinating is never the answer 👌
I want to go to that honors ASU I think it’s called Barrett! Currently I’m high school what do I need to do to get into that school? And study computer science!!
The honors college within ASU is Barrett!
The first thing you need is to make sure you have the requirements for the general computer science degree. If you don't fulfil this, that is the first step.
The honors college will look at things more carefully such as your GPA, essay, letters of recommendations, etc... What they want to see is A) Can you handle a rigors program, B) Will you, as a person, add value to the program. It definitely seems more holistic in nature.
If you aren't about to be applying to schools, basically just keep grades up and do things that look good to all colleges.
If you are applying to schools, I strongly recommend you taking a look at the course load for computer science, and then look at how Barrett changes that.
I personally would never recommend anyone to go to Barrett if they are doing Computer Science, unless your goal is to go straight into a masters program.
I'm happy to elaborate why if you're interested, but I also don't want to talk you out of anything if you're already set on it!
im a senior in hs and im taking ap csp. Any tips for me or anything I can do to prepare for the difficult classes?
The only exposure I have to AP CS are practice exams I've taken for poop and giggles while in school.
It's weird in the sense that it's a Computer Science course, but almost mimics a Java/Data Structures exam.
For Java, Object Orientated Principals & Code Walkthroughs: I think having a fundamental understanding of Java would help greatly. It's a lot easier to learn recursion and OOP when you implement those solutions yourself. Reading and writing code is the best way to get better at walking through code.
For data structures / searches, when you get to this section just make sure you truly understand how all of them work. For me personally, I kind of imprinted those searches by practicing them on physical playing cards. So that when I have to recall how a certain search works, I can picture myself sorting through cards.
Otherwise, just like other AP classes, pay attention in class and stay ahead. The good thing about Comp Sci is the crazy amount of online resources like Codecademy, which may be a good way to get a head start on Java and programming principals.
I am so terrorized by coding that 511 Data Processing at Scale and its Python-to-control-PostgreSQL assignments had me on the verge of quitting. Then I found a class for the Fall that does not require coding, which got me to thinking, now that my Foundations, Systems, and Applications requirements are done, if I ditch my concentration my electives will be wide open, and after Fall 2021 (I only take one class at a time now that I have a job) I will only have three classes left. Question then becomes, can I find three more CSE graduate classes that do not require coding and get done? Math-type classes maybe? Can you believe I am thinking of math classes as the easy way out?
Are there CSE grad classes that are more math based than not?
So many CSE grad classes sound super interesting to me, until I realize that I'd have to actually do the stuff on the syllabus. Now that I'm done with school, I'm going to give it a little while before I consider any higher education :P
Looking back, I always avoided the theory classes like plague and went for coding classes. Except this last year I took more theory classes. I thought I enjoyed the coding classes more, but having experienced both heavily. I was way less stressed for the theory ones.
Instead of being graded by test cases using a programming language I'm not interested in, or doing a bunch of OS stuff in C that I'm too dumb to understand, I much preferred learning about computer science theory, where I can apply that knowledge to my learning and understanding in anything I do within that classes domain.
@@JohnWilliamTech There are mathy graduate CS classes but they sound scary: Combinatorial Algos and Intractability, Randomization and Approximation Algos, Theory of Computation (extension of 355 with same Canuksian instructor), Game Theory with Applications to Networks, Modeling and Simulations Theory and Applications, and some that sound like math heavy but probably have coding like Statistical Machine Learning, Data Visualization, and Knowledge Representation and Reasoning. In any event, after this Fall it is going to get ugly again for me.
@@MSneberger Who is the professor for Data Visualization? I took CSE 494: Introduction to Data Visualization. The class was pretty interesting, a good mixture of coding and theory.
There was a few nights of me yelling at my computer due to JavaScript and D3 being jerks.
I'm not sure how much of a jump a 494 topic class would be to an established grad class though.
@@MSneberger And actually now that I think back. It was a lot of coding. One of my final projects was like 1500 lines of JavaScript.
I'm sure that it could have been written in less, but it certainly could not have been written in less by me :P
Hi, I’m trying to purse a degree on MIS. Is it possible you could help me out Nd give me more info/advice, steps towards it
Sorry for the late response, it was non-stop over the holidays!
I personally don’t have any experience with an MIS degree, so I don’t want to give advice that I’m not qualified to give.
But in terms of getting a degree, here are the things that really helped me.
- If you are still looking at schools, try finding a Major Map that shows you what courses you’ll be taking. This is the best way to compare what the degree will be like school to school.
