My major in college was information system : development at York College of Pa. My academic advisor was William Eddins (RIP). Information Systems differs from computer science in that it teaches computer programming, databases and networking from the perspective of business. It also teaches a full business curriculum, except the program that I matriculated in omitted Business Statistic 2.0.
I was advised by Professor Eddins that one of the advantages of being Information Systems (Development) over computer science is that you can at some point decide to get out of programming altogether. I was also advised that there will be a lot of politics in programming with people who lack the know how to understand both the code and business rules going against you just to prove a point. I have found that what Professor Eddins warned about is true.
Therefore I have, for the past year, taken a non-IT vat cleaning, truck unloading job to let the world know that I am serious about this exodus and not just some nerd. I’m tired of Indian vendors, Baby Boomers involved in power struggles with Millennials, people who get their feelings hurt too easily and then retaliate against you for things you may not have even said. People in tech are like babies who need to grow up. I took a job outside of tech to prove that I am a grown up and that I can in fact handle blue collar labor. However, I plan to pivot back to the business background. It’s very possible that I’ll do it in a way in which immature nerds can’t destroy what I build up – in otherwise not as a computer programmer but in another role.
edit: In an era of canned software, I am more than just a programmer. I have the ability to program but I am not “just” a programmer. Information Systems is a full business degree. I analyze just as much as I program.