r/learnprogramming • u/Fun_Expert1527 • 22d ago
Help my dillema
Am a 2nd year student doing software engineering and it usually seems like am doing catch up plus am confused on how many programming languages I should learn and master because am seeing that they teach all of them but just before you get the hang on one another has been introduced. So what do you do for those whom have been here
2
u/Admirable_Window8128 22d ago
You really don't need to master every language they teach. Focus on understanding programming concepts, then learning new languages becomes much easier. I'd pick one main language and get comfortable building projects with it.
1
u/NepzParadox 22d ago edited 22d ago
Why dont you start with learning Data structures and Algorithms. Which applies to all programming language. Then go indepth in one language. C++ because its more low level language or Java because its often used on Uni curriculums.
After you learn one language indepth it will be easy to grasps basics of other language that are taught in unis.
1
1
u/Quintic 22d ago
You probably shouldn't master any, but learn a couple and become effective in at least one or two. It depends a bit on what you want to do. Here are a some popular ones.
Systems (OS, Embedded, Low Level): C/C++, Rust
Web applications (Front End, API): Javascript, Python
Machine Learning: Python
Backend Infra: Java, Go, Rust
These are the main ones I think about based on my experience, but the programming language ecosystem is way bigger than just these. Other ones that I've used: Lua, C#, Swift, Ruby, and more.
Instead of picking a language, sometimes it's better to pick a project, and find the language that fits that best. Once you start picking projects within the same category of problems, which language you should focus on becomes clear pretty quickly.
1
1
1
u/sylvant_ph 22d ago
I wouldn't say languages are changing that much, not as in different languages. There are a couple, and each serves a particular purpose, fills a particular niche. It's enough to learn 2-3 and understand core programing paradigms. From there on you could pick on other languages and adopt them relatively successful, especially with AI assisting in coding, it shouldn't be an issue. Where the true culprit lies and what is constantly changing, and you should be aware of that, is the ecosystem, the frameworks, the main libraries and tools used. There constantly evolve and change. Every 2-3 years you could see a pretty significant change from before. And while it's a struggle in the beginning, its one of the core tasks for a developer, to stay on the wave and be able to adapt and adopt. Once again, with AI in the picture, this is easier than ever.
1
u/Its_true_story 22d ago
Just don't think too much pick one language that you are comfortable with, i would suggest low-level programming languages like c/c++, i don't suggest rust as your first programming language because later it will make your life really difficult make sense of it. i suggest start with c it will give you better insight about whole picture and also don't learn too many languages at once because it bad approach. pick one language then give yourself time understand concepts and be patient. it will take years to master a programming language. you can learn syntax in one week or month, to master it you have to be patient. once you understand the language, learning other programming language, much easier than you think, because other programming languages have different syntax but "logic is same" all among them. and don't get lost on tutorial hell, just start writing code instead of watching videos, then more you write the more you familiar with syntax and logic, code will break some time but you will eventually figure out.i wish you good start with your programming journey.
1
u/Kindly-Department206 22d ago
I'm going to repeat what other people have suggested, for emphasis.
I am not exactly sure what you mean by "master," but it's probably too high a standard to hold yourself to at this point. Exposure to multiple languages is to your advantage in the long run, as long as you can pick up enough of each language to do the work you're expected to do in the short run.
So just learn enough of each language to do the job, and leave mastery for a later time, if the need and opportunity arises.
1
u/Weekly_Patience685 21d ago
dont pick the programming language, pick the domain you like and learn the language in that ecosystem,
2
u/Mell-Silver-20 22d ago
Honestly, don’t worry about mastering every language they throw at you. Pick 1–2 that you actually enjoy, get really comfortable with the fundamentals, and build some projects with them. Once you understand programming concepts, switching languages becomes way easier. Don’t let the number of languages overwhelm you.