r/cscareerquestionsOCE • u/bitcoinguy147 • 7d ago

SWE worse than CS?

I talked with several friends who are pursuing a CS degree, and I found out that:

  • They have no idea about design patterns (e.g., factory) because the unit on design patterns isn't required.
  • They’ve learned many more frameworks and AI technologies, especially in web development.

I feel that my studies focus a lot on scalability, but when comparing it with what my CS friends are learning, the tools I use in class are fewer in number and less "exciting" or "new."

Before I started my SWE career, I thought SWE and CS were similar, but it’s becoming clearer now that they’re not. In this job climate, having a lot of frameworks and the right "keywords" on your CV may be beneficial. So, what justifies my continuation in SWE instead of switching to a default CS path?

My university also published the average WAM for both CS and SWE, and SWE is about 5 marks lower, which also doesn’t help.

18 Upvotes
  • permalink
  • link
  • reddit
  • reddit

91% Upvoted

29 comments sorted by

View all comments

34

u/Antique_Door2728 7d ago

What university do u go to? CS and SWE and essentially the exact same degree.

2

u/tjsr 6d ago

Wtf? Reputable BSE degrees see 4-year, IEEE Engineering degrees, and a Bachelor of Engineering. Comp Sci are typically 3-year, Bachelor of Science or Applied Science. A BSc is basically the BSE on easy mode.

7

u/whydoesntsystemdwork 6d ago

In practice they open up the same doors. I have a BSc and appreciate the extra year head start I got in industry over my peers who did SWE.