Well it all really depends on the programmer, the course, the teacher, etc.
Whilst at university (CS) I learned about Trees and Hashtables and Lists and when to use one or the other. I learned boolean algebra and how to simplify such an expression where appropriate. I learned about reference types (pointers anyway) and value types and when to use one or the other. And a whole host more. All of that is stuff you can teach yourself but for some people actually sitting down and doing it at university helps to get the knowledge in and ensure you don't have any gaps**. Just yesterday I used Isolated Storage in a Winforms app I am working on. I did not know that such a thing existed before studying for an MS Cert (that I did not sit for but that's devestating to my case) and would have been messing around trying to write text into a file in a temp folder or something. Before that I worked on an MVC2 app which is a framework I taught myself with no coursework whatsoever. When two programmers come to an interview and one has sit an exam (or has a uni degree) and the other doesn't then I expect the one that has to have a broader knowledge base of the topic area (but not necessarily a deeper one). I still wouldn't exclude someone from an interview process because they didn't have an MS Cert or Uni degree. It all depends on what you need when you're hiring I guess. ** Imagine knowing about the collections stuff in .NET 1.1 but never having learned the generic collections in .NET 2.0. *shudder* On Thu, Nov 11, 2010 at 1:33 PM, David Walker <[email protected]>wrote: > I agree - several of our best programmers have never been to University at > all. You have to wonder if three years worth fluff is really any good for a > career - especially as the lecturers are generally poor teachers who are > forced to give lectures as part of their tenure... > > -----Original Message----- > From: [email protected] on behalf of Nathan Schultz > Sent: Thu 11/11/2010 13:03 > To: ozDotNet > Subject: Re: [OT] Usefulness of Microsoft Certifications > > I know one IT manager who actually likes employing programmers with degrees > outside of CS. People with vastly different backgrounds tend to think about > problems differently. I remember reading Boeing does the same when they > develop their flight-systems, which are not only are quadruple-backed up, > but are written by totally different teams with different backgrounds, as > to > help minimize a bug being in the same place. > > There is also one programmer at work without a tertiary degree but is > passionate about it and is one of the best guys here. > > That said, I still believe getting a CS degree (at the very least) is > worthwhile. > > > > On Thu, Nov 11, 2010 at 12:51 PM, David Connors <[email protected]> wrote: > > > On 11 November 2010 14:26, David Walker <[email protected] > >wrote: > > > >> Yeah fair enough. We all have CS degrees now - is it worth extending > these > >> to a Software Engineering degree/masters degree? > > > > > > I think it depends on the institution and course. When I was at uni I did > a > > bachelor of information technology with a major in SE and minor in AI. I > > think all the degrees are pretty well rounded these days with soft > systems > > methodology type stuff rather than just 100% dry comp sci. > > > > > >> Does any education provider offer something like this? My CS course > spent > >> alot of time dealing with topics which honestly I have never used, and > will > >> never use - PRNG's, assembly etc... > >> > > > > The particular language programming task or language isn't really the > issue > > - it is all the foundation knowledge and theory you get in the process. > That > > stuff is good for a lifetime transcends language/runtime/programming > > problem. > > > > -- > > *David Connors* | [email protected] | www.codify.com > > Software Engineer > > Codify Pty Ltd > > Phone: +61 (7) 3210 6268 | Facsimile: +61 (7) 3210 6269 | Mobile: +61 417 > > 189 363 > > V-Card: https://www.codify.com/cards/davidconnors > > Address Info: https://www.codify.com/contact > > > > > >
