I posted this over at thedc.com to see what people over there think and I decided it''d be just as good to post it here and see what you guys think. So here is the copied and pasted message from there: "Hey. I''ve been here a few times before when I was a beginner (which I guess I still kind of am). You guys were a help back then so I thought I''d come back here now. I''m a sophmore in high school and I''m researching what colleges and such are better to go to. I mean which way is better to get a job as a programmer in the industry. I have the option of going to a regular college (like UT) and getting a degree in Computer Science or I can go to a place like Digipen or Full Sail (which is kind of my preference right now). So I want everyone''s opinion on what''s a better way to do it. Thanks for your response. " And there you go. I want everyone''s opinion here as well. What do you think?

Recent thread:
What do I study for Game Programming in College?

You''ll find a lot of viewpoints in that thread. There was another within the last 2 weeks too, so try searching on "college"/"education"/"university."

I checked that thread and it''s not what I''m asking it at all (well the original question kind of was related but the answer weren''t). I''m not asking what courses to take. I''m asking which is the better route: a dedicated school (Digipen) or just a regular university (like UT).

A regular university. You learn more, and you''ll end up amazed at how much stuff ends up useful. Most of the dedicated, I have heard, have sort of "accelerated" programmes. That means you try to cram, say, a year''s worth of knowledge into 3 months - greater possibility that it hasn''t "seeped" into your mental. A regular school, OTOH, has you there for 4 years, referring to the same old principles and building new knowledge on them. You''re gonna know this stuff when you''re done.

My opinion.

Well, while I'm not particularly familiar w/ Digipen, I think it really depends on where your programming skills are at. Digipen will definitaly give you a step up over the competition when you get into the game development business, but will no doubt be extremely challenging and hard to get into. You probably won't find any beginning programming courses there. At a non-gaming specific university however, you can hone your programming skills and learn more about computer science, which can help you later on. You could always go to Digipen afterwards anyway.

Edited by - neoen on October 5, 2001 11:36:36 PM

The problem is I can only afford one as it''s mostly me paying my way through college. And as of now I''m still a beginner type programmer but I''m slowly advancing my skills and I''m only a sophmore in high school. Over the summer I''m taking two Computer Science classes as well. So I''m still unsure. But thanks for your opinions.

The problem with Computer Science is that it''s such a moving target. What is applicable today, might not neccesarily be applicable tomorrow.

Dedicated degrees, such as those offered by Digipen, concentrate on the material you need to move into the workplace today. What they teach may not be worth squat in ten years time, and you''ll just have to go back and get a new "quick fix" degree.

One of the major reasons for attending university, on the other hand, is to teach you to learn. One of the things about university is that you don''t get told "this is how it is", you get told "this is a good way to find out how it is", and you have to figure the rest out on your own. Also, most university degrees focus on the basic priniciples behind a theory, not the theory itself. That means that while a university graduate isn''t always as "clued up" on what''s happening in the real world as graduate of a dedicated school, they are better equipped to cope in the face of a fast-changing industry, and won''t need to spend half their time in re-training, since most of their knowledge is based on how to find out about new things anyway. Any half-decent uni graduate will be able to bring himself up to speed on a new topic in no time.

In short, go for the uni degree. It might take longer, but in the end, it''ll be worth it. Just don''t get caught up in "academia", because you could find yourself trapped there for years

codeka.com - Just click it.

Just bumping this up a little bit...