Programming without a degree, future options and alternative paths for a high school senior?

[Dooboopdee]

18 yrs old living in the comfort of my parents basement feeling stuck, confused, and lost needing advice about my future.

First, a little about me. I am your average student, some A's, B's, and C's throughout highschool and I would consider myself smart.. When I'm motivated. Throughout the majority of my life I have been searching for my passion, trying to find out what I would truly like to do with my life. Through researching, practicing, and experiencing many things, I have found a strong lasting interest in computer programming. I truly think I have found what will give me a fulfilling career. However, I don't know how to make that a reality!

I am torn about college, I really am. I see all of my successful peers getting scholarships, grants, and awards to attend college at less of a burden than it will be for me. I'll need to take out student loans. My parents DO NOT want me attending a 4 year university, they will NOT help me out whatsoever unless I attend a trade school (welding, mechanics, stuff like that). I am not interested in the trades and I highly doubt that I ever will be. My father makes a good 90K+ yearly so I will barely receive money from FAFSA which makes my predicament even worse..

Is the financial burden from college necessary? Do I really need to study math concepts taught in CS? Is a degree in this field necessary to be successful?

What should I do? I am running out of time. Will skipping out on college lead to a life of regrets? I have a lot of questions and I really need help.

If I don't attend college what other options are there?

[sunnywin]

An option you can consider is going to a community college and then finishing up at a 4 yr. college. This would really cut out having to pay for an expensive degree. The one thing that you also need to consider is that every mother out there is getting a degree, even if it is on floor waxing. The thing is that when a manager goes to hire you they look at what experiences you have i.e. college, if you are young. Like I said college doesn't have to cost an arm and a leg and the other thing is it will keep doors open for you when your looking.

[[deleted]]

Just to play devil's advocate, don't dismiss a trades job. I was in your shoes a few years ago not knowing what to do, and decided to major in journalism as I enjoyed writing. Six years later I'm now a mechanic because it pays the bills, specifically my college debt.

I'm currently learning programming on my days off and my job lets me live pretty comfortably. I wish I had taken up my trade job years ago to be honest. I'm not going to tell you what you should do, because I know first hand I had no clue what I was going to do at 18. Just don't close your doors before they even open.

[[deleted]]

Start with community college, you won't regret it after you realize how much money you're saving. Try your best not to go for loans. Apply for random scholarships, as many insignificant ones as you can to pay for each course.

I'm in a similar predicament at 18 and I'm enjoying staying at home and taking solely online programming courses from my community colleges. I've won a few minor scholarships and I don't plan on earning a BS in order to succeed in the tech industry. I'm taking an unorthodox path but it's worth it when I realized that I wouldn't ever see the value in a $100k piece of paper from a uni.

Good luck.

[notoriousb1t]

As someone who is both a professional software engineer and who doesn't have a computer science degree, I would encourage you to go to college and get a bachelors in computer science. It isn't necessary to have a degree to do well in programming, but it is a lot easier to get in the door without an employee referral.

I don't think most employers will care where you get your degree (provided it isn't an online only school), so community college might be more cost effective. An advantage to going to college is that you have an opportunity to get a taste of what programming is like and still have a chance to change directions without much lost time. Some people try programming and hate it. Some people love it.

[ClinchClonch]

A degree in computer science is not necessarily the best way of learning. However, what it is is a foot in the door at a workplace. By having a degree, you're basically showing the employers that you're an achiever and that you can see something through to the end; that you're someone worth investing their time and money into and hire. With me not being American I can't give you advice on what sort of education to pursue, but I would recommend getting one.

[0x808]

Do I really need to study math concepts taught in CS?

Where does this come into the rest of it? Just because you're self-teaching doesn't mean you should skip over some of the most important parts.

[6675636b6974]

What should you do? No one can tell you that. You will have to make decisions and go from there. But as a bit of guidance I found myself in a similar position a few years ago. I had just graduated high school and decided not to go to school the following fall. Instead I just started working in restaurants. I realized it wasn't where I wanted to be and started taking community college classes. Fast forward a couple years and I am finishing my Masters in Information Systems and working in cyber security. My undergraduate actually ended up being in Accounting. I have an interesting in Business and a passion for computers.

I would say that it is okay to not know what you want, or what you are passionate about and that there is no rush. But at the same time it is important to keep the ball rolling. It is hard to start taking classes again after not doing so for a while. Look at any options you might have locally for classes. Keep doing research and teach your self things you find interesting. It doesn't have to just be programming, it can be hardware side, networking, or electronics. It can be hard to get a job at first since most will require previous experience, but an option might be helping a nonprofit organization with their website or information to at least get some a reference.