Tell HN: I just wanted to say: thank you, Hacker News • Hacker News Board

Re: Tell HN: I just wanted to say: thank you, Hacker News

#71

Post by 50something » Wed, Mar 21, 2018, 9:18 PM UTC

ultrasounder wrote: post #61

50something wrote: post #32

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>You feel it was worth the cost? Harvard Extension is a bargain compared to most colleges. $1500-$2500 for most 4 credit classes. Don't tell those smart college students that you are getting the same class for less than half the price. I tried the online thing (Coursera, edX, Udemy, etc.) but was never as motivated as competing against real students in a real class with deadlines that have consequences. Fear of failu…

Thanks for sharing your experience. I myself on a new quest to self-teach CS and change my career. I have been in the Technology field for the past 13 years or so but am pivoting to a software engineering career. CS50x is my first stop. I am intrigued by your experience with HarvardX. THe CS50x path now offers 3 more courses beyond the CS50x which i hope to take over the year or so to build my portfolio. Very inspiri…

I'm actually not a fan of CS50. I never took the course, but I went through the online material did the first few weeks of assignments. It is very broad and very shallow. It is also very hard and discouraging without some guided assistance. The students who take it for credit get a lot of help.

For a first CompSci course, the edX Python course is better, IMO.

https://www.edx.org/course/introduction-computer-science-mit...

Re: Tell HN: I just wanted to say: thank you, Hacker News

#72

Post by codezero » Wed, Mar 21, 2018, 9:28 PM UTC

50something wrote: post #13

I am finishing my bachelors in CompSci at Harvard Extension and just got hired by Google. And I've got about 20 years on you. So yeah, absolutely, this can work! It was fun and challenging competing with top computer science students. In the long run, my organizational skills, focus, determination and world experience outweighed their raw brainpower and better memory. It's an ultramarathon, not a sprint.

Were you working while you got your degree, or did you pursue it full-time?

Re: Tell HN: I just wanted to say: thank you, Hacker News

#73

Post by ccajas » Wed, Mar 21, 2018, 9:28 PM UTC

50something wrote: post #27

mkagenius wrote: post #23

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> n the long run, my organizational skills, focus, determination and world experience outweighed their raw brainpower and better memory. Great. Would love to hear more of the story.

A lot of it was stuff that is basic to someone with years of work experience: * Start assignments as soon as they are given out. Stupid, right? * Don't be shy about asking lots of questions. Don't be egotistical or afraid about asking for clarification. * Build personal relationships with the professors and TAs. They are there to help. This is not an adversarial relationship. Show genuine passion for the material. *…

How did you deal with the financial issues about returning to college? Non-STEM graduate here, looking to work in places that have more deeply engineering related backgrounds. I'd prefer getting a CS or ECE degree.

My situation is especially complicated.

I have been unemployed (save a few short freelance gigs) since early 2015. I cannot interview effectively anymore. This, I think, is my biggest problem

I live with my mom because I can no longer make ends meet, but she is retiring and moving countries soon so I too have to eventually move out.

I have no friends or relatives with whom I can stay living with.

Because I already have a previous degree, financial aid opportunities for me are more limited, I hear.

If I were to register for the fall and aim to get into a university with a decent to great engineering background, how would you lay out a plan?

Re: Tell HN: I just wanted to say: thank you, Hacker News

#74

Post by aidenn0 » Wed, Mar 21, 2018, 9:29 PM UTC

50something wrote: post #27

mkagenius wrote: post #23

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> n the long run, my organizational skills, focus, determination and world experience outweighed their raw brainpower and better memory. Great. Would love to hear more of the story.

A lot of it was stuff that is basic to someone with years of work experience: * Start assignments as soon as they are given out. Stupid, right? * Don't be shy about asking lots of questions. Don't be egotistical or afraid about asking for clarification. * Build personal relationships with the professors and TAs. They are there to help. This is not an adversarial relationship. Show genuine passion for the material. *…

Glad to know students haven't changed w.r.t. meeting professors. I graduated in '04 and it astonished me how empty most professor's office hours were (modulo a particularly tricky homework question or an upcoming test).

I can learn from a textbook just fine; there are accomplished researchers in various fields who are literally paid to sit in an office and talk to you if you show up. And almost nobody took advantage of it!

