I am a Computer Science master’s student. However, two years prior to coming to GW, I had a high school level of exposure to advanced math and a very limited exposure to programming. Despite this, I decided to change career paths during my senior year of college from that of a soon-to-be law student to a software engineer.
For the first few months after graduation, I was fortunate to be able to live with my parents, rent free, and take Calculus 1 and Calculus 2 courses consecutively. I was able to test into these classes at my local university, only to find that I was woefully underprepared. I spent every minute of my day thereafter practicing and learning a subject that I had not been exposed to as an adult.
After these two courses, I recognized a need to spend more time preparing before pursuing a master's degree in computer science, which was my ultimate goal.
One of the trickier things in changing careers paths is the imposter syndrome. While it occurs to an extent within most professions, computer science is a field where many people have been programming since childhood. Thus, I was made acutely aware of my lack of experience, from peers and others.
Within my master's program, however, I found peers and professors who were willing to collaborate on projects. Any feelings of being an imposter were alleviated through continued interactions, discussions, and further studies.
Participating within the GW community is one of the major contributing factors to my knowledge of computer science. While I would not suggest pursuing every opportunity (as doing so would leave time for little else), I am always on the lookout.
Through emails sent by the SEAS Career Services team and graduate student newsletters, I was able to participate in the Innovation Challenge, Code4Life, on-campus interviews, two career fairs, two opportunities to contribute to research within the computer science department, and an on-campus job working as a graduate ambassador.
The decision to change directions has been a challenge, but continuing my studies at GW has provided opportunities that I have not experienced elsewhere. GW has vast opportunities for students willing to commit to their field of study, and access to these have made the change in my career path significantly better.
