

Ask HN: I got kicked out of an Ivy League, now what? - crappystudent

I got withdrawn from the Engineering program at an Ivy League because of my grades. Looking back, it was completely my fault, but I can&#x27;t change that now. I was transitioning from a &quot;core&quot; engineering major to CS but before I could, I was asked to leave. I&#x27;ve applied for transfers but lets see where that goes. I&#x27;m a fairly decent coder, getting better and better now that I have nothing else to do, and I want to know if its even necessary to have a university degree at the end of the day. Do employers really care where you went to school as long as you have a great portfolio of projects you&#x27;ve worked on? Also if anyone knows of any programs or universities I could apply to that would seriously consider me despite my situation, that would be helpful, especially if they are tech&#x2F;entrepreneurial programs (like makeschool).
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MichaelCrawford
Everyone says they do, but really they don't.

Tom Cumming, one of the very finest embedded systems developers that has ever
walked the earth, never even applied to college.

I myself was kicked out of caltech for being mentally ill. That would be
illegal now, but the americans with disabilities act had not been enacted yet.
I transferred to UC Santa Cruz, but eventually dropped out to work as a coder.

I did so for six years - with no degree - but eventually did complete my
degree, but only because I grew weary of being asked by interviewers why I
never graduated.

If you are someone who, like me, is commonly discriminated against, a good
solution is to start your own business. I'm working on that right now, and
I've done it successfully in the past.

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gamechangr
If you go open source a degree is not necessary.

If you go enterprise, it will be hard to get your first job. In enterprise it
may limit your ability to be promoted.

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GFK_of_xmaspast
My understanding of ivy league schools is you really gotta screw up to get the
boot. Are you sure you're ready to continue school.

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crappystudent
got one F and i was told i couldn't continue

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GFK_of_xmaspast
Without more to it, that is very atypical.

