Wanting to go to WGU - is it viable?

I am currently a Respiratory Therapist. I do some computer maintenance on the side for some local businesses but not too much, really. I even worked at Staples as their technician for a little while but they didn't offer any training so it was only the knowledge I had gained from online (which I can do decently easily). I have never programmed before but I have always wanted to learn. I was initially going in 2007 to get a dual degree in Chemical Engineering and Physics but left due to family problems and went into my current field. I have some classes from then and some classes from high school that counted as college credit through my local community college. I took Intro to Biology and A&P I in 2009.

I am interested in joining the programming world. I would love to build software or even join the networking world, honestly.

My question is this - since I have just basic knowledge and no current certifications to speak of, would it be viable for me to attempt the IT-Software program? I have an associate's of applied science but the school definitely did not require any sort of computer classes. Have anyone dealt with transferring credits in this sort of situation?

I would LOVE to be working with computers as my during the week job but I also worry about the salary. I do NOT plan on moving (though I can travel since there is absolutely no kids in my future). Is it worth leaving a $31/hr job that I don't really work that hard at most of the time to do something that I know I would love?

Thank you for the assistance!

Find more posts tagged with

Free for TechExams community: Cybersecurity salary guide

Compare cert salaries and plan your next career move

Button

Comments

Levithan

Don't quit your day job.

Many companies these days are looking for people with work related experience. If you do go that route, expect to be starting back at or near square 1.

Also, you don't need to take classes or WGU to learn programming. The net is a great resource. Find yourself some books and read as much as you can in your downtime. I recall there were a couple nice free Bash scripting books that someone posted recently in the linux section, perhaps that would be a good place to start, if you are really interested in getting into the programming field.

Good luck to you!

J_86

Try something like Codeecademy (it's free) to get a feel for some of the basics of programming to make sure it is something you would like.
I wouldn't quit your day job. If you decide you do want to go to WGU, see if you could work out a schedule where you would still work and still complete classes.

Learn to code | Codecademy

certoi

Stick with your current job. You will be lucky to get $20 per hour starting out in an IT job. Every employer is now looking for experience,IT certs and a related BS degree. Only the well experience tech is making as much and above what you make right now, So if you want to pursue your passion in IT just expect a pay cut and some hard work along with some stiff competition.

TomkoTech

As others have said there are plenty of free resources for programing. Check out https://www.khanacademy.org/computing/cs and Why we use object-orientation from the Course Foundations of Programming: Object-Oriented Design

If you do end up enjoying it WGU may be a good option for you. Work on the degree while keeping your day job. One big advantage you would have over a networking/systems admin job if you decide that you want to be a programmer is you don't need previous "job" experience. You can create your own programs for your current job, or develop some mobile apps and use those on your resume to show your experience.

Bokeh

Udemy.com also has a lot of courses. They constantly run specials where you can get 35, 50 sometimes 90% off courses. Usually someone from here finds the discount and passes it along to the community.

J_86

Bokeh wrote: »

Udemy.com also has a lot of courses. They constantly run specials where you can get 35, 50 sometimes 90% off courses. Usually someone from here finds the discount and passes it along to the community.

Yes, +1 to Udemy! Can't believe I forgot about them. Some great training and like Bokeh said, they have sales ALL the time. They actually just had one this passed week I believe. I picked up a CCNA course for like $25.

selenityhyperion

Thanks for the advice! I was afraid that the pay would be significantly less but I do not plan on leaving my current job completely because even though I work 12 hour shifts on Friday Saturday and Sunday nights I still would like to have a fourth or fifth job in computer related to do during the week. I have wanted to be in programming since high school when I used to run some text based gaming sites but I just sort of self taught myself about the code by looking at other people's modules and playing around with them. I will definitely check out the resources and start by picking up some languages to learn and use. Thanks again!

jdancer

Your best bet is to go the independent route once you publish some of your code via github.

eLs

Wow you only work 3 days you can definitely work in another job on the other days in the mean time without quitting the job that pays.

Wish I had 3 longer work days vs 5 normal work days less time wasted in driving to work and feels better to have 4 days off from work.