[frostmatthew]

> I don't know where to begin this journey

Do you have any college under your belt? I went back to school when I decided to switch careers (I was a banquet manager at the time).

> how much time it'll take

I already had a few years of undergrad (completely unrelated to tech...I was a Political Science major "the first time around") so I pretty much didn't need to take any classes outside of my major and it took two years to complete (that was with working full time). Started my first job as a developer just a couple months before I graduated.

[Auflauf]

Would you recommend your path?

I ask because I am in a similar situation: already got a degree and could graduate with a C.S. degree in a little less than two years.

My biggest concerns were 1. finding suitable internships and experience in such little time 2. condensing four years of C.S. courses into two without much "slowdown" aka easy other courses; rush rush rush as opposed to quasi leisurely learning and 3. job prospects as this would cost like $20,000 in tuition alone.

[frostmatthew]

> finding suitable internships and experience in such little time

While I was in school I worked at a smallish-but-growing startup in tech support. I used what I was learning in school to write a couple apps that made our department's work a little easier...this was as good as any internship as when I was going through my first [dev] job search most interviewers were far more interested in discussing that than anything I did in school.

> condensing four years of C.S. courses into two

That depends on your situation...I was fortunate to have enough credits transfer that I was able to knock out the remaining in ~2 years

> as this would cost like $20,000 in tuition alone

I'm still a very junior engineer (~3 years) and make more than triple what I averaged in my previous career - I wouldn't worry too much about $20K. If you're really worried about money you may want to look at WGU[1] (where I went) which is pretty cost-effective.

[1] http://www.wgu.edu/

[Auflauf]

Thanks for the reply and recommendation! An advantage I do have is that I do live in a college town. Unfortunately it has a population of 40,000 so startups are rare and I'd likely end up working at the university's tech support which isn't so bad. I'm confident I could make something happen as we both know that going back to school after a first degree usually means a huge shift in dedication in comparison to the first time.

I'm just having difficulties deciding whether going to school for two years outweighs teaching myself and eventually taking a bootcamp.

If you wouldn't mind... What do you think?

[frostmatthew]

> I'm just having difficulties deciding whether going to school for two years outweighs teaching myself and eventually taking a bootcamp.

I've read mixed things on bootcamps, but have definitely heard some have fairly high hire rates - it was something I considered but my personality usually favors a potentially harder/longer path with a higher chance of success rather than the quick/easy route. If you feel comfortable/confident in a bootcamp go for it.

[Auflauf]

Also! How much did your degree help you to be where you are now?

[frostmatthew]

> Also! How much did your degree help you to be where you are now?

The degree is useful for getting past HR - most of the people that actually matter in a hiring decision (engineers/managers) don't care. Which isn't to suggest a degree is worthless - you [hopefully] learn what you'll need to know to make a positive impression on the people that matter...but it's entirely possible to do that without a degree (it'll probably just be a little harder to score interviews).

In my first search (as I approached graduation) interviewers barely asked about anything directly related to what I did in school (they were far more interested in side projects I did in my own time and the stuff I created that I mentioned above) - in my second/most-recent search it never came up at all, it was all about what I did at my then-current job and [more recent] side projects.

[Auflauf]

Thanks for the enlightenment.

I'm trying to rationalize quitting my part-time non-tech job at the post office but perhaps college ain't the hottest option.

Congratulations on following through and biting the bullet to make your life better through programming.

Projects, ho!