Why I love Computer Science
by: Muhammad Raza
Everyone knows it by now: the CS job market is absolutely thrashed. Nobody can find jobs, you need at least like 6 years of experience to even be considered relevant, and AI can do in hours what senior developers took days or weeks to do. However, amidst this rampant proliferation of negative news and crazy rumors, I think it’s important to identify what compelled so many like me to this particular field in the first place (other than money of course): the fact that computer science is a medium of artistic expression, problem solving, and creation.
I remember first learning to code properly when I was only 7 years old. Seeing the words “hello world” pop up on the screen in a monochromatic font was more than just me giving directions to the computer, it was me realizing that I had the power to create, innovate, and use a large variety of tools to basically do whatever I want. From that single moment that started my journey of computer science, I have, today, built fun games, silly (quite non-functional) apps, unique webpages, and have entertained myself with a wide variety of CS related problems and challenges. Coding, to me, is not merely giving directions for a compiler to execute, but a way to put your reality onto paper. You can do and create basically whatever you want with code, so long as you have the passion and the desire to learn and improve yourself. Furthermore, one of the funniest experiences I have had on a computer is, believe it or not, is solving a coding problem after a long duration of pondering and head-banging. The euphoria of finally cracking a bug or an issue with the tools available to you after hours of concentrated effort is quite similar to the type of enjoyment one experiences after hitting a new PR in the gym or finally ending the semester with good grades after long nights of studying. And, on top of all of that, I think that the best reason as to why coding is so compelling is because of the fact that anyone can do it. Believe it or not, you do not need any prior knowledge to start coding despite it appearing to be a daunting task, and you can create and learn the same way as a person who has been coding for as a career or their whole life. There are numerous anecdotes on Youtube and Instagram about middle-aged individuals falling in love with coding and changing their lives for the better. All in all, while you may not be able to earn mountains of money with coding anymore, I still think it deserves respect for being a means of creative expression and a way to sharpen your mind to make you, as a person, sharper and more imaginative.
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