Additional Information
You might want to start with a university degree in computer science. "Unless
you are a prodigy who was hacking and building systems in high school and
managed to get into the industry and now have a few years under your belt,
it's a pretty necessary piece of the puzzle," says Leah Spontaneo. She is
a computer systems analyst who works for Riot Games in California.
"It also gives candidates the knowledge of algorithms, data structures,
and efficiency that many interviews look for. Microsoft, Google, Riot, Facebook...all
of these companies will prod candidates about what a specific data structure
is (linked list, hash table, etc.) and then make them write a small algorithm
to answer a question with an efficient runtime.
"While you may be able to learn that on your own from books, it's a lot
easier to gain that knowledge through proper education and practice."
Business skills will also come in handy. Systems analyst Curtis Linton
has a bachelor's degree in business during which he majored in information
systems.
"I've worked with a number of people who have technical diplomas, or the
shorter duration degrees, and the ones I've seen most successful are the ones
who have the natural business acumen," he says.
Sharon Hader says a well-rounded education is key. "A bachelor of commerce
gives you more opportunities in the business environment, but students should
look for a well-rounded education so you can draw from a variety of experiences,"
says the senior systems analyst.