Future Career

Hey guys and gals!

I'm now at the crucial stage of choosing a university course to study, and a university to study it in. My heart is set on software engineering me thinks. I've looked at many other programming courses and this just seems to fit. I'm nearing the end of my first year at 6th form/college, and the staff are now pushing us into starting our personal applications, it's all happening so fast! I can't wait until I go to uni, I can do what I love to do and have been doing on and off for the past 3 years, just 1 more year to go! I'm going down to Huddersfield in October to check out their university. It has a great 5 year Software Engineering sandwich course, giving a Master of Engineering degree, which I think is pretty sweet! The downside is that I need 300 UCAS points to get in - 3 B's or an A, B, C - although if I can work hard enough I'm sure that I'll get the grades that I want. I'm posting this because I want students that are planning on going to uni, already at uni or graduated and in a career to share what information they hold about university and software engineering. What made you pick it? What uni did you study at? Did you enjoy it? etc... C'mon, share, I'm real excited on going!

As long as you have a degree, and it's somewhat related to your field, I think your degree is less important to prospective employers than what you have done - projects, experience, etc... So when picking a degree, I think one should just pick something they're going to find interesting, and something that will teach them a lot of things they didn't already know - those are things that vary greatly from person to person.

You never know... I was talking to a coworker during lunch today and he told me about a guy he knows who worked at Tektronix for many years. Then he decided to switch professions -- now, he's a ferrier, meaning he provides professional care for the feet of ungulate animals (replacing horseshoes, shaving the hooves of cows, etc).

He said the guy was much happier after the switch.

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Originally Posted by brewbuck

You never know... I was talking to a coworker during lunch today and he told me about a guy he knows who worked at Tektronix for many years. Then he decided to switch professions -- now, he's a ferrier, meaning he provides professional care for the feet of ungulate animals (replacing horseshoes, shaving the hooves of cows, etc).

He said the guy was much happier after the switch.

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A developer at my previous company quit and became a chicken farmer. :D

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Originally Posted by cpjust

A developer at my previous company quit and became a chicken farmer. :D

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Alas!The economic depression at its cruel best. :eek:. Or was he interested more in poultry?

@OP,
I think it is a very good choice that you have decided to go for higher studies during these troubled times and the fact that you are going to take the subject you love still makes it better . I personally think the freshers should go for higher studies rather than search for a new job during the economic downtime because nobody today can guarantee that job security. It's a personal opinion though, and i do hope the economy becomes better by the time you graduate after 5 years. All the best. :)

I originally picked Computer Engineering with a software focus, couldn't be happier. I have 2 years left of studies, but work part time (internship) as a software engineer. As far as studies go it can be tough, and there's plenty of times when I think "I will never use this after this course", and I probably won't but it's good to know anyways. As for the job aspect, well that can be boring/tough/exciting/variety of things depending on what I'm programming. Do what you love and you never work a day in your life.

My advise, what value it may have , is similar to sean, pick somethimg you dont already know, a degree now a days has less value to experience, think of it as opening the horizon on knowledge.

Because out there what counts is work and making money dont fall in the pit of i know more, knowing is not making money.

Compliments

So I should pick something that I know nothing about in place of something I've been enjoying? That's twisted! :P

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Originally Posted by stevesmithx

Alas!The economic depression at its cruel best. :eek:. Or was he interested more in poultry?

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No, this was years before the depression. I guess the stress was too much for him. :)

More graduates 'out of work' - Telegraph

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Students with arts, history, philosophy. business, building, computer science and physical sciences degrees were more likely to be unemployed than the national average.

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So much for this govt's "knowledge economy" rhetoric.

One wonders what was "above average", since the second part of the list pretty much covers what might be called productive work.


Wanna make money - choose business law.
You rake it in in good times doing takeover deals.
You rake it in in bad times picking over the bones as administrators during insolvency.

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Originally Posted by Salem

One wonders what was "above average"

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Those with degrees in Beckham-, SuBo-, and quango-nology, political correctness, and health and safety. Probably haberdashers too, because lord know Simon Cowell needs a steady stream of armpit length trousers given his perpetual omnipresence.

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Originally Posted by Salem

One wonders what was "above average", since the second part of the list pretty much covers what might be called productive work.

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I think you mean "productive organizing" (aka pushing paper), since the people who actually do "the work" usually do not have or require a degree. I am pretty sure the world does not need any new thinking in *any* of those fields, altho when it can be afforded we may like it. Hence the art of painting murals and the art of writing software and the art of selling products are all prone to suffer the same consequences this way.