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Ask HN: Unsure where to go from here

2 points by nnwa ↗ HN
Hey there guys and gals,

I'm posting here as I browse frequently and figured I'd get some good responses.

I'm from Melbourne, and I've just turned 18. I'm not sure what I want to pursue or how to go about it. I've got 3+ years of experience in Penetration Testing/Web Security but no actual qualifications. There are massive gaps in my knowledge and I'm not sure if I should be trying to get an internship or get a qualification of some kind. Any advice would be great at this point. I also haven't learnt a programming language (I've learnt what was essentially required during Penetration tests). Does anyone have any suggestions as to what language to pick up, and if so which one to start with?

Any advice is appreciated. Thanks all!

4 comments

[ 2.1 ms ] story [ 19.7 ms ] thread
seldo
Though by no means essential for a career in computing, a computer science degree is incredibly useful. At the very least, at the end of your course the skills you have now will have been given a stamp of authenticity by the accreditation, but in the best case the high-level tour of computing provided by a good degree course will have introduced you to concepts that will make you a better developer, and possibly sparked a deeper interest in some part of the field you're currently unfamiliar with, that will help guide you in picking the next stage of your career.

Choose wisely though: all degrees are not equal, and depending on the expense involved (I don't know what tertiary education costs are like in Oz) they may not be a net win.

nnwa
Thanks for that - Can you give me any recommendations of a qualification I could take online which would be worth having for the piece of paper?
seldo
None of the online-only sources are yet at a level of quality where I, wearing my hiring-manager hat, would take them seriously enough to justify the money spent. They'll get there eventually, but they're not there now.

Is there any reason you can't/don't want to attend a physical university?

nnwa
No, but if I can do it from home that works equally as well for me.