Thread: Should I drop out of programming?

Are you interested in programming?
No? Then yes, you should drop out.
Yes? Then you should actually try. Buy a C book, read it.

Learn if you want to, don't if you don't. If it's not interesting, don't do it.


Quzah.

3 hours for every hour of lecture; in reality, it'll be about two per. Ten minutes of study before class shouldn't cut it for any college class. That amount of study time would lay the groundwork for failure for any subject. Maybe part of your trouble is managing.

If you are an undergrad, it's a Bachelor's. Traditionally, the bachelor will swim in a river of information and drink it up. That's how the program gets its name: it's drink or drown. The Bacchus in the bachelor's is not just about the parties. It's an embracing, engulfing, attachment to life; specifically, it'll be an embracing of those problems. For the programming major, it'll be all about grabbing ahold of those problems and running with every one. The professors will throw many, many problems the students' way.

The point of a Bachelor's is to show you can understand a question. The point of a Master's is to show you can imitate a successful answer. The point of a Doctorate is to show that you can provide your own original answer to a problem. Those are the degrees of academically demonstrated knowledge; notice, there's no pass or fail about getting a job or liking a subject or receiving improved pay.

Being overwhelmed is part of the process in undergraduate study. By now about 25% to a third of your classmates will have dropped out. Drink or drown. Sink or swim. Swim!

Some subjects, like Math or Science (including computer programming), are "applied" not "pure." That is, they are about hands-on work. The "pure" Math is more about ideas and theory. Applied maths are about solving the problems. Notice how many of your tests in maths or sciences will lack questions about solving a proof; instead, they'll provide problems that are very specific in their data set or questioned procedure. A procedure is a "math." The study of Math, of procedure, is "applied." You will work many, many problems.

Chances are, in the US at least, you are going to mostly solve an applied style of problems; the Europeans seem to be more accepting of pure Math. In computer programming, there will be an intense concentration on the applied nature of programming. Maybe you can already see that computer programming is a very "applied" study of maths and procedures. In many academic programs, it's almost nothing but that.

This means that the programming student will probably be typing and compiling and coding and planning and editing until his keyboard falls apart.

If you are only putting your hands on the work for ten minutes before class, you will remain screwed until you fail. You can't solve those applied problems just by knowing the main idea. The nature of the course of study will involve demonstrating that you can solve the problem.

The professors who are pounding those problems into you are probably doing you a favor in those subjects.

Many successful student programmers, I think, will be the ones who will go beyond what the professor asks. They're going to program because they program.

Code, code, code. If you didn't write it today, then you didn't write it today. Write the damn program and keep on writing.

If you're not doing extra problems "just because", then maybe you are in the wrong field of study for a major. Meanwhile, you should probably get back to coding.

You're probably already past the drop date for the semester, so start swimming. You can worry about dropping or not registering for another one of these after you get through with this class. Survive this one, and then go do something else. If you want to code more after this class, you won't need our permission.

Good luck. Disce aut discede.