Do you need a computer science degree? My take as a software engineer who left school and then came back
In August 2018 I made the decision to take an indefinite amount of time off from the University of Waterloo, a top school in Canada for computer science and software engineering. I figured it’s 2018. Software engineers don’t need a degree, right?
It was terrifying, but I took the plunge. I accepted an offer to continue working full time at the company where I interned that summer. It was a dream come true at the time. I didn’t need to learn any more theory or extraneous information I wouldn’t use, and I was able to start adding value to the world. I had a lot of responsibility too. I hired a team of interns around me, I was in charge of almost all software architecture and implementation, and I felt like it was the best start I could have asked for in my career.
And I was right. I learned many invaluable skills. My engineering and design skill growth was fast tracked, and I learned what it takes to manage people and professional relationships. These are things that school just can’t teach you.
However, it turns out there are a few caveats.
Do you need a degree to be a software engineer?
I do believe that you can be a great software engineer without a degree, and I don’t think you’ll have a problem finding a job. However, you may be limited in what you can work on, and in what capacity.
For fields like web development it may be fine to not have a degree. There aren’t a ton of abstract topics, and skills learned in university aren’t well aligned to skills you need on the job. Also, there is so much information available online that you’re able to get by very easily while being self-taught. Along with this, with the advent of coding bootcamps, you can learn a lot of web development topics much more quickly and less expensive than traditional universities.
For lower-level programming, graphics, embedded systems, data science, and more, a degree becomes more necessary. Simply, there are more mathematical concepts which are difficult to self-teach online. This isn’t to say that you can’t work in these fields without one.
Do companies care if I have a degree?
Companies are increasingly disregarding degrees when evaluating a candidate. In fact, companies such as Google, Apple, and IBM have specifically dropped their degree requirement in an attempt to attract a more diverse applicant pool, betting on their applicants ability to perform regardless. Startups have already caught on to this a long time ago. If you can prove your value then a degree is unlikely to be a barrier.
However, some companies do require degrees. About a month ago I received a written job offer from a large company for an SDE role, and they rescinded it when I couldn’t pass an HR check for having a degree.
Degrees, especially in computer science, are losing their value for a few reasons.
- As more information gets published online, the barrier to entry for software engineering gets lower and lower.
- There are more jobs, but the number of people with CS degrees is higher than ever. The chart below shows the increasing number of CS majors as of 2014.
- Companies are starting to believe that having a degree isn’t an indicator for performance as a software engineer. For a company like Google, I’d imagine this is backed up by hard data.
However, it would be hard to believe that having a degree isn’t a factor when looking for a job, especially in the initial resume screen. For large companies that get many applicants, having a degree may be the difference between getting an interview and not.
Can I get a work Visa without a degree?
Short answer — no.
Long answer — kind of.
The USA, for an H1-B work Visa, specifies that you either
Have completed a U.S. bachelor’s or higher degree required by the specific specialty occupation from an accredited college or university
or
Hold a foreign degree that is the equivalent to a U.S. bachelor’s or higher degree in the specialty occupation
Therefore you will likely need a degree if you have dreams of working in the United States. However, you may substitute each one year of school you’re missing from a 4 year degree with 3 years of work experience. If you don’t have any education, then you’ll need to have at least 12 years of work experience to have a chance at obtaining an H1-B.
Why are you going back?
I felt that without a degree I’d always be at least a little bit limited in where I can work and what I can work on. Even though I know I’d be able to have a good career without a degree especially after having a year of full-time experience already, but part of me thought that I’d always regret having even a single door closed.
Should I get a degree?
Ultimately, whether or not you get a degree is largely up to your personal circumstances, and your personal risk profile. If you already live in the United States, or if you can afford to get a degree without going into extensive debt, then you should strongly consider it.
If not, then I think you’ll be able to build amazing software, and have an amazing career without it, but you might always be left wondering what doors would be opened if you had one.
This is my first article on Medium! If there’s anything you’d like me to expand on, just let me know. I’m happy to help.
