Ask HN: CS degrees, do they matter again? • Hacker News Board

Re: Ask HN: CS degrees, do they matter again?

#241

Post by zerr » Sat, May 03, 2025, 11:07 PM UTC

VirusNewbie wrote: post #170

epolanski wrote: post #112

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> They need ways to eliminate chunks of the applications. Illogical ways of eliminating candidates are acceptable because they are better than having no way And this is how Apple/Google end up rejecting candidates to work on open source libraries...despite the candidates being the very authors they are wed out as they haven't spent months preparing for the interview.

Google and Apple don't have degree requirements, there are many of us working there as engineers without any college, much less a CS degree.

Degree is required for H1B visa applicants.

Re: Ask HN: CS degrees, do they matter again?

#242

Post by crush_robo_1536 » Sun, May 04, 2025, 9:42 PM UTC

I think they'll still continue to matter. Ofc if you're just trying to write some simple code you don't really need a degree, but I'd trust someone who understands the fundamentals of computing way more than someone who doesn't when it comes to working on complex optimization problems (like squeezing the last bit of efficiency from your CPUs). I know AI is getting really good at all this stuff, but I still think that there have to be people that understand this stuff deeply (even if they use AI to develop this deep understanding). It also shouldn't take 4 years for a CS degree now imo given that it is so much easier to grasp concepts with LLM assisted learning.

Re: Ask HN: CS degrees, do they matter again?

#243

Post by xaoz » Mon, May 05, 2025, 12:38 AM UTC

scarface_74 wrote: post #173

epolanski wrote: post #112

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> They need ways to eliminate chunks of the applications. Illogical ways of eliminating candidates are acceptable because they are better than having no way And this is how Apple/Google end up rejecting candidates to work on open source libraries...despite the candidates being the very authors they are wed out as they haven't spent months preparing for the interview.

If you are referring to the author of HomeBrew https://www.quora.com/Whats-the-logic-behind-Google-rejectin... He admitted later that Google was probably right for not hiring him.

Well, perhaps not quite :D

> But ultimately, should Google have hired me? Yes, absolutely yes. I am often a dick, I am often difficult, I often don’t know computer science, but. BUT. I make really good things, maybe they aren't perfect, but people really like them. Surely, surely Google could have used that.

But he did add some nuance to the situation

Re: Ask HN: CS degrees, do they matter again?

#244

Post by investa » Mon, May 05, 2025, 7:01 AM UTC

WorkerBee28474 wrote: post #12

There's a story that goes: A man was tasked with hiring an employee. He got hundreds of resumes. His friend looks at the stack and asks him "how are you going to decide among all those?" The man grabs half the stack, throws it in the garbage and says "Simple, I don't hire unlucky people". Degrees matter when employers don't have the time and/or ability to make a reasonable decision for every candidate. They need ways…

So he went on to hire lucky people. They all left after a year. 6 had won the lottery, 10 had got rich betting on crypto and the other 12 had set up a business on the side and make more money from that.

He had learned his lesson: next time he would discard the other half of the applicant pile.

Re: Ask HN: CS degrees, do they matter again?

#245

Post by wanderer11 » Mon, May 05, 2025, 12:08 PM UTC

john-h-k wrote: post #172

epolanski wrote: post #112

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> They need ways to eliminate chunks of the applications. Illogical ways of eliminating candidates are acceptable because they are better than having no way And this is how Apple/Google end up rejecting candidates to work on open source libraries...despite the candidates being the very authors they are wed out as they haven't spent months preparing for the interview.

Is this referring to homebrew? On the one hand i get it, but on the other hand reversing a binary tree isn’t some crazy leetcode grind. Most people can figure it out in a few mins and i think its fair to reject someone who can’t

I disagree with it being fair to reject someone who can’t reverse a binary tree. I’ve never had to do it in my 16 year career and it’s easily learned. You could literally teach someone in a few minutes.

Re: Ask HN: CS degrees, do they matter again?

#246

Post by earthen4060 » Thu, May 08, 2025, 10:28 AM UTC

Software developer for the last 7 years, started as a graphic designer, turned frontend, then backend engineer (was lucky to work in a product team where I was offered the opportunity to learn and switch careers). Last 4 years solely backend. No education, decided to pursue the cs degree anyways (no scared to lose this career) but instead to create new opportunities to grow and specialize. Having a cs degree opens up the opportunity for masters and other things I’m considering to pursue in the future to not stay a software developer forever. Besides that I am really learning a lot of stuff and it did make me a better developer. Following IU.org online degree, it’s quite modest but it is real and accredited, difficult too. Good luck!