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Office Hours:
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Text: None
Prerequisite: Interest in a career in computer science, software engineering or data science.
Meeting times and place: Wed. 11:00-11:50pm, HPER 138
What is in this course?
This course gives you a chance to meet the Computer Science faculty and learn about their research interests. You will also get to hear about CS and SE internships, hear presentations about careers in the computer industry, and meet computer professionals. You will develop your resume, practice writing a cover letter, and document a career plan.
Grading:
| Activity | Percentage |
|---|---|
| Attendance | 20% |
| Exercises | 10% |
| Résumé | 20% |
| Register with Career Services and upload your resume | 5% |
| Cover Letter | 10% |
| Career Paper | 25% |
| Update resume to meet all Career Services recommendations | 10% |
How to Succeed in this Course:
Come to class. Listen. Participate. Begin the assignments early, doing a small amount of work on them over several days. The assignments are:
- Assignment 1: Develop a current résumé.
- Assignment 2: Register with Career Services and upload your resume.
- Assignment 3: Tailor a cover letter for a specific position in the computer field.
- Assignment 4: Write a self-discovery paper that describes your goals in the Computer Science or Software Engineering program. Tell what professional end you are thinking of and what you imagine yourself doing ten years from now. You might want to integrate information from the speakers that you heard over the course of the semester. You may also wish to interview one of the speakers or another computer science professional. (1,200 words)
- Assignment 5: Update resume until it is accepted by Career Services.
- Small exercises motivated by the presenters.
ACM:
ACM stands for the Association of Computing Machinery. This is the society that computer professionals who want to join a professional society typically join. The ACM is international. It has a myriad of publications (including a digital library that you can use free as a Montana Tech student) and they hold several conferences each year. There is a student chapter of the ACM on this campus and I recommend that each of you belong. Meetings include planning and having events, listening to speakers and socializing. Speakers are often students who have done recent internships. Since it is likely that you will undergo an internship before you graduate, it is helpful for you to learn more about what internships are available and what they are like.
For each ACM meeting that I know you attended a percentage point will be added to your overall score for this course.
Catalog description of the course:
Required introduction to the Computer Science and Software Engineering programs. Students will discuss what it means to be a professional in the fields of computer science and software engineering, meet professionals in these fields, and hear about the wide range of employment opportunities. Throughout the course students will meet the faculty of the Computer Science Department and learn of their diverse expertise. By the end of the course, each student will have developed a résumé and a career plan and will have learned how a Tech education prepares them for rewarding employment. (1st)
Expected skills students have coming into the course:
- E1. An interest in computer science or software engineering.
Expected outcomes from taking this course:
- R1. Students met the computer science faculty and heard about some of their professional interests. (CAC-h; EAC-i)
- R2. Students met some computer professionals and learned about their companies, job activities, and work environment. (CAC-h; EAC-i)
- R3. Students are aware of the variety of jobs in computer science and software engineering and have an idea of what these jobs entail. (CAC-h; EAC-i)
- R4. Students appreciate the need to plan their careers and begin thinking about their futures in computer science; they developed a working résumé along with a fictional cover letter and have thought about and prepared a paper on their computer science career. (CAC-f, h; EAC-g, i)
- R5. Students are aware of economic, environmental and societal impacts of computing, and the existence of the ACM Code of Ethics (ACM), the Software Engineering Code of Ethics (IEEE-CS/ACM), and the Data Science Code of Professional Conduct (Data Science Association). (CAC-g; EAC-f, h)
Related student outcomes:
- CAC-f An ability to communicate effectively with a range of audiences
- CAC-h Recognition of the need for and an ability to engage in continuing professional development
- EAC-f An understanding of professional and ethical responsibility
- EAC-g An ability to communicate effectively
- EAC-h The broad education necessary to understand the impact of engineering solutions in a global, economic, environmental and societal context
- EAC-i A recognition of the need for and an ability to engage in life-long learning