Path to Comp Sci
Like many young people, I had no idea what I wanted to be when I grew up, but I knew that I had to go to college. It wasn’t an option; it was a fact. So based on my limited experience up until that point, I decided to major in English since I enjoyed reading. And hey, my teachers were pretty cool, so why not become a teacher myself?
I worked as an English teacher for about ten years, and I can’t deny the unique opportunities and experiences my career brought me. I left the US in 2013 to move to Thailand for a year and have been living in South Korea since 2014. I’ve had the chance to travel, meet interesting people of diverse backgrounds, and had the privilege of teaching over a thousand students. And I still enjoy reading – I’ve read 20 books so far in 2023, albeit mostly fantasy novels.
But teacher burnout is real and can be vicious. I had felt it creeping up on me for a while before I decided to pursue another career. Luckily, after starting to learn to code as a hobby, a degree in computer science seemed like a natural fit. I’ve always enjoyed problem solving, and coding offers a good balance of mental stimulation mixed with creativity. I love learning, and computer science is a bottomless well of information. Nothing is quite as frustrating as getting hung up on a problem while coding, but there is also nothing as satisfying as solving a problem or finishing a project. I’m excited to begin a career as a programmer and look forward to the experiences it will bring.
Capstone
I expect CS 467 Online Capstone Project to be a significant learning experience for me, especially in regard to working in a group. Although my job as a teacher was centered around working with people – namely students – it was never really a team experience. The teacher is the captain of the ship based purely on the power dynamics of the classroom; I don’t have experience working collaboratively on a project with a group of peers in the way that computer science requires. I’ve had a few experiences through the post-bacc program at OSU working on small projects with a partner, but never on a more sizable project like what we will accomplish in the online capstone project.
I’m eager to experience what the development process is like with a team. Since I’ve completed most projects independently, they were flexible to my schedule and plans changed based on my needs. I’m sure I will experience some growing pains with being held accountable to teammates and adhering to what I expect to be a more well-defined plan and stricter schedule. However, I am very welcoming of it. And although I have some experience using Git, I’m happy to gain more experience using Git with a team. I hope that I can learn from my teammates and have something to offer them, as well.
Good luck to everyone else who is enrolled in CS 467 this term. I hope the term goes smoothly for us all and that it is a great learning experience!
