bneha69 wrote: > I am a BCA(Bachelor in Computer Application)student.I want to become a > professional programmer.Can anyone suggest any course in which > specialization is given in programming?I don't want to do MCA.Because > I am not interested in theory subjects.I just only want to study > programming languages.I am thinking about HCSE(HCL Certified Softwarre > Engineering)course.Do you think that it is good to do this?Please > guide me. >
I have a B.S. in Computer Science, and it taught a wide range of topics including programming languages, theory of computing, discrete math, software engineering, and of course general education/liberal arts. Having worked in the "real world" for eight years now I see that while I started out with an aptitude for programming, the degree taught a lot of other useful skills necessary to succeed. Programming is only a portion of what you will do in a job. Project management, technical designs, code review, testing, maintenance and support, these are all areas in which you will need some level of expertise. I highly recommend you at least start out with this type of education. Later on if you want to focus in a specific area (e.g. programming language theory) go for an M.S. in Computer Science. Most programs have core classes but allow you some flexibility to choose an area of specialty to include advanced classes and a thesis or project in an area of your choosing. In my experience having an M.S. does not help much in terms of pay or position (while I cannot prove it, the grapevine says my salary is roughly equivalent to coworkers with a graduate degree in the same position) but if YOU get something out of it and it makes YOU feel better, then you accomplished something. I fully intend to go back for a graduate degree of some sort, probably an M.S. even though I want a Ph.D. (too expensive and time consuming if I want to pay my mortgage too), just for the warm fuzzy feeling of being able to do some cool projects that are not driven by the need to earn profits for some corporation. Even though I love my job, I only have so much freedom to do interesting things. At the end of the day we need to bill customers so my company can pay the bills (including my salary). In an ivory tower, you can do work that may not be profitable. -- John Gaughan
