DH Templates

Getting into computer programming and software engineering?

Hi, I'm 25 years old and am thinking of going back to school. (Right now I am a newspaper journalist, which seems like a very shaky career path.) I want to get into computer programming and software engineering, but I have no real experience in any of this. I have learned the basics of Visual Basic and web programming like HTML, CSS, Flash and Javascript, but not enough to write anything too elaborate on my own. I do think I have the ability to succeed in computer programming. How difficult of a field is this to get into and what do you think of job prospects? I had considered going into web development, but I was told by many that those jobs were way to easy to outsource and too many people can make websites easily and offer templates and such. Any advice or information you can offer will help. I don't know if journalism has a future for me. I'd like to head back to school in August/September. Thank you! To the responses I've received already, thank you. I have no desire to work in the medical field, despite realizing it has great job opportunities. Are computer languages and stuff very difficult to learn? I'm guessing I'd finish in four years and then get a job? I think I am good at learning new languages -- I've also thought about learning a foreign language and finding a career that way! But I love computers and technology, so I think programming of some sort would be a good fit.

Public Comments

1. Too saturated of a career, right now, There are too many unemployed, talented programmers, in this sour economy. The next big boom in jobs is in transportation and medical fields.
2. Most of the local TV news and newspaper websites around here are terrible - perhaps you could work/transfer into a department of you current job to improve their current site while going back to school. Software engineering comes in different flavors - from writing operating systems, code from scratch, to modifying existing code. Lots of wide range of area to get into. Any/all experience will help.
3. it really depends on if you're passionate about it. If you don't like writing computer software, you won't succeed. If you really just want to make software, find a university that specifically offers software engineering as a degree. Website development is a very competitive field but if you can be innovative and know how to program correctly, you will be in demand even with all the crappy template sites out. Template sites provide no personality and no customization, something a lot of businesses do not want.
4. Consider network engineering, it is not swamped with the qualified
5. Looks like a very big step in the right direction. Wish you all the luck. It looks like a very wide wonderful way to go. Don't worry about what you don't know that is what the school is therefore. Just remember the little man and give him a break.