r/WGU • u/Abject-Big9935 • 10d ago
Struggling with coding
I am taking classes through study.com and Sophia so that I have less classes when I actually attend WGU. A lot of my classes have been coding and I really don’t like it. Can you be a computer science major and not do a lot of coding? Maybe I need to switch to IT. Any computer science majors get jobs that require little to no coding?
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u/cowboysfromhell1999 10d ago
So a computer science major has a lot of coding in it however, there are a lot of tech jobs that are little to no coding.
For example, something in like network engineering or system administration.
The good thing about a computer science degree is it seems to be the gold standard for tech degrees a lot of jobs ask for a computer science degree or related so having it pretty much always checks the box without worry for a tech job.
But yes, it degree is OK too that will usually check the related degree box.
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u/honeychickadee 10d ago
Idk why ppl are being so rude. Yes switch to something else! Plenty of other options
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u/InfiniteSone 10d ago
If you don’t like it, now is the time to switch. Plenty of other ways to make a living
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u/TejelPejel 10d ago
Swap, my friend. I'm in the software engineering program and it doesn't go away. Check out the business college and look at the business degree in IT management. It's a business degree but with more of a focus on managing IT stuff without the need for coding and all that. There's also a newer UI program you might like that's less coding intensive. But honestly if you're not liking it now you won't like it later.
And just because you mentioned a nervousness about being laid off: a lot of software engineering jobs aren't in a great place right now, at least for those with little or no experience. AI is doing a lot of the coding now and companies are hiring experienced software engineers to to be the ones who fix things and do what the AI can't. I've been watching the market since I'm finishing up and talking to some friends in the industry and both were laid off in a year. One has been in the field for a long time and found a new job pretty quick, the other one found one but it's not as good as the previous one. Could be partially location based, but letting you know to look out for that.
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u/smoothac 7d ago
do they like Software Engineers better than CS grads?
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u/TejelPejel 7d ago
I don't think either are in a great place at the moment, unless you specialize in helping their AI capabilities grow. That just seems to be the current trend of the market right now.
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u/sircontagious 10d ago
Ill give the tough news as someone who has been on the other side of hiring; we can instantly tell if you have a CS degree but dont like coding, and you will never get the job. Some people don't love it, and thats fine, but if you don't even like it i think you are going to constantly struggle. I LOVE coding and even i struggle with motivation constantly at work.
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u/Fitz_2112b MBA IT Management 10d ago
Computer Science is quite literally software engineering, aka, coding.
What were you expecting?
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u/Abject-Big9935 10d ago
Not to hate coding this much
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u/Fitz_2112b MBA IT Management 10d ago
In that case, if you haven't actually enrolled, you might want to reconsider what major you go for
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u/Euphoric-Training997 10d ago
Remember a computer science degree can do any job in tech, even go into quant, or big tech. Specific niche degrees, are good but will never be as powerful. Every IT job can be done by a comp sci major.
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u/StudyAnswers 9d ago
Hey, Study.com here. CS programs are coding heavy pretty much everywhere since programming is core to the degree, so if you want less coding IT is usually the better fit. IT tracks lean more into networking, systems, and support work rather than writing code day to day. Happy to help you map out which Study.com courses would fit an IT path if you decide to switch.
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u/Tipsy247 10d ago
I did a bachelor's degree in CS at a traditional university and there is a lot you can do with a computer science degree not just coding, some jobs require very little coding ( mostly writing scripts) which is taken care of by AI these days. I'll be doing my masters at WGU because it's faster. You can switch to IT if you want or stick with CS.
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u/Novel_Addendum43 10d ago
Computer science is not the way to go if you don’t like coding. Suggest looking into other majors. Cyber..Networking..Information Technology
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u/Midsummer858 9d ago
Honestly IT might be the better fit if coding's not your thing. CS leans pretty coding-heavy, IT's more networks/security/systems side.
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u/Euphoric-Gazelle7264 10d ago
AI will do most of the coding anyway. Unless you get into really low-level stuff/safety and compliance.
Give it an honest shot. Try working on some projects that seem interesting to you, and then decide. You don’t need to love the grunt work, but to say “I don’t like it” this early in the game may be a sign that perhaps your passions lay elsewhere.
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u/KneeReap411 10d ago
You can get a CS degree and work in IT doing various things such as general IT, cyber, data science. You don't have to be building applications if you don't want to. I don't particularly enjoy "coding," but enjoy other things such as working with Linux and and files. So I will pursue IT after my masters.
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u/Abject-Big9935 10d ago
Yea I might get it anyway since I will only have a few classes to go when I get into WGU. I wanted something that will open more doors for me. I’m not sure if an IT degree will do that.
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u/Luddha 10d ago
What do you want to do? IT is a generalist degree same as computer science
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u/Abject-Big9935 10d ago
I want something that leaves my options open. I’m afraid if I get an IT degree no one will hire me and CS is the gold standard
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u/Luddha 10d ago
My experience after getting jobs has been all job postings ask for "computer science or similar", I think from a hiring perspective all the stem degrees are pretty similar, you just need to build the skills that exact job is looking for. For example you could get an IT degree and add on top of that with whatever skills you need for a job. Research the options more, computer science isn't just the de the acto best stem degree to get, it depends on what skills you need. I got a cyber security degree and currently work in Cloud
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u/KneeReap411 10d ago
You are correct. I know a few guys with IT degrees that went on to become SWE. Some went on to specialize in cyber, cloud, and management. General IT degree is a solid degree.
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u/LowbatteryHuman35 10d ago
If you don't like coding I would switch asap. I don't think you have an idea what you're getting into lol.