Progressive Tech Jobs?

hi there,

i'm a university student in the us and have been using ubuntu since september. i've had a lot of fun messing around with it and really like the idea behind free software, so i've decided to major in computer science (i have some programming experience too). some questions:

what kind of jobs are available for someone with a cs degree that don't involve working for an evil corporation (or company that will sell their product to one) or doing research with potentially shady applications? searching online, i've found a few staff positions in unions and nonprofits online that seem potentially interesting. along those lines -

what kind of tech workers do progressive organizations need?

what skills/experience/knowledge are particularly in demand?

how useful/necessary is a graduate degree?

are there any (what are) genuinely progressive areas of cs research or universities that conduct such research (that benefit people, not corporate profits)?

i hope this is the right forum for these questions...i figured since i'm a womyn and ubuntu's all about humanity towards others, it might be a good place to ask.

Oh boy. Where to begin.

First off. Free software is good, and CS experience is better. Some questions you might want to ask/answer are "What areas do I want to write software for?" "What languages do I code in?" etc. etc.

I would hope you don't consider all corporations/companies to be evil. . . :eek: . . .That'd make it really hard to find a job!

Do you mean "shady applications" as in Echelon? Please clarify.

As for the graduate degree, I'd say it would be very useful. Just - and since these kinds of things take a long time - don't go halfway at a place like DeVry and then say you want to obtain the rest at a state university. That would be bad.

thanks for answering. if you're still around - what areas of software development or companies are there that are doing good things? i'm particularly interested in technology that invites people to be active participants rather than passive consumers of culture and that's easy to use and customize and is accessible.

by shady applications, i mean stuff that could serve the military industrial complex or help giant corporations monitor the world and leech more money out of poor people...things like that.

"don't go halfway at a place like DeVry and then say you want to obtain the rest at a state university. That would be bad." what do you mean by that? (i'm at a state uni now but will probably have to take some courses at community college to graduate in time.)

thanks for answering. if you're still around - what areas of software development or companies are there that are doing good things? i'm particularly interested in technology that invites people to be active participants rather than passive consumers of culture and that's easy to use and customize and is accessible.

Using the "active participants" quote, you can try working for a game company. Open beta tests occur all the time.

"don't go halfway at a place like DeVry and then say you want to obtain the rest at a state university. That would be bad." what do you mean by that? )

I did some checking of my own a while ago and it seems state universities don't accept credits from proprietary schools. Going for a Bachelor's degree would only take you four years at either, but if you get the B.S. and then say you want a Master's at a state school, you're going to have to do it all over again.

The reason not to go to some school like DeVry would be that it is not considered sufficient education for the typical software engineering jobs you see available. DeVry/ITT Tech/etc are designed to give you a small and specific set of practical skills for the basic IT jobs in the current market. The problem with this is that you don't learn the why's and how's (i.e. theory). So you are not equipped to deal with more complex problems or the inevitable changes in technology (e.g. learning new programming languages). A good computer science program should include a solid foundation of math and compsci theory.

But there is a weak point with even the best compsci programs. Often you get too much theory and not enough practical skills. My advice for the poster is to immediately get involved with an internship/co-op. Even if you need to swallow a little pride and take up a position with one of those "evil corporations," you will end up better in the long run. (Remember it's short-term!) You just need to put your knowledge into action and learn from those people with years of experience and tricks up their sleeves. Plus, the experience will help you immensely in both figuring out what type of jobs you want and getting the job.

I happen to be a graduate of a highly-ranked compsci program. But I have since changed directions and am doing a grad program in linguistics. While I don't regret the decision, I do sometimes think that things would have been different if I had learned a few things earlier on. One thing is what I just mentioned above: getting an internship. Another thing would be having more confidence in my abilities rather than letting the competetive, male-dominated attitude of CS make me feel unworthy. And lastly would have been seeing how I could put my computer skills to use for "good, not evil." I was delluded into thinking that all CS grads end up working for major corporations bent on taking over the world and increasing profit margins.

Well, I can't give much more advice than this. But I look forward to the other responses to this thread. I haven't completely given up the idea of going back to computers quite yet...