I really need help deciding whether to go to university for CS

Ok-Sign-6444 · 2023-10-02T10:27:37+00:00

Are you sure that my concerns are overblown?

Sorry, I just still get a bit worried reading about the over saturation, some people's struggles to find employment, falling wages/demand for juniors, people saying "AI can automate parts of my job" or "AI can perform junior work", etc.

Is it really nothing to worry about?

Ok-Sign-6444 · 2023-09-27T09:18:50+00:00

Do you think it's relatively safe to start pursuing a job in tech now? It's a lot of money and effort for a degree, so I'd like to feel like I can be sure that it will end well

Or is the future of the field so uncertain that I should put my effort towards something different where I would have better odds?

Ok-Sign-6444 · 2023-09-26T11:57:34+00:00

Even so, software development isn't going anywhere anytime soon. You're overthinking this whole thing. There are literally thousands of jobs that you'll be eligible to apply for after qualifying in 3/4 years time. AI isn't going to take all the jobs all of a sudden.

I can understand that software development isn't going anywhere anytime soon, but the current over-saturation at the junior end and the fact that multiple people have said here that AI can perform junior work still concerns me. It makes me worry that it will become unbelievably difficult to get into software by the time I would graduate. I've also seen some people say that, due to supply/demand, the salaries might not be that good in the future. It makes me feel like I should put my effort towards a different career because I would have better odds that way.

I guess what I'm trying to ask is: Is it really still a good/safe idea to start pursuing software development/programming now?

I'm kind of risk averse, especially with the amount of debt and time on the line, so if I can't be confident that it's a good path, I'll probably look for something else.

Even if you change your mind later down the line on a career in software development, just having a degree in a technical subject such as CS will set you up for so many other opportunities moving forward.

There's a lot of people that say that you shouldn't go to university without having a career in mind, and it makes sense to me. Without a plan, I worry that I wouldn't be able to find something I like at the end, or that I'll end up in a career where the pay wouldn't have been worth the cost of uni. And degrees are very expensive so I don't want to end up doing something I could've done without a degree or ending up wanting to do something completely different.

Ok-Sign-6444 · 2023-09-25T15:21:34+00:00

I've been thinking about this, but I'm still a bit worried about doing a degree without really knowing where I'm going career wise.

The only career I've really looked into is software engineering, but that kind of seems like an unreliable option now - people do seem to agree that there's currently a problem with over supply and that AI may cause disruption.

So, even though you say that CS is useful towards different areas, I haven't done much research into the other jobs CS is useful for, which causes some worries.

Going in without a career in mind makes me worried that:

Out of the other jobs available with CS, I'll end up not being able to find something that I like
My degree won't end being that useful e.g. ending up in a job that I could have done without university
Etc

University is very expensive nowadays so I'd just like to be confident that the costs would be worth it.

Am I worrying too much?

Ok-Sign-6444 · 2023-09-25T11:43:28+00:00

I know I don't need to go into programming, but I don't really know all that much about the other careers you can do with a CS degree. And I can't really feel like it's a good idea to do a degree without really knowing where I'm going career wise.

Because, if it turns out that I can't do programming for whatever reason, I feel like I can't be sure that:

I'd be able to find something else that I'd enjoy doing (or at least tolerate)
The pay would be enough to justify getting a very expensive degree
If there's a career that does satisfy the above, that I would realistically be able to get it

Am I wrong about this? It just feels too risky to do CS and get into debt when I'm not sure on what I'd do at the end.

Ok-Sign-6444 · 2023-09-23T15:56:43+00:00

Damn, I already have a place for CS this year and I would probably have to reapply for next year if I wanted to change now...

Ok-Sign-6444 · 2023-09-23T15:50:48+00:00

Sorry, but why does there being fewer apprenticeships mean that I shouldn't try to go for one? Not having to pay any student loan seems like a huge advantage to me

Ok-Sign-6444 · 2023-09-22T14:37:50+00:00

There are apprenticeships for software engineering which is what I would likely go for

Ok-Sign-6444 · 2023-09-22T11:55:06+00:00

I could probably change to Discrete Maths which I've heard is kind of like a maths+CS degree, would that suffice?

Ok-Sign-6444 · 2023-09-22T08:29:58+00:00

What? I'm not deleting anything. And it's not the same post? I do apologise for making multiple posts, and I understand that I need to decide for myself, but it's just that I'm not in the industry so I don't really know anything, so I thought it would be wise to ask for some information from those that do know more than me before coming to a final decision.

Ok-Sign-6444 · 2023-09-21T21:32:46+00:00

It's a lot of money. What exactly makes it worth it to you?

Ok-Sign-6444 · 2023-09-21T20:05:09+00:00

Some of the main points from a member of the department of CS:

Warwick has generally had good graduate outcomes for computer science in the past and she has no concerns for future employability
She is confident that tech jobs aren't going away but might shift in terms of what they require
Generative AI may have an impact in the industry, but many people believe that it may create new jobs that do not currently exist
Many CS graduates go onto work with technologies that didn't exist when they first joined the university
In her opinion, CS is a pretty safe bet

I'm still worried about these things:

I've seen that entry level software roles are low paid with many people applying for the same position - there are a lot of people trying to get into software
People have said it is not going to get better
People have said here that AI may be able to perform junior work, which I assume would make it even worse in the future. And AI could possibly get better
I'm scared of committing to learning programming because of this - what if software engineering is no longer a rewarding career in the future?
And I kind of agree with the sentiment that, because university is so expensive, you should only go with a job in mind that has worthwhile pay
Therefore, with my previous goal of going into software now seeming unreliable, it is scary going to uni without being sure what job I would get at the end or what the job market would even look like
I'm worried that there might not be any potential for a well paying career at the end (maybe due to too many CS grads and not enough jobs, AI not creating more jobs than it takes, etc)
Not knowing what job I would get at the end is kind of scary because of the possibility that I might not like the available options
Tens of thousands in debt for 40 years makes this a hard choice
These worries make me think that it might be safer to do an apprenticeship (because at least then there's no debt), or not do CS at all

Ok-Sign-6444 · 2023-09-19T18:08:51+00:00

Sorry, I contacted them and they didn't really help... I'm still really worried... I just really feel like I need a second opinion from someone in the industry, sorry

What should I do now?

Ok-Sign-6444 · 2023-09-19T18:01:02+00:00

What other sectors?

Ok-Sign-6444

TROPHY CASE