How to be a Better Computer Science Student than your Peers
1. Get involved in extracurricular activities
There are a lot of great extracurricular activities out there that can help you improve your computer science skills. Some examples of good ways to get involved are Joining a club. it is considered to be best way to get involved in computer science. Many universities have ACM, IEEE, or SIG meetings. If your school does not have one, you can start your own. Be sure to have a clear purpose and goal, or you will end up like a lot of clubs and die out. Although Before joining a club, try to find one that focuses on your interests and extracurricular interests. You can search the web or look at your school’s bulletin boards for clubs to join. I used to be part of the robotics club in my high school and I believe it was one of the best experiences in my life. so don't be afraid to give it a try because it can end up life changing.
2. Skills != Knowledge
When you’re coming into computer science for the first time, you will typically have a background in math and science classes. This means that you already have a great foundation of skills that you can build upon. In Computer Science (or any other major), it is much easier to gain a skill than it is to gain knowledge. Knowledge have great value and attribute to your skills. However, Skills is what is essential and what is needed by many companies around the world. All in all, I believe to build up a good skillset you have to build more projects, consider freelancing or doing mini projects. ( != sign means not equal)
3. Projects
Projects are like the meat and potatoes of your programming career. You'll learn a lot from creating and completing projects of your own. If you're like me, you may enjoy creating new projects just because you enjoy seeing a new thing come to life. However, there is a lot of value in finishing projects. What did you learn? What was difficult? How did you overcome those difficulties? Keep in mind that there are resources and templates out there to help you get started. To conclude, with building projects you'll learn how to solve problems on your own and have the freedom to focus on what's important instead of someone else's agenda.
4. Problem solving
one of the most important skills of a programmer and a computer scientist is solving real world problems using software skills , not only that but solve bugs and errors in coding is a critical skill to learn. As a computer scientist you will always encounter problems with your code (bugs) and solving them in most efficient and fastest way possible is the ideal way to solve a problem. However, I believe solving the problem alone is sufficient and optimization comes after, you don't have to push yourself to create an ideal solution, doing the bare minimum is sufficient. Asking help from doctors and professors in your university is good way if you struggle in solving the problem, not only they will help you solve the problem, but they will acknowledge you as a hard working student, which will give you the advantage when it comes to participation marks.
5. Programming Languages
In my previous post, I mentioned The 5 ideal programming languages for new computer science students to learn. Learning a programming language is important for any student to get the knowledge of how the programmer can use the program and how that program can be used in an application.
The programmers who have been studying computer science for a long time would eventually develop their own knowledge in order to create great programs and packages which can be used in applications but many don't actually understand what exactly a programming language is just yet or what can be done using this new knowledge, especially when compared to other information about it.
Learning the core essentials of a programming language will eventually ease up your pathway to learn another language. What is important is not the syntax of the language but the semantics, having the essential skills to problem solve and adapt to a critical situations, no matter how each programming language differs from the other. All in all, when you build a program, the tool that you gonna use is the programming language and the way to build is using your own skills to develop.
In conclusion, to become the best of the best among your peers you have to put in the effort to focus on those 5 areas. not only it will enhance your skills as a programmer, but it will give you more experience and job opportunities than your peers by the long run. The key here is not to push yourself to the limit, it will result in you burning out, you should focus on one thing at a time and start from small to bigger in adequate and small steps.
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