I want to major in computer science as I have a interest in computers. But know that I look at general courses for the major I see it requires a lot of math. The problem? I suck at math. Should I continue my search my major for or just suck it up and deal with it? Also, whats a complementary minor for cs? Originally, (before deciding on my major) I wanted to minor in a language or business. What would be a better fit?
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What math have you taken in high school?
When you say that you have an interest in computers - is it more specific? There are many majors that have to do with computers. There’s software engineering, there’s information technology, there’s computer security, computer engineering, etc.
Have you taken any computer science classes in high school?
What grade are you in?
You could figure out more specifically in what way computers interest you like thshadow said. The biggest distinction is software or hardware, which would you rather work with?
You can do IT work and install servers, routers, switches, network cabling, ect. or write software like programs, games, device drivers, operating systems, ect.
In the field you probably won’t use too much math unless you start doing actual science work like a program to calculate rocket ships, but you’ll definitely need to know algebra and some basic calculus in case you wanna write a simple equation or graph some data, some programs are more complex like audio and graphics manipulation programs so those will probably need more complex math equations.
To get your degree you will need to do probably up to calc 3, but in the actual field it all depends on what you do if you’ll actually use it. I was never great at math until I started focusing on my courses, now I’m in the op of my class. It’s just like a language you gotta learn over the years.
IT and networking won’t get as much money as comp sci, but it’s more hands on if that’s your thing. I love hands on IT work the pay for the amount of work you need to do isn’t worth it to me. Comp sci has a little more flexibility in the kind of work you can do and where you work
CS is not the only path to jobs that relate to computers. What is it about computers that draws you? The list of potential jobs is great… if you’re a creative type, you could do UX/UI design. There’s front-end development, which is not as math-intense as something like Java development. Or there’s database development. You could study human-computer interaction. Or become a business systems analyst, project manager, product manager, QA professional. Interactive media is a hot major now. Search engine optimization, social media coordination, analytics, content optimization - there’s so much available. It saddens me to see so many students who want to be in tech give up because they think a CS degree is the only path.
As for a minor, I’m a big fan in minoring in something completely unrelated to your major to expand your marketability. (My major was Math/CS, minor was Interpersonal Communications). Take courses that stretch you, and that you’re passionate about.
I’ve only taken up to Alegbra II
currently in college, no my high school did not afford me the gracious opportunity.
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I’ve noticed that some schools are scaling back on the math required for their CS programs, although off the top of my head I can’t recall which schools those were. I remember seeing some programs that only required one semester of calculus (which is really more than enough calculus for the great majority programming jobs,) along with maybe a semester of discrete math, linear algebra, and statistics.
@simba9 Oh ok I will try to find these schools thanks!
@InigoMontoya will majoring in something completely different hurt my major? Forgive me for my ignorance but I hear differently, that and it’s useless to minor in anything. (although I will still be doing it.)
A minor is not “useless”. It doesn’t carry the same weight as a major, but it does show a concentrated study in an area in addition to your major. Some minors are not as significant, if there’s a lot of overlap in course it can be pretty easy to get enough credits for a minor. I can’t see any way a minor could “hurt” your major unless the course load becomes such that you aren’t doing well in classes for your major.
A minor in something unrelated to your major can show you are well-rounded. For me, my minor in Communications showed employers I wasn’t just a tech nerd - I was also someone with training in how to present and communicate ideas to others.
You should think about what is a good fit for you. I didn’t choose Communications deliberately - what I found over time was my electives were shaping into a potential minor in either English or Communications. I was actually someone who took Public Speaking just for fun and for a break from the heavily technical nature of my major. Then I realized it would only take another class or two to formalize a minor so I took those additional classes.
What interests YOU the most?
@InigoMontoya Would it be waste less to minor in a language such as Spanish?
@YoungKin
Minor is not ‘useless’ per se. (well, it depends on which context)
In the context of getting a job, yes, a minor is almost always worthless. In fact, many applications don’t even see anything other than your first major; in other words, if you did double major, you can only list one of the two on the job posting. (at least with companies that want you to manually input with/without the resumes)
However, you do not get a minor for ‘job’.
The whole point of higher education was never meant to get you a ‘certain job’. That’s pretty much the idea of trade school.
Minor is quite worth-ful for your own intellectual stimulation.
You don’t major in college to impress employers. You major in college what you are passionate about while being somewhat realistic about the job market (I’m sorry for idealists who claim that college is completely off based from job but with the current job market and the $$$ you have to throw for a paper claiming you got a bachelor’s degree, I think unless one is affluent, one should also note the current job market).
In other words, if you really want to minor in something, do it.
But if you are minoring for the sake of minor-ing, forget it. Companies don’t care. Maybe one out of every fourty or so. Who knows.
Personally, I rather not worry about a minor and just take the courses I am interested in college outside my major requirements.
Being ‘forced’ to do a minor can sometimes lead you to miss out on certain courses you longed to take and certain courses you have no thoughts learning.
And do note that:
“computer science is no more about computers than astronomy is about telescopes.” ~Dijkstra
Many fields of Computer Science… don’t even use computers… at all.
So ya, don’t mistake the name for it.
Maybe you are passionate about computer engineering or IT or Operations Research, etc. A lot of incoming CS students come in thinking they are going to learn about fun ‘program game stuffs’ only to later realize CS … is not what they thought it was.
@AccCreate thank you for your insight. I wasn’t really sure to much about the minor. But since you put it like that. I am going to go for it since I always wanted to learn Spanish anyway. Sorry for the late reply, I barely have anytime since the new semester started.