Self-taught or classroom-taught??

[Turmoil]

Hey Everyone,
yup, nothing but pure self discovery here
I took an Information Technology course once in school.... I ended up teaching the teacher how to set up a linux network... LOL!

[ccKid]

I began learning computers and programming just by playing with them and designing small yet fun programs. I have taken some classes such as C/C++, Networking, and IS Management but those were just informational and theoritical classes. I always say that the classes did give me some good info to grow on but the best way to learn is by using the tools.


ccKid

[Terr]

It's funny, I was thinking about this yesterday evening while walking about... What would I tell a prospective employer about how I felt self-teaching was useful for me.

The difference between self-taught and class-taught is that if you lean by yourself you have a far more visceral gut-feeling on whether you can do something, or whether something is familiar or not. The benefit of being class taught, is that you have a better intellectual sense of what you know and what you don't know.

The best method is to mix them, just enough administration to keep you on task and focused on the right materials, with just enough learn-by-doing that it becomes comfortable to do, rather than a chore or a sort of homework.

[tonybradley]

Almost everything has been self-taught. Starting from teaching myself how to type and how to program in Basic on a Commodore 64.

I learned a ton from magazines. I read the letters to the editor and their responses to learn from other people's issues and mistakes.

I also worked on family and friends computers a lot and did a lot of hands on experimentation with my own computer- upgrading and such. I learned the hard way about IRQ's and other fun things the hard way spending hours trying to manually resolve resource conflicts before the days of plug and pray.

I still self-teach almost everything even though I just finished getting my bachelors in IT. The degree taught me basically nothing though and is really just a technicality.

Books, books, more books and lots of magazines! (and then tons of hands on trial and error)

[sweet_angel]

Originally posted here by tonybradley


Books, books, more books and lots of magazines! (and then tons of hands on trial and error)

Self taught here and I agreed with Tony but + parties on the weekend sometimes..too..

[JcT21]

completly self taught here. however i am currently in a 4yr college course going for a masters in computer information science. on a volunteer basis i have assisted others in teaching computer basics to adults at our local library & school. i find it best to just dive in and learn from your mistakes, because you will make mistakes. i didnt have a mentor or someone i could call for help. as for the job market, here in my area you have to have some sort of degree / certificate saying you can do this and that. i have tried numerous places, even though i can do the job, its just not on paper.

[Juridian]

I find that who you know can be just as important as what you know when it comes to getting a job. The first computer job I applied for was a software testing position at Adobe....they turned me down for not having enough experience for even the most junior position. Just a few months later I stumped a developer for another company in the building (I was a security guard at the time, studying programming on my own during the graveyard shift with the laptop my gf bought me....my first computer) with some questions about writing some c code. He made me give him a resume that week....less than two weeks later I had an interview and was hired as a software tester.

If you don't already have a job hit up your geek friends, find people in irc to befriend, go to trade shows/seminars, or go pick up some classes and make some friends. The social networking you do can be invaluable to finding jobs in the industry. And alot of job switching is done because of people you know trying to fill positions with people they can rely on.

There are quite a few positions out there if you have the skills people are looking for. It is easy enough to find out by looking at the ads companies are putting out or by subscribing to the mailing lists related to the profession (sec focus has a decent jobs list).

I agree with one of the earlier posts.....if they offer to get you any training, suck up every opportunity you get. It can save alot of money and can make some of those certs or college classes you don't want to pay for a little more tolerable.

Just this year I've finished my GSEC, a couple of MCP's, some college classes, and have just started my GCIH.....all paid for by the company.

[r8devil]

I guess most of the people here are a combination of both. I have a BSC in computer engineering but most of the stuff i have learnt are not that useful at this point in time. But the course helped me learn stuff and helped open up avenues for learning and for getting the contacs you might need later.

But it helps to get a job with the degree that you have and the certs that you have acquired. I am constantly working on getting more professional certs like MCSE and stuff like that as these help in applying for jobs. the certs help to prove to the company that you have the skills necessary cos no matter what u say when its written down on a piece of paper they tend to believe it more.

The more contacs you have in the business the easier it is to get a job as someone mentioned that people are alwys looking out staff they can trust and normally the best recommendation would be froma current employee.

[jxrry59]

self taught for the past 4 years and then tried school. Because it was entry level in the computer sciences and I brought a wealth of knowledge i was viewed with distrust and resentment by many though one of my professors used me as a resource and a couple of times they siezed the puter i was working on in the lab to see if i was "hacking".
If you can avoid education, it is best to learn the hard way because you are not limited to the narrow vision of a textbook that leads you to assume there is only one way to do something

[manicchester]

As you say jxrry59....the things you learn in school can be limiting because they only teach you a certain way....but I think in defense of the schooling is that paying all that money to have a decent degree at something is something nice to fall back on...hence me paying a lot to go to a big university and getting a bachelors degree out of it. Although once school is done, it's all experience....did you actually finish school or did you move on to other things before you finished? I'm definitely completing school, but I was just curious as to if anyone just dropped it and found jobs another way.