- Consider Money. I don’t know if you’re in the USA, if you’re 17-19, what your financials look like. But if you’re taking on student loans. Realize that the more you take on, the more beholden to them you will be. It’s hard to really appreciate how much money school is at a younger age, and the opportunity cost included with it. I was fortunate enough that I only had to pay for the last year or so of my school, and money wasn’t too much of an issue. This allowed me to do free-lance web development in my Sophomore year, not worrying about how much I was getting paid, but to focus on forming connections and learning as much as I could, sometimes doing work for nearly free. Which led me to have enough experience to eventually charge 20-30 an hour, which for a Sophomore felt like big time money! Be aware that you’ll have these opportunities throughout your degree and after, and not having a $50,000 student loan bearing over you will enable you to make choices for your professional development, and not survival.
- Other than that, I don’t know what other tips I can give you just because I don’t have that much information. End of the day, the important thing is that you are interested in the topics being covered. If you’re going to online school, do your best to find others in your degree and form connections with them. It’s hard to stay accountable when everything is remote/online. Practice good time management skills, develop good life habits.
Best of luck!
No dislikes. well done 👏
What should I choose software engineer or computer science
(I like maths) and which one is the most demanding job?
If you are comfortable with maths, then I would go the CS route. I was contemplating a shift in major half way through to avoid some of my math classes, and when I asked people who make hiring decisions at both a Fortune 100 company and a small ~100 person company, both expressed the exact same opinion.
It boiled down to:
"I'm sure the Software Engineering degree is fine if it's from a reputable school, I probably wouldn't discount the degree, but a CS degree is still the industry standard", and they advised me to stick with the CS program.
Plenty of jobs don't care about a degree, and when I look at ASU's SWE degree I definitely think it's interesting and relevant. However, seeing as some jobs do care about your degree and you aren't shy about the math classes, then I see no upside in a SWE degree over a CS one.
@@JohnWilliamTech thank you
Hey man I’m 24 do you think that’s to old to start in this career I’m about to start my degree
Nope!
There aren't any artificial barriers that kick in at a certain age. Ageism does exist, and but not in any way where a 28 year old would be on the receiving end of it.
At 23 I ended up getting an internship my junior year, that converted to a fulltime role. And I credit getting the internship to be that I was the only person, out of a bunch of 19-20 year old's, who thought about reaching out directly to the recruiter.
I'm not sure if you have previous work experience, if you do, it'll show that you're capable of being in the workforce. And if you don't, your resume will just be stating the fact that you started and finished school in the given period of time. No indication of age.
Don't doubt yourself if this is the path you want to go down. You will be 28 regardless of what you do, so if you want to be in tech in 4 years, you're already on the first step :)
You’re never too old man. You got this
Hello 👋
Just saw this amazing figure today: in the description of an ASU CS masters thesis by Akshay Kumar Dileep I see this statement: "Calculus has high failure rates which corroborates with the data collected from Arizona State University that shows that 40% of the 3266 students whose data were used failed in their calculus course." Ouch!
Holy crap, I wonder how that compares to other universities, and if COVID played a role.
I also wonder how those numbers compare if you break it down by major. Are these failures coming from STEM majors where Calc is essentially the most fundamental math course of the major, or humanities majors where Calc may be considered a higher-math.
I had to retake Calc. My first professor was possibly the worst professor I ever had, wouldn't let us take notes until after he had finished the lecture to the point where if he saw you writing he'd kick you out of class.
Second professor would explain the theory behind calculus, would go over Algebra fundamentals if a sizeable proportion of the class needed a refresher as opposed to saying "You should already know this".
I'd love to see data on if certain professors had a higher/lower fail rate than others too.
@@JohnWilliamTech I think there are quite a few majors that only Calc I or what I call Calc-light which is Calculus for Business or something like. I agree that probably most of the failures are from those historically non-technical majors. I mean even if it is hard, CS and engineering majors know Calc is coming so it is not like they are surprised to be in a Calc class where I bet some others might be.
@@JohnWilliamTech I remembered a data point I forgot about when I made the Calc failure comment: I had a woman in both my Pre-Calculus (Trig and College Algebra combine into one 4 credit class) and Calc I class. She was a Psych major and had EVERY ONE of here other classes done and could not graduate until she got at least a C in Calc I. There is an example of the majors that are probably getting a beat down in Calc.
@@MSneberger And I'm sure there are many others that are in a similar position of just having math classes stopping them from graduating.
I truly believe that math deficiencies just start from a young age.
If you struggle with Algebra, you probably struggled with basic arithmetic. But schools will move you to the next years math course, so then you have a flakey understanding of Algebra as you go into Pre-Calc, and it's just a viscous cycle.
Either somewhere down the line you go back and fix those deficiencies; you manage to scrape by the higher math classes, or you end up failing/not needing to do high maths at all. (Or you had a core understanding as it was taught and it all builds naturally for you).
My Pre-Calc/Trig class was harder than Calculus because I had to re-teach myself essentially everything I learned in high school!
