The Computer Science Student Theory Template was created to aid a student in the coursework for his Computer Science major. The concept of the template is quite simple. It is a self-contained unit that contains all the material needed for a computer science major to construct and design a programming assignment. I created this template in order to make my life a little easier when I decide which books I would need for my course.
My first software engineering course was required reading. I read a lot of books on software engineering and architectural concepts. After learning these topics in the secondary school level, I wanted to have a clear understanding of them. I also knew I wanted to be certified in computer software engineering so I looked for books focused on this subject matter. I had heard about a book by a professor that would serve as a textbook for this course, but I didn’t know it was called a Theory Template.
The name stuck to me like a magnet as it contained a lot of information I needed to know. The book covered a lot of ground and the topics were very interesting and professional. The professor had a lot of expertise in software engineering and he presented his knowledge in a way that allowed me to easily understand what he was trying to say. He was an engaging speaker and I loved listening to him speak on the phone.
I enjoyed his point of view on software engineering and how he rose from being a software engineer to become a consultant. He had some success because he had taken lots of software engineering classes and applied them in his consulting business. The fact that he bragged about his past experiences made me want to get the information I needed fast. After finishing the theory book, I was ready to take the test. I went to the local college lab and I sat down with my friends to prepare for the test.
We spent a few weeks practicing on the simulated hardware and testing the software. We even had a buddy that joined in on the practice sessions and tried to do some of the same things we were going to do. We were not very successful and we came out of the testing sessions with very few points. This made me think that the theory books were not giving very accurate or effective information. Maybe there were some things that I was not understanding but I would have to go back and check.
Another thought that crossed my mind was that maybe I just need to work a little harder to learn the software basics. Being a software engineer does not mean you can just sign up for any job that comes your way. Most software jobs require formal education and training. It is definitely possible to be an excellent software engineer without having formal training but I think my personality would not lend itself well to that type of work.
Computer software is changing all the time. New software is being designed all the time and new software engineering methods are being developed. Being a software engineer is also a process. My best advice would be to find explanation something that you really enjoy and do well with that. In other words, do what you love and you will be much more likely to succeed at it.
A computer science student theory template can be a great help in getting you started but you need to make sure that you know what you are doing. It may require a lot of experimentation and trial and error. Once you have the hang of things, you will start to see results and become more successful. In fact, your friends may start to ask you how you are doing with everything and it will be a lot easier to talk to them about software engineering then it would be to talk to them about anything else.