The last two weeks have been particularly fruitful topics dedicated to the study of IT at school, at the university and on their own. The range of opinions is interesting: from “you must go to a university, absorb knowledge, get a crust” to “they will not teach you anything there, better go to the industry and learn from older colleagues”. As a current university lecturer, I, of course, will stand up for university education, but with great additions and reservations. I would like to devote a separate article to these additions and reservations, hopefully, for interested schoolchildren and students, and contributing to a holistic view of the educational process in our favorite area.

Winter session on the nose - another nagging on Habré.
Anyxem habrauser

IT education as a quest

Reading articles and comments, I (agreeing with many) never cease to amaze people whose expectations from IT education do not coincide with reality. Nothing, if indignation does not prevent to move forward steadily, however, for some it comes to rethinking the world, to be in this world, and trying to redraw and rebuild everything. Not always with good results, of course. Friends, the educational process is not a game in Super Mario Bros. where you just need to run to the right, with one success or another overcoming the obstacles that arise. This is a non-linear quest, the success of which depends on both the quality of the game itself (that is, the educational environment) and the player’s quest skills. Of course, very few people are going to get the tenth higher education, having a decent experience of completed quests, but to prepare for the learning process, at least theoretically, it is possible.
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I must confess that as a student I didn’t particularly think about the tactics and strategy of education. Just played Super Mario with the rest. But further experience (training in three universities, periodic projects in the industry, my own teaching activity) helped, I dare to hope, to see the forest behind the trees. I would like for the current students to form an integral picture of the world early, and with less time and labor than I and my comrades had.

Dog Show

I do not understand anything in dog breeds. I only know that a perfect match to the breed implies the fulfillment of a number of non-obvious criteria relating to color, type of wool, body proportions. Of course, I distinguish the shepherd from the dachshund, but I can no longer distinguish the “right” shepherd from the “wrong”. There are, however, dog shows where specially trained people take measurements and give out certificates, diplomas and medals to the most successfully folded dogs.

A diploma is essentially such a dog certificate: a dog will not become better or worse from having a certificate, but any non-specialist can understand that he is dealing with a quality representative of the breed. Therefore, unfair accusations against employers who do not want to hire IT people without a formal higher education. Yes, now our diplomas are a complete profanation, but the idea is essentially true: a diploma as if guarantees your compliance with the stated criteria, and the employer thereby avoids the need to conduct at least initial selection.

One can always give counterexamples. Let's say I do not see the point in beauty contests: it’s clear to me at first sight whether a girl is beautiful or not. Probably, a good IT specialist is also visible to the naked eye, but apparently, in this sense, a specialist is closer to a purebred dog than to a mongrel beauty. Therefore, take it for granted: yes, there is an opportunity to get around the system, shine brighter than the sun and get a wonderful job without a formal education; but the presence of a diploma will always and everywhere be a significant plus or even a necessary requirement - from the States to Japan. As Chuang Tzu teaches us, when dealing with a waterfall, it is more profitable to “follow the movements of the waters and not impose our will on the waves”. Spend your time and energy on more worthy tasks than the struggle with a basically rational system, even if sometimes acquiring ugly forms.

Seaman from the foothills

After graduating from the ninth grade, my uncle said goodbye to his parents and went to study sea business in the distant city of Baku. I must say that his romantic ardor eventually died down: the uncle did not linger long in the sailors. I admit, I would be scared when I was a teenager to break away from my parents and go somewhere to hell with horns. Even in more mature age, the question of the comfort of living in one place or another and the convenience of moving is never removed from the agenda. So what prompted my uncle to such feats? What he was not sitting at home? The answer is simple: there was no sea at home. Well, how can you learn marine business in the foothills?

The idea claims to be the Captain of Evidence, but life shows that for many it is not at all obvious. People whine: the programs are bad, the teachers are bad, the computers are old. Friends, I, as an applicant to the end of the nineties, are so forgivable. But now the times are different - who's stopping you to inquire in advance? Are you banned from Google? Do you have access to the forums covered?

Take for granted: only in the blessed countries of Scandinavia does any random university that you choose give you an education that is not very different from the national average. In any other place you can get into a decent institution, and in the parish school under the sign of the university (by the way, I alone on Habré know that the only normative spelling of the word "university" is in lowercase letters?) As an applicant, you must learn about all "on the shore." You need to chat with students in forums, collect reviews. Yes, damn it, people choose a new laptop longer than a university. At the same time, one must be morally ready to move both outside the city and outside the country. In the foothills of the sea there.

Time and money

I realize that in the last statement there is slyness: not everyone can afford the choice of the desired university and moving to the desired country. I note, however, that the price of Russian paid education no longer seems paltry compared with European figures. So if you plan to study for money, a neighboring university may not even be the most profitable choice. If (quite reasonably) I want to get a free education, there are still no problems. This is a thorny path, but still feasible. As the cat Matroskin pointed out, “we have the means, we have not enough mind”. Scholarship programs in the world - over 9000, and you yourself can easily see this. If Google is not banned. True, there is a subtlety: the dog show works for you. Very few people want to invest in a freshman, because it is not clear what will grow out of it. If you have successfully studied for at least a couple of years (and even better - to the level of bachelor), the chances increase dramatically. You just need to think about all this in advance, and not when it's too late.

