Ask HN: Advice for first-year CS students?
5 points
1 hour ago
| 5 comments
| HN
I'm a first-year Computer Science student trying to build strong fundamentals instead of rushing through tutorials.

Looking back, what's one piece of advice you wish someone had given you during your first year?

It could be about studying, programming, projects, internships, or anything that made a real difference.

gradschool
15 minutes ago
[-]
Learning stuff can be done on your own any time. The best use of your time in college is to cultivate professional contacts. Keep an eye out for professors who appear to be in charge of research projects with outside funding and volunteer to help out by doing whatever nobody wants to do, even if it's unpaid and even if it cuts into your study time. Be the first person that comes to mind when the professor's high flying industry friends tell him they wish they could find some bright highly motivated intern. If you don't think you need to try this hard this soon to find a job I hope you're independently wealthy.
reply
leros
58 minutes ago
[-]
Have a well rounded college experience. Make friends, join clubs, do extra-curriculars, etc. Your ability to socialize and work in groups is as equal, if not more important, to your career success as your coding skills.
reply
tdkx21
1 hour ago
[-]
reply
bjourne
1 hour ago
[-]
PARTY!!!!!!!!!!
reply
tdkx21
1 hour ago
[-]
party for what?
reply
eimrine
1 hour ago
[-]
Dvorak/touchtype.
reply