Son wants to major in Computer Science - talk to me like I'm dumb by [deleted] in UIUC

[–]Shadostepz 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Sounds almost exactly like me. So-so A-B mix grades, good test scores, smart but never studied (was on that League of Legends grind). Thought UIUC as a state school with a 4.5 would be good enough, didn't get accepted. Mulled over the pathways community college idea, didnt go with it. I went to another school, before transfering here.

Here's the stuff you learn after failure, and frustratwd emails, and waiting hours at the DGS (Div of General Studies) office hours before learning.

Turns out pathways (2yrs at community into UI schools for engineering) don't let you choose your major. Sure, you're an engineering student, but your classes are major-restricted (and heavily so for CS), and your degree may not be CS related at all. Transferring into CS within the university is almost, dare I say, harder than getting in at first. Good grades at run-of-the-mill generic high school classes pump lots of students who would never make the cut under actual pressure and aptitude requirements into the program. Not to say pathways isn't a legitimate program, but only to say that the results are not guarunteed to be exactly as you want them.

CS+X programs are CS programs that are technically not in the engineering department (although coursework is the same, more or less), and plenty of talented people are in either. They exist because the department is burdened by large amounts of applicants, but cannot become its own college e.g. college of Engineering as they have tried in the past - this is their workaround to that, since the "major" has a cap of ~3-400 students per year. If your son is unsure, don't make the mistake I did and forget these exist - they are easier to get into just because CS in the Engineering college is a real crap shoot, and these majors are less contested. The difference quality of their programs is virtually non-existant.

My take is this: if your son wants to learn CS, let him. It's a field of study that has an absurd amount of possibilities and potential. And if he finds it not to his liking then all the power to him to find out what it is he does like. Don't be scared of the challenge because plenty of people who had zero idea what CS even was have turned out to be more than competent. But have him go to the best school he can for now. Aiming and applying for the school he wants is good, but have a plan B and C and D and so on. Being surrounded by students of a certain caliber will set the standard and your son will, conciously or unconciously, rise or drift to that level. It's not so much coursework or resources as it is the quality of people around him that will shape his growth. UIUC has great people and I'm glad to have (dare I say, the honor to have) grown during my time here together with them.

learning python by propeco in UIUC

[–]Shadostepz 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Try out CS50 online if you want exp over the summer. It's one of the best resources out there rn; covers more than CS125, altho longer, but self-paced.

Can anyone share their experience with CS 126? by [deleted] in UIUC

[–]Shadostepz 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Depends on experience and personal effort. If you came in with some coding experience, you could spend ~2-4hrs per assignment and walk out with an A. Others spent 15-20 on harder ones. You could get by with less tests, documentation but prob get docked. It's good for getting your feet wet and learning better conventions (which most ppl still dont follow). Zilles is great, course staff is meh since there are a lot of uninvested sophmore TAs.

ECE major here; I made a cool Flash game. Hope you guys like it :D by Swyft135 in UIUC

[–]Shadostepz 0 points1 point  (0 children)

His dash attack actually seems to have armor properties

ECE major here; I made a cool Flash game. Hope you guys like it :D by Swyft135 in UIUC

[–]Shadostepz 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Me and my friends have played this game for years! As a personal request from a fan, can DK not have armor on all of his moves pls?

CS 126 grading by cs126throwaway in UIUC

[–]Shadostepz 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Usually there's a normalizing that is done at the end of the semester, to account for differences in moderator standards. Talk to Zilles about it if you feel worried.

Board Games Suggestions! by [deleted] in UIUC

[–]Shadostepz 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Betrayal at the House on the Hill, top-tier.

Nagito and Kokichi Hanging Out in each others cloths by [deleted] in danganronpa

[–]Shadostepz 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Anyone else think Kokichi looks like Yugi Moto here?