
Ask HN: Young but serious developer, do I stay in college? - acollegeaccount
I&#x27;ve been programming since I was 9, and started my professional career a few years after that. I&#x27;m quite skillful in several languages&#x2F;fields within Computer Science, and have taken a few products from concept to production as a technical lead. I hate to sound like I&#x27;m bragging - I don&#x27;t mean to. I just want to set the stage a bit.
I&#x27;m 18 now and I&#x27;m in my first year of college. I love Computer Science: my only hobby is programming, and I love doing it professionally. However my career has always been in between school. At first middle school, then high school, and now college. Each step gives me more free time to work, which is great. Over the summers and during breaks I work a normal 9-5. And I love it. Even after a 90 minute commute each way each day, for months during the hot summers, I love what I do at work and I find developing new technologies is always exciting. But thats in between school. I&#x27;ve come to the conclusion that most classes are just incompatible with my personality. For whatever irrational reason, when I&#x27;m forced to learn something (as opposed to learning it on my own terms), even a subject which I love dearly, becomes a drudgery for me. Tests make me dread even thinking about a subject, and when I inevitably (no matter how hard I study) get a poor test grade, it makes me despise the subject entirely until the feelings from the class subside and I can develop my own joy for the subject again.<p>And of course, there&#x27;s the money. However I make a pretty serious salary at my current job. If I was able to work full time, I&#x27;d be earning ~$100k&#x2F;yr. College however, is ~$55k&#x2F;yr. If I had to take out student loans it wouldn&#x27;t even be a question for me, however my parents are paying for college.<p>So HN, help me out here. Is it worth staying in college? I quite a few years of professional experience at a few different companies, it&#x27;s becoming hard to justify staying.
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sbinthree
This is up to you, and much like being forced to be in school against your
will, you will only truly own the decision if you make it yourself. If you
want other people to validate your decision, you haven't worked it through or
been through enough pain to own the outcome.

If I was in your shoes (I was) I would drop out. I completed high school in
three years (I hated it, but forced myself to finish for signaling) and then
it seemed to make more sense to just start working full time, so I did and I
do not regret it at all. I am an outsider because I did not even start
university, and I am usually the only person on a team or call not to have
gone to university. It doesn't matter now, but only because I have some
professional experience.

That said, at least two thirds of companies I have ever talked to screen me on
the first call for not having a degree. So you really force yourself into a
part of the economy that values merit. For the most part, this has not been an
issue, but it may be for you. I more or less ignored my parents thoughts on
this, though they were surprisingly supportive, as their influence goes down a
lot when you make your own money.

I would think more about what your goals are long term (presumably not just to
program for someone else forever) and what they require. If you want to do
anything more conservative (big company in non-tech industry, government,
etc.) you should stick it out for signaling. If you want to run your own
company and/or are on that path, you really won't miss it.

If something is hard but seems right, usually that means it is right and the
hard part is the part preventing you from taking the leap. Most people project
conservative values on others, while being more forgiving of themselves, so
you will get a lot of "stay in school" advise.

