Ok - as someone late career, spouse also, know a lot of people I would say most CS people don't spend their lives leet coding, hustling for jobs with the "best" company, competing frantically with peers. A career is a journey not a destination. Many will pivot, many will start businesses, some return to school, find a niche interest, etc etc etc.
Are you going into debt going to college? I think if you are, that may warrant a break if you are truly unsure. If you have family funding college and will graduate with little to no debt, I think there are merits to just pushing through and getting that degree assuming you are doing well academically.
Starting a business is a great pursuit. But many will have to work a day job for a while they get bearings, funding, plan, etc. Having ANY degree can open doors and create networks that not having a degree may remain closed.
As others have said, the real world doesn't revolve around LeetCode. It revolves around solving people's problems.
My question for you: "What feels like play for you, but looks like work to others?" Or rather, "what were you doing the last time you lost track of time?"
Hopefully that leads you to figuring out what you should pursue.
One thing I'll say on gap years: One of the purposes behind a college degree is that it proves to hiring managers that you can stick with something for more than 5 seconds. That's actually kind of the big unlock in life. If you find something that's working, do you have the endurance and willpower to push through adversity.
Starting your own business can be super lucrative. Trades can be super lucrative. But a great place to start is to do the bare minimum around what you think you'll be interested in starting a business around. For example, if you think you want to start a real estate business, start a blog or social media account(s) around real estate and where you'd build, invest, etc. You'll attract folks in that field. Opportunities will come your way. You'll learn if you're passionate about it. And if you're not? No worries. It's just a stupid blog. Try something else.
The best and brightest don't have the solution on day one. They just iterate faster than anyone else. Kind of like the best app developers and programmers.
Lastly, it sounds like you haven't actually gained any sort of real world experience yet? [Have you pursued internships in your field of stud](https://www.talentramp.co/)y? Getting that hands-on experience might help you figure out what you like and don't like about CS.
I guess it adds additional context that I go to a well-resourced cs school where if I applied myself I can easily get a job at a FAANG, and I'm contemplating if I should suck it up and focus on being a SWE, or explore other stuff outside of CS. My school is a big feeder into Amazon and Microsoft, it also doesn't hurt that we have Google, Zillow, Meta, and other tech companies in our backyard in Seattle. We literally have buildings/research labs named after Microsoft, Amazon, Google, and Zillow lol. And I'm worried at the missed opportunity cost of taking a gap year.
I wouldn't assume you will EASILY get a particular job. I also wouldn't assume you only have ONE career path out of college on the degree path you are on.
Since you are considering throwing in the towel, you may not be the most shining example of dedicated student and may not be taking advantage of networking and other growth opportunities on campus.
I don’t think you understand the CS career paths yet. I’d recommend you continue push through with your degree and actually explore the industry. Gap years often become.. dropping out. You can explore other things all you want once you’ve graduated.
I could graduate early next year, and then spend my would-be senior year to explore other stuff. But, do you think graduating early without any internship would be detrimental in the long term if I do decide that I want to be a SWE later down the line? Or I can get a SWE role at a lesser-known company, and then apply to be a SWE for a more prestigious company with that real-world experience?
I think it would be detrimental to your potential SWE career if you chose to do that, especially since you go to a very good university. It’s not as clear cut as “get some real world experience, then move to a prestigious company”. Graduate pipelines are the main way to get into the companies (that I assume) you’re talking about, otherwise you’d have to start applying as an experienced hire - and you’ll need years of experience under your belt for that. Who’s to say you’ll even find work at a lesser known company? You have no experience, competing with thousands that do.
Stay in school. Get an internship. Actually experience the world a little more and get a feel for how things work. It seems as though you believe everything is way more straightforward than it actually is. Plus, what’s the rush? You’re making critical life decisions here trying to get to the bottom of it as soon as possible.