@@JohnWilliamTech Did you see the recent Military Academy cheating scandal? I guessed it before I read about and sure enough - it was a Calculus test they cheated on! I would say that even the best and brightest struggle with Calculus, but then I saw a story that said most of the participants were on the football team. Do they have Psych majors at the military academies?
Should I choose cs?(if i don't like maths)
CS Is going to be rough if you don't like maths. So I'd ask yourself, do you not like it because you genuinely do not like it, or is it because it's challenging?
I'm a big believer that a lot of us learn to hate math because we're poorly taught fundamentals and by the time we're in secondary school we have so many knowledge gaps that it feels like torture trying to figure everything out.
If CS is something you're interested in, I think you could learn the math involved given enough time.
But, if your goal is just to work in the tech industry and you can't do the math of a CS degree, then I'd look at alternative degrees that are adjacent to CS. You don't NEED a CS degree to become a software developer, but it certainly helps.
Bro I’m 36 and thinking about diving back into college to be become a computer engineer.Do you think that’s too old,especially having a full time job?
This is a good question to ask someone closer to your age (I'm 25), or someone who has made a similar career move later in life. For their personal experiences, but I can give an outsiders point of view:
As for university, 100% never too late. Granted I went to ASU, a large public school, but most my classes had plenty of non-traditional students.
I'm not too familiar with the computer engineering space, but for software development, I've had numerous co-workers who have shifted from other careers and landed in the software industry in their 30s. So it's definitely not impossible, or out of the question.
Your narrative makes complete sense. "I did ____ for x years, then ____ for y years. I discovered I had a passion for computer engineering by _______. So I decided to pursue a formal education in it so I could become a ______"
Especially if you have a previous degree or work experience, that's a huge plus. A lot of people are just bad at being co-workers, if you have experience that shows you are just good at being a person who can collaborate with others, then you're a step ahead any 18 year old starting out.
Assuming you meant actual Computer Engineering, and not Software Development, my guess is a degree is pretty necessary. But if you did want to go into Software, at your age looking at reputable coding boot camps may be a more efficient time investment than a 4 year degree.
As for working full-time while doing a CS, or similar degree:
It'll be rough. I was able to manage working 32 hours a week during my last year, but COVID actually made it a lot easier since I didn't need to commute from work to school.
So I'd recommend doing an online program if you think you can thrive in an online environment. Otherwise, the best route would probably be to just plan on taking a lighter course load and always take summer classes. So if your first year you are told to take 15 credits, then 15 credits. I would recommend taking 12, 12, then 6 over the summer. Etc... Look at local community colleges for cheaper summer classes for those pre-reqs. Or better yet, start doing some of your pre-reqs and the local community college ASAP, so that when you start school you don't need to worry about bull-crap classes like English 101.
End of the day, your goal should be getting that first job, and if that requires a degree, it's definitely possible while working fulltime, it'll just be rough at certain points. Once you get that first job, the second and third will come exponentially easier.
Best of luck!
@@JohnWilliamTech That answer alone is gold to me.Thanks a billion
@@enterallowed338 My pleasure!
@@enterallowed338 I am 34 and I am self-teaching (for the most part) programming for a career change. If you want any detail regarding how I am able to do it, let me know. Oh and yes, I get a 3 hour 1-1 mentorship a week to help out.
Why people like to mislead computer science is mostly math, it's not it's mostly writing instructions
Man math , is a meth i remember from one course just completely feel without energy , like make tries and only the success at last attempt ;)
Lol what I know how to code and I made my own website and I don’t know how to do basic ass math. I know up to algebra, but honestly no matter how many times I took the final math exam, I still got a 70. No way im going to get a degree that’s bullshit 😂
I'm still a firm believer that anyone can learn math if they go far enough back and nail the fundamentals and build from there.
But! If you still wanted a degree without the maths, some schools offer more technical degrees that don't require the same math as most CS programs.
@@JohnWilliamTech It's not a matter of wanting to learn it, I just really really hate math. I'm not even bad at it, i'm actually decent I just despise math. I don't know basic math because i block it out when I hear it
So, what you’re saying is I should do CS instead of IT. LOL.
I'm telling you beautiful person to follow your dreams
*a rainbow appears overhead and I vanish mysteriously, you feel a gentle breeze across your cheek and hear, in the most gentle of words... "CS or bust"*
edit: Don't tell anyone, but I interned as a Sys Admin/General IT. Help desk sucks, but actual IT work is super interesting imo. Your job basically is to automate processes and improve upon business infrastructure.
Sorry for the late reply I don’t get notifications.
I agree. Help desk I’ve heard is a dread, and I’m hoping with my degree plus a networking or security cert I can skip that. I see a lot of people go help desk because it seems you can generally get it with just an A+ cert.