
Ask HN: Computer Engineering or A+/Security+ for 17 year old? - gjsman-1000
Hello HN,<p>I&#x27;m 17 years old. I&#x27;m in a program Minnesota offers called PSEO, which lets me attend college at no charge while in High School. But, quirky thing here, I was homeschooled and finished 12th grade curriculum already. Because I am technically in 11th grade, I am currently in the spring semester of a year of free community college full-time, and the next year will also be free.<p>So far, I have taken Calc I and some electives (writing, MN History) to cover generals. This semester, I am doing my best in Calc II, Statics, and two other electives. My plan is currently to cover my generals at the community college (which is free through PSEO) and then transfer to get my Engineering degree. Before college, I wrote a program for my homeschooling provider which I recently open-sourced at https:&#x2F;&#x2F;news.ycombinator.com&#x2F;item?id=19286084 (enjoy the code!).<p>I&#x27;ve been doing some thinking though about my life recently and am having doubts. Calc II is really hard for me (though, my head tells me, I&#x27;m 17! What do you expect? Many college entrants are just doing College Algebra!), and it isn&#x27;t that I&#x27;m not up for a challenge, but I&#x27;m having more doubts as to whether I really want Engineering over, say, a computer repair technician or something similar.<p>I&#x27;m not A+ certified, but I seriously believe that if I took a week or two of practice and review, I could get it. I&#x27;m not Security+ certified, but if I took a few weeks and a book newer my 2011 book, I seriously think I could get that one too. My college has classes for computers and various certifications, but I&#x27;m not sure what to do.<p>I am talking with my parents, and I know this will be an act of my own discernment. However, is there any advice or thoughts you would like to pitch in on this matter?
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gjsman-1000
(I ran over the HN character limit)

\- I would like to say that my Engineering teacher is (seemingly) convinced
I'm an Engineer. But then again, she's the Engineering teacher. What do I
expect? ;)

\- I've read Mueller's Upgrading and Repairing PCs 22nd Edition, Meyer's
CompTIA A+ Certification book, and a CompTIA Security+ book from 2011 very
thoroughly. (Thus why I am quite confident with a little effort I could get
those certifications.)

\- I know A+ and Security+ members get less pay. All I care about is having
enough money to raise a large family and live somewhat comfortably. If I can
do that, do I care? Not poor, not rich. Balance is almost always best.

\- I don't like the idea of Computer Science, thus why I did Computer
Engineering. Computer Science seems too theoretical to me.

------
jstewartmobile
You've got the right idea about computer science.

As for Calc II, no pain, no gain. If you're STEM-inclined, stick with
something real--mathematics, physics, medicine, engineering, chemistry. "Real"
opens up many different career paths, so if you land in one you don't like, it
is much easier to transition to another.

Unless you really need some money in a hurry, and have a job offer just
waiting for the cert, I wouldn't waste my time on being a PC tech. Obsolete
skill.

~~~
gjsman-1000
Obsolete skill?

~~~
jstewartmobile
Computer hardware is practically disposable today (Raspberry Pis, Chromebooks,
smartphones, etc). Businesses have moved a lot of their workflow to cloud-
based services (Square, Office 365, Dropbox, etc). So not much of a market for
PC troubleshooters these days.

Outside of rural areas, most of the PC techs I know of have transitioned to
iPhone screen repair.

edit: Example:

old days: cash register breaks after hours, make emergency call for PC tech,
PC tech spends an hour or setting up a replacement, and another hour or so
repairing the old one, and another hour or so in transit--all billable.

2019: iPad with Square credit card reader dies. Teenage employee plugs the
card reader into her iPhone, logs in under the store account, and the pumpkin
spice continues to flow.

------
ThrowawayR2
> _I 'm having more doubts as to whether I really want Engineering over, say,
> a computer repair technician or something similar._

It doesn't take much skill to repair a computer so technicians have relatively
low pay, no career growth prospects, and poor job security. If you'd rather
work with your hands, be an auto mechanic, plumber, or something else.

> _\- I 've read Mueller's Upgrading and Repairing PCs 22nd Edition, Meyer's
> CompTIA A+ Certification book, and a CompTIA Security+ book from 2011 very
> thoroughly. (Thus why I am quite confident with a little effort I could get
> those certifications.)_

With a little effort, pretty much anybody with a pulse could get those
certifications. That's why many employers give little, if any, weight to them.

> _All I care about is having enough money to raise a large family and live
> somewhat comfortably._

Uh, yeah, maybe you should look into the pay ranges for your potential job
choices, particularly the ones that CompTIA aims at certifying for. Focus on
the mid-to-low end since that's what most jobs pay.

> _\- I don 't like the idea of Computer Science, thus why I did Computer
> Engineering. Computer Science seems too theoretical to me._

Comp. Eng. is usually a harder degree to get than CS and has just as much
theory. If you have difficulty with Calc II, wait until you hit the
differential equations course; you'll need to use it, too.

Unless you're good at Comp. Eng., the job prospects are much slimmer as well.
At the moment, businesses will hire any programmer who can slap together a
couple of lines of web code that kinda, sorta works so CS grads have an easier
time getting a job as long as they can code competently. (That may change once
the recession hits, though.)

> _However, is there any advice or thoughts you would like to pitch in on this
> matter?_

You have a 40+ year stint in the workforce ahead of you, at the end of which
you'll hopefully have enough saved up to retire. You need to decide what
you're personally willing to do for a living for that entire 40 years without
gagging at the thought of going to work every morning. If that's being a
repair tech, go for it; money doesn't buy happiness.

If you actually like building stuff using theory (and it sounds like you might
not) and are willing to put your nose to the grindstone and get a Comp. Eng.
or CS degree, you'll get a lot more freedom in what you can do in your life.

