How to Get the Most out of a Computer Science Degree (2024)

A lot of time, money, sweat, and tears go into getting a degree.

However, it’s no longer enough to just complete a computer science degree.

Every one of the hundreds of candidates you are up against for a single position will have gotten the same degree and will have roughly the same skills as you have.

To get a job upon graduation, you need to make the most of the four years preceding your job search. You need to use that time while in university to make sure you stand out upon graduation.

Here’s how:

If you have the time management skills, the inclination, and the ability to swing it financially, you should consider pairing your computer science degree with something else.

Having the ability to code is great. Having the ability to code within a context and solve problems within an industry that you actually know something about is even better.

Programming is no longer unique to the IT and software industries. Computer science graduates are being hired by every single industry as needs for software, websites, IT services, and data analysis becomes vital to staying ahead of the competition.

While most candidates in the room will have programming experience, it will be those who have experience in the given industry and can understand some of the problems the industry faces that will stand out to the employer.

In an interview with Bloomberg Quicktake, Ivana Seric describes how her unique background of a Ph.D. in math combined with being an NCAA Division I basketball player during her university years helped her become a data scientist for the Philidelphia 76ers. This background of being a university-level athlete who understands basketball at a deep level combined with a graduate degree in math made her stand out tremendously from other candidates vying for the position.

This example can be applied to your computer science degree. By pairing it with…