Optional Courses at School
At our school, the way they have the course schedule set up, all of your courses are pre-selected for you. This leaves no room for specialization and leads to a degree that is similar to the person’s beside you. Where does this put you in the eye’s of the employer coming out of the program? With the exception of marks and maybe the odd bit of experience if you’re outgoing enough, it puts you on the same level. In a potentially collapsing economy, diversity is key. If you can diversify the courses offered, students will be better prepared for industry.
Students adaptability is the key to their survival, when they get out of school. I heard a statistic once, that said 80% of the students graduating will not be coding in the same language(s) that they took in school. If students have the ability to specialize, even with a few courses, it could lead to more prepared graduates.
Things like game design and graphics could have the ability to be taught as early on as second year. If students are given the choice to take these types of courses, then the interest would spark an increased learning potential for the students, as opposed to sticking them in classes that are “required”. This of course is from a students point of view, but I think employers would see the significance in this method of action as well.
Cheers