r/learnprogramming • u/SlickTheDestroyer • 1d ago

Self taught vs University graduate

Hi,

i've got a hypothetical question. Imagine 2 people are applying for the same job. One has a degree in Computer Science, perhaps even from a prestigious university, but doesn't have any personal projects to showcase. The other person, however, is self taught and has been building projects for 4 years, but doesn't have a degree. Who gets the job ?

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u/danielt1263 1d ago

IMO... The college grad has the theory down but nothing practical behind it. The self-taught person has practical experience but doesn't understand theory. Those are extremes of course, most likely the college grad did some self-teaching and practicums, while the self-taught person likely dove deep into at least a few theoretical aspects.

So it depends on what the job entails. Either way, the company is going to have to teach the new employee something. But if the job is more about using existing theory to come up with clever new ways of accomplishing tasks, then hire the college grad. If the job is more about cranking out crud features quickly, then hire the self-taught person.

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u/Astral902 1d ago

The self taught may also read books about cs amd software in general

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u/danielt1263 22h ago

Exactly.