Takeaways:

  • No matter what field I plan to go into, I will need computer science in some way, shape, or form, and at the least, CSP will make my life easier through the automation of tasks both related to a field I plan to enter or not.
  • Because of this, I don’t necessarily need to enter computer science if I want to pursue computer science, and there exist many other related fields which also deal with computer science.
  • Computer Science is very competitive, and taking extracurricular activities related to computer science, and expanding and exploring other projects and areas related to computer science can greatly improve how I look from the perspective of colleges and hirers.
  • Personal projects expanding upon existing websites or following an interest of my own are great and doing them off to the side help to improve a resume and my look, as long as I deploy them finished or unfinished.
  • CSP and CSA classes at Del Norte will cover much of first year computer science in college, and will also help with extracurriculars, and makes jumping into projects much easier and quicker, especially since that is often the most difficult stage of projects
  • Applying to as many colleges or internships is not a bad way of getting accepted, as many are by luck, and it is very difficult to get accepted into one, but at the same time extremely important to finding a job after graduating in the future.
  • Many online tools exist to make creating personal projects easier, and simplify things such as CSS and deployment. However, using these can be detrimental at the beginning, especially if I don’t fully understand the underlying concept, and I shouldn’t use these for class projects and only for personal projects
  • AI Tools can be extremely helpful, but I have to make sure that the code runs first, and to make sure I still understand what is going on, because if I overuse them, I will be wasting time and not learning anything.

Reflection:

  • While I already participate in some CS-related extracurriculars, I can look to expand this and look out for more. In addition to paying attention and doing more than tasked to in class, I should also attempt to start on a project of my own, and potentially expand upon a geography program I created, following the provided advice to follow your interests and start something you can tinker around with, as I definitely can see myself being more motivated to do so in this, rather than something else. I do think that a personal website is a very large reach, and I probably should learn more before I attempt to do something like that, exploring and researching on the tools provided in the talk is definitely a start, and while I shouldn’t use them for class projects it will definitely help me get a basic idea of what is available for me to use. In addition, I should start exploring some options to connect with others and show off my skills as we get later on into this year, which will give me a good base to expand upon later.