Someone who solves problems concisely and in a readable easy to understand way imo

+1.

I would consider Gullanian a great "Great Programmer Definer".

I think it's horrible decision to spend 8k more if the plan is grad studies. You're going to be poor for the foreseeable future. Furthermore you can take extra math courses in grad school probably for free or audit

But what worries me is getting into a decent program with just barely a 3.0 GPA.

FWIW, I don't plan on getting a graduate degree directly after. I would definitely want to work for a bit (pay off loans) and see what happens. But it is a major consideration down the road.

why do you want/what do you plan to do with an advanced degree?

(if you answered before and i missed it, my apologies. i blame shabby, our resident great Great "Great Programmer Definer" Definer definer, for cluttering up this thread with his encouraging words and coalition building.)

Uh oh, I don't want to be too positive so I should be clear that I generally don't think getting a Master's or PhD in CS (or most subjects) is worth it and I think they're generally a waste of money.

But if you want to do it, you gotta play by their rules and do the things that they care about.

Ideally I would like to break into finance doing algorithmic trading or something similar to that. More realistically, some kind of data science job doing lots of statistical analysis.

You are't going to be ending up in Portland any time soon are you? That might just be the straw that could get me to leave Boulder and try to get on at Jama... I really don't know what I want your answer to be either...

seriously, wtf? your attitude would make sense if the goal was "rock star" or "famous movie star", but "algorithmic trading" isn't exactly a crazy pipe dream...

I guess it just kind of feels that way being 24 and still a semester away from only a B.A. in CS with a 3.0 GPA.

What would your advice for me be?

Get really good at C++ and algorithms. Read about finance and automated trading as much as possible. Implement some pricing models from books/papers.

Is there any reason it isn't a B.S. in CS (and possibly math)?

If you're in the states, I'd recommend just staying and getting the dual degrees. Your car insurance will be lower when you graduate and any subsidized loans won't get interest in that time anyhow. And 50k is already high for getting only one degree. Another 8k to make it two doesn't seem bad. (30k per degree basically, versus 52k or whatever for one)

it would be that if you're reasonably smart and motivated, do what you really want to do, especially something so realistic. so what if you can't get the exact job you want right out of school? just start taking the steps you need to take to get there. i'd be shocked if you truly tried and didn't succeed by the time you were 30. i don't have specific advice for that industry, but i'm sure you can find a way in, especially if you are willing to eat a little **** for a while as you move up.

A more embarrassing example of experience from JavaScript. Learning the true/false stuff with if/else, they gave a simple x > y and wanted you to change it so the statement was true (x < y). Well, I completely misread what they wanted and thought they were asking to write code that would first print out the true condition and then print the false condition.

We hadn't covered creating variables at that point, but I was all sorts of wondering how I could change this very simple code to make a variable and incrementally change it so it would do what I thought I was supposed to do.

After deciding it couldn't be done with only one line of code (they said change line 1 only), I realized I was way over-complicating things. And then changed the greater than sign.

I've had a little comp sci in my time, so I'm not a 100% noob, but I'm pretty damn close. I figure codecademy is like the first couple weeks of learning a new foreign language: it's good for starting to reorient your brain to accepting and thinking a new way. Plus, it's highly accessible and I'm sadly one of those impatient tossers who wants to make something now!

My school only offers a B.A. in Math.

CS is a B.A. just because I am/was already behind in getting my degree (started out as a music major, then switch to English, took time off, then been doing the CS/Math thing the last 2 years) and B.S. required 2 semesters of physics + a few extra CS credits, so I opted for the B.A. route since it was quicker. Not having the B.S. is another reason why I am self-conscious and wanting to get the double major.

I took a lot of higher level math just mainly because I found it interesting (and it was/is my minor)...and then it hit me that I only need 3 more Math courses (1 part time semester) to get the double degree, which is why I'm asking.

Hope I don't burst any bubbles but a 3.3 GPA* even from a top school won't be enough for most/all high frequency trading jobs imo (they are very "elitists", worse than (US) lawfirms imo, pretty sure many have a "4.0 or GTFO" policy)
Note: That info about hireing policies is about 2 years old. There's probably less picky shops outside NYC/London (Chicago+Boston also picky). It's also hearsay from people I know well/trust. I would probably never apply for a job like that for a multitude of reasons
*I'm a Euro but assuming this is the 4 point scale where 4.0=best

If it weren't for the money I'd def say go for the extra math (even if it was same GPA) but 8k...meh just graduate quickly, job market is good as well, especially if you enjoy math/"data science". Make sure to point that out.
Make sure to include business software type of jobs in your search. Optimization of all sorts can be mathy/fun (production plans, sheduling stuff in HR etc) and there's obviously a good chunk of data mining type jobs.

If you feel like you have the skill and drive you could also just give yourself a credit of 8k and use it for a 3 month coding project.

----

To add to the speculation about indicators of successful programmers. Let me throw this (probably unpopular) opinion into the ring:
Clever solution but missed ; < not clever solution with ;

I wouldn't be so sure about this.

I would worry that a BA in CS would seem light on math, which the BA in Math would hopefully counterbalance. Also, like he points out, given that its three classes' difference between a minor and a full on degree, it seems stupid not to do it. Plus, if he can get his GPA up a bit and maybe graduate with some honors, all the better.

Being another ~15% more in debt sucks and all, but if it opens up your job and future prospects significantly, I find it hard to see the down side. Unless the extra debt makes it tough to get loans for grad school or something.

-1. Especially in javascript.

-1.

Hopefully this counteracts any encouraging words or coalition building from earlier.

Oh, fwiw, I don't think codecademy ever mentioned that you need a semi-colon in the first bit about JS. I could be wrong. It was about 4 in the morning when I did that part.

Given that Codecademy's supplied default code raises warnings in Codecademy's online text editor created specifically for Codecademy, this is not surprising

shabby,

much better now, thanks .


derada,

i only skimmed the follow-up discussion but my understanding is that a masters is in fact useful (or de facto required) to break into finance. for just about any other field, i care way, way, way more about how well you code and communicate than about where /for how long you went to school and how good a test-taker you are.

so if you're serious about the former, you should probably keep going. if you aren't, then you shouldn't.

fwiw i have only a bachelor's, not in computer science, from a well-regarded public university, and i entered industry via the systems door. i haven't even had a conversation about my college work since job C+1 (where C is the job i had while i was still a student).


kero,

there has been some nonsense at work for the past few months, but even if i leave i'll stick around the bay area for a while yet. having done a few life reboots in the past few years, i'm not eager to do it again and i have lots of close friends here.

I've been in Co for 13 years and don't have any close friends here but do have some in Portland. The company is going to be going through a growth phase and has a solid product judging from their client list. My company is in a bit of a lull but has some interesting opportunities Real-Soon-Now possibly including spending some quality time in Tokyo. On the plus side, SF is an easy drive away from Portland... I hate decisions.

It's a pretty drive, at least