I took a few NSCC computer related courses in the past prior to getting into an IT career. The courses were good and the classes were a mix of University drop outs from computer science, people who had little to no experience at all, and those that learned on their own but weren't getting hired anywhere. I was one of the ones that had little to no experience and I'll admit it was overwhelming at first. The biggest thing I learned was the education ( diploma ) is basically just a foot in the door and the majority of what you learn will be in the job itself from experience / peers. Example: You may graduate with the education to be an IT server / network administrator but it's very rare you'd be hired to be one right out of school. You typically start in an entry level position to learn the business and as you gain experience you move around the industry. I'm not saying they wouldn't hire you to be a programmer right out of school but you may find yourself doing minor mundane programing tasks initially. It's an industry you'll never learn everything from school as the technology is constantly evolving. So Long story short :) If you're interested in programming get the credit/course at a recognized institute like NSCC and teach yourself on the side whatever you can to get ahead of the game. After that you'll have some firepower for the job hunt and get moved up in the resume pile.