This kind of quests, however, require time. In the comments complain: matan is a waste of time, turbo-pascal is a loss of time, philosophy is a loss of time ... Let's leave aside the question of the use of matan or philosophy and discuss time. Are you in a war? Do you urgently need to go through the course of a young fighter and go to the front? Time is the most valuable resource of a person after health, but let's face it: those who call university education a waste of time, seriously believe that they are waiting for milk and kissel banks behind university walls? But how not so! Most people are immersed in the daily routine, with nostalgia remembering “wonderful school years” and “fun students”. I have no nostalgia at all. Every year, life is becoming more interesting, but for that to happen, you have to work on it.

In Russia, young people are under stress all the time. Quickly finish school, quickly enter a university, quickly finish a university, quickly find a job ... Moreover, in Europe it is perfectly normal to be a student at twenty-five and at twenty-eight, and a graduate student at thirty. People calmly move at a comfortable pace. Take so many courses at a time to master the program, do not forget to have fun and read books. The speed (within reasonable limits) generally no one soars. Do you think that local students can afford it because they live well? No matter how wrong! Of course, their position is much better than our students, but still the student does not live anywhere in the world like a king. Save, interrupted by odd jobs. This is perceived as a natural course of life, and the motivation to run with all my might is small.

Take your time. If you are already a student, learn what is well taught in your university. If it is matan, study matan. If history, study history. English, without a doubt, and other foreign languages. Literature. The philosophy. Why do you need philosophy if you are not a philosopher? Why do you need sports if you are not an athlete? First, enjoy it (yes, with the appropriate approach, any object can bring pleasure), and secondly, develop a personality. When I had a very painful operation to correct the nasal septum, the surgeon said: you can live without an operation, this will not affect the life expectancy, but the quality will be yes. Surely you know people who have money, but lack imagination. The maximum that is enough for them is a bigger car and richer furniture. Expand your horizons at the expense of matan and philosophy - and the world will sparkle with new colors.

School spirit

What is the ideal learning process? What is more important - self-education, communication with fellow students and colleagues, or university lectures? The answer is banal and obvious: everything is important, of course, subject to the high quality of each component.

Self-education is necessary. Your teachers will be Dijkstra and Knut, Stroustrup and Butch, Norvig and Tanenbaum. Reading books teaches to the long work of thought, the ability to master a long coherent text, to plunge deeply into the subject. Articles fill in single spaces. I would advise, at first, to focus more on the books that form the basic framework of knowledge, and only then gradually move onto articles. Independent software projects allow you to spend time on questions that are of particular interest to you, and not to your boss or teacher.

Communication helps to look at the problem from a different angle, broaden the general horizons, get a quick review of your work. In theory, everything is in the books, but you have to guess to read the right book! So historically, I didn’t get a lot of deep knowledge from communication, but this is just a personal experience.

Universities are arranged differently and bring different benefits. My first university was provincial. It was not necessary to rely on modern knowledge in IT, but because of their small number, intelligent guys somehow held on to each other, and intelligent teachers tried to establish personal contact with such students. The second university was big and famous. Of course, the level of teaching is higher there, but with contacts it was already worse. There are many sensible students, but everyone has their own thoughts, their own projects; teachers are loaded and physically can not give you a lot of time. And in general, few people remember in the face. But there was a feeling that you are close to the real profession: some teachers successfully combined work in high school and in companies, and representatives of the industry often looked at us. The third university was in Europe. There, emphasis was placed on a solid average level of training. We studied according to good textbooks, walked rather slowly according to the program, but also asked us accordingly. This is not “learn-pass-forget” to you: each passed topic was well put off in the head. Thus, from each place it was possible to take out something of their own: good personal contacts, a general idea of ​​the future career and colleagues, a qualitative study of the basics of IT.

Here I have to point out that the last point in Russia is the most difficult to achieve. As already mentioned, teaching in good countries is a worthy career, so smart people do not run into business from universities. We have the best specialists who teach as a hobby, and they usually work and earn money on the side. Therefore, stay in universities mainly lovers of turbo-pascal and Quick-BASIC. This state of affairs should not come as a surprise to anyone.

By the way, it follows from these observations that the criteria for a good university are not at all obvious. Say, the "brand" of the university will add you self-esteem, but in practice it may not be so valuable. Cool, probably listening to the lectures of Stroustrup himself or Cook. But will they find time to deal with your problems? It seems to me more and more that the best universities are of medium size, with high-quality teaching staff. Let there be fewer stars of the first magnitude among them, but they will firmly know their work and will find time to deal with you personally. By the way, the principle of the distribution of university professors is a topic for another discussion. In short, the best scientists do not always find themselves in the top-rated institutions. There are very different factors coming into effect.

findings

In general, they are unsophisticated:

1. Still, go through the quest. Get a diploma.
2. Take the education process seriously. Find out in advance what you can expect from an institution.
3. Allocate more time for education. You are not at war, there is no need to run forward headlong.
4. Be prepared to change the city and even the country. This is normal.
5. Try to learn in different universities. This opportunity - perhaps the best that is in the "Bologna." In Europe, students often go through exchange programs - this is perceived as the norm.
6. Try to take the best from everywhere. From books, from communication, from university courses.