Comment Which skills to learn? (Score 1) 991
As an alumna of a small liberal arts college (although my degree was in mathematics and not computer science), I'd like to weigh in.
I would go back to my college in a heartbeat.
The reason is simple: I was at a place where adaptability and inquisitiveness were valued rather than a particular skillset. My school lit in me a passion for learning which drove me to discover my true interests and, in the end, pursue the skills I really wanted. (I ended up going to graduate school in psychology, where I taught myself programming in a matter of weeks. I am now being paid to teach Python to others in my department, in addition to pursuing my degree.)
In short, I learned skills more valuable than technical skills (although I would have certainly learned plenty of these if my major were different).
It was also remarkably refreshing to be around other students who really cared about what they were learning and weren't just there to get good jobs. And the professors were not just amazing teachers, but I made friends with 4-5 of them (since classes were so small), which has not just been fulfilling and interesting but has led to jobs, application help, and publications.
The down side is that you won't get that brand name stamp. Yes, that stamp will help you get jobs, if that is what you care about. But I'd say that, while a good ranking tech school will make for a more impressive resume, a good liberal arts college will make for a more impressive you. Which, can, of course, lead to all kinds of things, usually including (in the long run) a great resume.
You also won't be able to really get that focus on a skill that you want -- you may be surrounded by geniuses, but they won't necessarily be the CS geniuses who can show you all the secret tricks. Then again, taking such a focused road is dangerous unless you are 100% sure it's what you want.
Anyway, it sounds like you have a feeling about where you want to go. Trust your instincts. In the end, it's probably better to *feel* good about where you are than to *think* good things about it.
P.S. As a point of general clarification, attending a liberal arts college is not equivalent to getting a Liberal Arts degree. A liberal arts college is a small, undergraduate-only (so heavily teaching focused and not research focused) institution that offers a full range of degrees, although they will usually have more breadth requirements than other schools.
I would go back to my college in a heartbeat.
The reason is simple: I was at a place where adaptability and inquisitiveness were valued rather than a particular skillset. My school lit in me a passion for learning which drove me to discover my true interests and, in the end, pursue the skills I really wanted. (I ended up going to graduate school in psychology, where I taught myself programming in a matter of weeks. I am now being paid to teach Python to others in my department, in addition to pursuing my degree.)
In short, I learned skills more valuable than technical skills (although I would have certainly learned plenty of these if my major were different).
It was also remarkably refreshing to be around other students who really cared about what they were learning and weren't just there to get good jobs. And the professors were not just amazing teachers, but I made friends with 4-5 of them (since classes were so small), which has not just been fulfilling and interesting but has led to jobs, application help, and publications.
The down side is that you won't get that brand name stamp. Yes, that stamp will help you get jobs, if that is what you care about. But I'd say that, while a good ranking tech school will make for a more impressive resume, a good liberal arts college will make for a more impressive you. Which, can, of course, lead to all kinds of things, usually including (in the long run) a great resume.
You also won't be able to really get that focus on a skill that you want -- you may be surrounded by geniuses, but they won't necessarily be the CS geniuses who can show you all the secret tricks. Then again, taking such a focused road is dangerous unless you are 100% sure it's what you want.
Anyway, it sounds like you have a feeling about where you want to go. Trust your instincts. In the end, it's probably better to *feel* good about where you are than to *think* good things about it.
P.S. As a point of general clarification, attending a liberal arts college is not equivalent to getting a Liberal Arts degree. A liberal arts college is a small, undergraduate-only (so heavily teaching focused and not research focused) institution that offers a full range of degrees, although they will usually have more breadth requirements than other schools.