Re: Tell HN: I just wanted to say: thank you, Hacker News

#75

Post by ultrasounder » Wed, Mar 21, 2018, 9:36 PM UTC

50something wrote: post #71

ultrasounder wrote: post #61

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Thanks for sharing your experience. I myself on a new quest to self-teach CS and change my career. I have been in the Technology field for the past 13 years or so but am pivoting to a software engineering career. CS50x is my first stop. I am intrigued by your experience with HarvardX. THe CS50x path now offers 3 more courses beyond the CS50x which i hope to take over the year or so to build my portfolio. Very inspiri…

I'm actually not a fan of CS50. I never took the course, but I went through the online material did the first few weeks of assignments. It is very broad and very shallow. It is also very hard and discouraging without some guided assistance. The students who take it for credit get a lot of help. For a first CompSci course, the edX Python course is better, IMO. https://www.edx.org/course/introduction-computer-science-m…

Thanks for your feedback. I could see your point about the course being broad. With 6.0.0 the whole focus is on Python and CS. Congrats on "Getting the Google job", at which many a might folk have failed; https://medium.com/@googleyasheck/i-didnt-get-hired-here-s-w... https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=9695102

Are you able to share the role that you got hired in to? Was it a SRE?

thanks

Re: Tell HN: I just wanted to say: thank you, Hacker News

#76

Post by stephen82 » Wed, Mar 21, 2018, 9:37 PM UTC

50something wrote: post #27

mkagenius wrote: post #23

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> n the long run, my organizational skills, focus, determination and world experience outweighed their raw brainpower and better memory. Great. Would love to hear more of the story.

A lot of it was stuff that is basic to someone with years of work experience: * Start assignments as soon as they are given out. Stupid, right? * Don't be shy about asking lots of questions. Don't be egotistical or afraid about asking for clarification. * Build personal relationships with the professors and TAs. They are there to help. This is not an adversarial relationship. Show genuine passion for the material. *…

I'm in my mid-thirties who has graduated years ago but still struggling with motivation and maintaining updates with technological advancements.

Your points were really motivating to me.

Will you announce it here when you have that book ready? I'm looking forward to buy it!

Re: Tell HN: I just wanted to say: thank you, Hacker News

#77

Post by eikenberry » Wed, Mar 21, 2018, 9:42 PM UTC

zamalek wrote: post #64

veza wrote: post #60

Being in a similar situation (before degree), I totally agree that I need a solid CS education. BUT, given that resources like https://teachyourselfcs.com/ are available for free why should I waste money and time and energy on courses of a probable lesser quality, at least at my local university. The way I see it the problem is not the education itself but your credentials or reputation in front of a possible employe…

That worked for me until I wanted a visa. Now I am getting a CS degree.

Was it that you needed any degree or did you specifically need a CS degree for your visa? Which country was the visa for?

Re: Tell HN: I just wanted to say: thank you, Hacker News

#78

Post by [deleted] » Wed, Mar 21, 2018, 9:42 PM UTC

ccajas wrote: post #73

50something wrote: post #27

Earlier quoted context omitted.

A lot of it was stuff that is basic to someone with years of work experience: * Start assignments as soon as they are given out. Stupid, right? * Don't be shy about asking lots of questions. Don't be egotistical or afraid about asking for clarification. * Build personal relationships with the professors and TAs. They are there to help. This is not an adversarial relationship. Show genuine passion for the material. *…

How did you deal with the financial issues about returning to college? Non-STEM graduate here, looking to work in places that have more deeply engineering related backgrounds. I'd prefer getting a CS or ECE degree. My situation is especially complicated. I have been unemployed (save a few short freelance gigs) since early 2015. I cannot interview effectively anymore. This, I think, is my biggest problem I live with m…

[deleted]

Re: Tell HN: I just wanted to say: thank you, Hacker News

#79

Post by eikenberry » Wed, Mar 21, 2018, 9:44 PM UTC

WheelsAtLarge wrote: post #51

Just a life tip here, make sure you work your way up the ranks. Which means studying and learning how to manage people not learning the obscure computer language. Tech is very tough on old guys. Programmers and CS jobs start to disappear as you get older. The happy stories you'll read here are the exception, not the rule. You need to cover your bases. Good luck.

This depends on where you live. I only really read about ageism being a problem in the valley. Locally (US Northwest) I've never seen any sign of it.

Re: Tell HN: I just wanted to say: thank you, Hacker News

#80

Post by 50something » Wed, Mar 21, 2018, 9:50 PM UTC

codezero wrote: post #72

50something wrote: post #13

I am finishing my bachelors in CompSci at Harvard Extension and just got hired by Google. And I've got about 20 years on you. So yeah, absolutely, this can work! It was fun and challenging competing with top computer science students. In the long run, my organizational skills, focus, determination and world experience outweighed their raw brainpower and better memory. It's an ultramarathon, not a sprint.

Were you working while you got your degree, or did you pursue it full-time?

I was fortunate enough to be in a situation where I could pursue it full time. I started part time, really liked it, and decided to complete it full time.