<p>hey all, i am a CS major freshman at VT now. i just started my first programming course (java) and i am struggling in it. I might get away with a C+, but i am beginning to question if I struggle in earlier stages of programming, is CS the right choice for me? what other non engineering/ business majors will lead me to good graduate business schools</p>
<p>CS unlike most other classes requires a lot of self study which is only possible if you genuinely like the subject. You have to explore a lot more and get into it, once you're in it gets more and more interesting.</p>
<p>I'm guessing that you feel that most people in your class seem better than you. Don't worry too much about that, its just that many people have programmed before and take those classes just to learn a new language. </p>
<p>Dont give up on CS too easily.</p>
<p>But if you feel that you've put in the required effort and are still struglling with the course then you should probably switch out of it.</p>
<p>you are at V TTT and you are still struggling with CS? You should just quit, because JAVA is like the easiest thing in the world, if u don't get JAVA at V TTT, you are better off not doing CS at V TTT.</p>
<p>You might want to look into IS (information systems), not programming intensive like CS, more business courses and a good job market.</p>
<p>It really depends on how they teach java. I can say that I am a transfer student from NYIT, they way they tought java was here the book lets solve problems. There was no lecture on syntax or symatics. Its just, you have the book and lets go. If you are struggling in a class like this, then you really dont have anything to worry about, because 80% of the other people have no idea either. If you are in a class, where they had lectures explaining what a class, instructor and methood was, and they went over syntax and symantics in great detail, and you are still having trouble, then this major wont be to easy for you. But its not ment to be easy.</p>
<p>Id recommend this site <a href="http://www.cs.brown.edu/courses/cs015/lecture/home.shtml%5B/url%5D">http://www.cs.brown.edu/courses/cs015/lecture/home.shtml</a></p>
<p>and if your school has a binding / copying place check if hey have the Brown lecture notes for CS15, probrolly the best way to learn java. if your school doesnt have it. PM me and il get you a copy, its $9.55 for a printed copy.</p>
<p>Id stick with it, maybe sit in on a higher level class, see if you can actual see yourself there in 2 years. If so then stick to it, but give it a chance because if its what ya like. ya shouldent quit.</p>
<p>id scan the book for you, but its 120 pages.</p>
<p>also ask for help if you need it. go to a TA's office hours and spend the entire time there. Keep doing it untill you get it.</p>
<p>well the TA's arent helpful. we have CS labs where ta's are supposed to help us, but they act like they dont want to be there. the r eason i am very discouraged right now is because everyone s eems to have some sort of programming experience already. and my professor explicity said that he cant cover all of the material in just 2 hours a week. i guess i dont find it suitable to me</p>
<p>The TA's job is to help you. idk all my Ta's have been helpfull. check with you CSE department if there is tutoring, we have a ton of it here at my school.</p>
<p>Is the Virginia Tech CS program one in which the weeder CS classes come first in the undergraduate curriculum? If you're getting a C+ in such a weeder class, you're doing alright... after all, B-/C+ is about the median in the UCLA CS31/CS32/CS33 series. :rolleyes:</p>
<p>If you're having difficulty with the programming, i'd recommend checking out a game that you have some interest in. Do you play CS, Starseige Tribes, Ultima Online, Half-Life, Quake, or any almost any other popular computer games in your spare time?</p>
<p>If so, many or all of these games have add-ons that are "scripted" similar to the program flow you'd experience in any other programming language. It is a great way to tinker with programming languages and general process order because it would be showing you results (in-game) and it is something that interests you.</p>
<p>For instance, a first step would be to alter the rate of fire for a pistol so that it becomes almost automatic. You might also try to change the graphics of a bullet. Maybe later you'd write the code for an entirely new weapon.</p>
<p>Hope you can try something like that,
-Kevin</p>
<p>I was a CS major at Cornell. It killed me and I eventually transfered out and switched to mechanical engineering. Learning the various rules of writing code for different languages isn't hard. I just couldn't figure out how to use the code to solve problems. I shouldn't quit CS after my first semester. That was more than two years ago. Once I was clueless about physics (the mechanics part, not electro-magnetism) and now I'm pretty good at it. But I don't think I could ever be good at CS. The students who were good at it had minds very different from my own and they had an amazing passion for programming. I never even attempted to teach myself a language on my own time.</p>
<p>wow justin you sound just like me but unfortunately i m still in CS :(</p>
<p>Well hey man, the nice thing about majors is that you can change them. I mean, there is a distinct difference between "giving up" on something and deferring one option in lieu for a better one.</p>
<p>Consider your reasons for choosing to major in CS in the first place: what were they? Can you list them here? Can you think of a reason that you might enjoy something else more?</p>
<p>-Kevin</p>
<p>well, i have done HTML before , so decided to do CS. my other options were psychology and g oing to medical school later, but i have no interests in spending 10 more years in school. but psychology is definitely my first passion. anyways, my parents wanted me to do MBA after CS. so right now, i am thinking of either psychology related career or some major that will prepare me for MBA.</p>
<p>< well, i have done HTML before , so decided to do CS. ></p>
<p>That doesn't sound like good motivation for CS. Given that, you are right to question your CS major.</p>
<p>< psychology is definitely my first passion. anyways, my parents wanted me to do MBA after CS. so right now, i am thinking of either psychology related career or some major that will prepare me for MBA.>
You could major in psychology and then go to business school. Business schools (along with law schools and medical schools) accept people from a variety of majors.</p>