> "Have a high "pass" rate. If 90+% of candidates aren't progressing past the homework, you might have an abuse problem. In an abuse problem, companies are giving homework to candidates who are unlikely to make it. Figure out why you're giving too many poor fits homework, or figure out why good fits aren't doing well."
That sounds crazy to me. Both from an employer and employee standpoint... If that's the case, it's a waste of time. Why have a test that almost everyone passes?
I've given homework like this before and our pass rate was about 40%.
I agree. There are lots of tangent careers you can do with a CS degree. Also consider: IT operations, Quality Assurance, technical PM, network infrastructure. Some of these might require a bit more training, but your CS degree is a solid foundation to build from.
> If you aren't actually creating content [art, software, serious writing, etc] then using a mobile is fine
I've seen some serious art been made using ipads and even mobile phones alone. Hang out with creative teenagers and you'll see it too. There are entire video editing suites on ipad that can create slick videos entirely with touch gestures.
It's happened probably 10s of thousands of times in the past few decades... and some of those couples are now happily married. I personally know of a boss who married his secretary and a professor who married a student.
I think the words "Very Bad Thing" are a little excessive. It's risky behavior.
Damn near every bank in Canada uses cobol on zOS and DB2. I'd suggest searching job postings at all major banks. Likely you'd need to move to Toronto though because that's where the bank HQs are. Also check out a company called CGI... they have a few Cobol/mainframe positions open right now:
Scott Adams does this too. He goes to the gym everyday and laces up his shoes. Once that's done, it's considered a "successful day at the gym". Of course 99% of the time he stays for a workout... but yeah, the odd time he just goes home after lacing up his shoes.
There is a school of thought in psychiatry that some people would do better to simply move on and forget about it. There was a good podcast on this topic here:
As apposed to now? Where you have 40 history PHDs all going for a single professor slot... and at the same time have tons of positions go vacant for months because there are no qualified candidates?
It may not be perfect, but it might be better than what we have now... Although, I'm not saying it will be... I'll reserve judgement until the data arrives.
I totally agree. Also, Tom Hanks & Tina Fey both studied Drama... and both have contributed enormously to the world.
However, for every employed actor, there are probably 9 other starving drama students who will never make it. It's hard to encourage kids to take Drama with those odds unless the kid is super passionate about it... especially when it costs $60k to do so.
We have a lot of people graduating with useless degrees like History & Literature. These useless degrees often land people in a state of debt with no job. If a corporation(s) decides what degree you should get, there is a higher likelihood that at the end of your degree, you'll actually get a job.