Ok so people do say you might drop out, but also I don't think it makes sense to force something that doesn't work. I would suggest you put together a clear plan for the gap year and establish a pretty clear condition for your return to school. As in, figure out exactly why you don't like CS rn, what you are looking for from other career paths. The most tricky thing about losing your structure, as you do in a gap year, is not losing sight of your goals. Gl
Ok - as someone late career, spouse also, know a lot of people I would say most CS people don't spend their lives leet coding, hustling for jobs with the "best" company, competing frantically with peers. A career is a journey not a destination. Many will pivot, many will start businesses, some return to school, find a niche interest, etc etc etc. Are you going into debt going to college? I think if you are, that may warrant a break if you are truly unsure. If you have family funding college and will graduate with little to no debt, I think there are merits to just pushing through and getting that degree assuming you are doing well academically. Starting a business is a great pursuit. But many will have to work a day job for a while they get bearings, funding, plan, etc. Having ANY degree can open doors and create networks that not having a degree may remain closed.
This makes no sense get the degree first
I know several people who tried something like that. It was a horrible idea in near every case, except Steve Jobs.
As others have said, the real world doesn't revolve around LeetCode. It revolves around solving people's problems. My question for you: "What feels like play for you, but looks like work to others?" Or rather, "what were you doing the last time you lost track of time?" Hopefully that leads you to figuring out what you should pursue. One thing I'll say on gap years: One of the purposes behind a college degree is that it proves to hiring managers that you can stick with something for more than 5 seconds. That's actually kind of the big unlock in life. If you find something that's working, do you have the endurance and willpower to push through adversity. Starting your own business can be super lucrative. Trades can be super lucrative. But a great place to start is to do the bare minimum around what you think you'll be interested in starting a business around. For example, if you think you want to start a real estate business, start a blog or social media account(s) around real estate and where you'd build, invest, etc. You'll attract folks in that field. Opportunities will come your way. You'll learn if you're passionate about it. And if you're not? No worries. It's just a stupid blog. Try something else. The best and brightest don't have the solution on day one. They just iterate faster than anyone else. Kind of like the best app developers and programmers. Lastly, it sounds like you haven't actually gained any sort of real world experience yet? [Have you pursued internships in your field of stud](https://www.talentramp.co/)y? Getting that hands-on experience might help you figure out what you like and don't like about CS.
What does "ranked 10th for undergrad, 5th for grad", add to this post?
I guess it adds additional context that I go to a well-resourced cs school where if I applied myself I can easily get a job at a FAANG, and I'm contemplating if I should suck it up and focus on being a SWE, or explore other stuff outside of CS. My school is a big feeder into Amazon and Microsoft, it also doesn't hurt that we have Google, Zillow, Meta, and other tech companies in our backyard in Seattle. We literally have buildings/research labs named after Microsoft, Amazon, Google, and Zillow lol. And I'm worried at the missed opportunity cost of taking a gap year.
not easily and probably not faang but most likely can get a six figure job as average salary is probably like 120k
I wouldn't assume you will EASILY get a particular job. I also wouldn't assume you only have ONE career path out of college on the degree path you are on. Since you are considering throwing in the towel, you may not be the most shining example of dedicated student and may not be taking advantage of networking and other growth opportunities on campus.
I don’t think you understand the CS career paths yet. I’d recommend you continue push through with your degree and actually explore the industry. Gap years often become.. dropping out. You can explore other things all you want once you’ve graduated.
I could graduate early next year, and then spend my would-be senior year to explore other stuff. But, do you think graduating early without any internship would be detrimental in the long term if I do decide that I want to be a SWE later down the line? Or I can get a SWE role at a lesser-known company, and then apply to be a SWE for a more prestigious company with that real-world experience?
I think it would be detrimental to your potential SWE career if you chose to do that, especially since you go to a very good university. It’s not as clear cut as “get some real world experience, then move to a prestigious company”. Graduate pipelines are the main way to get into the companies (that I assume) you’re talking about, otherwise you’d have to start applying as an experienced hire - and you’ll need years of experience under your belt for that. Who’s to say you’ll even find work at a lesser known company? You have no experience, competing with thousands that do. Stay in school. Get an internship. Actually experience the world a little more and get a feel for how things work. It seems as though you believe everything is way more straightforward than it actually is. Plus, what’s the rush? You’re making critical life decisions here trying to get to the bottom of it as soon as possible.
If you don’t grind hard you can have a gap year searching for a job
Ok so people do say you might drop out, but also I don't think it makes sense to force something that doesn't work. I would suggest you put together a clear plan for the gap year and establish a pretty clear condition for your return to school. As in, figure out exactly why you don't like CS rn, what you are looking for from other career paths. The most tricky thing about losing your structure, as you do in a gap year, is not losing sight of your goals. Gl