CS Dropout

Basically this: Same thing with basic sysadmin or netadmin work. Kids were coming out of college with nothing but a degree and maybe some certifications. Turns out all that book work was making them pretty useless in a real world scenario.
Things I did outside of just getting my degree:
>Went to local trade shows and networked with some industry pros
>Worked in a co-op for my second and third year
>Worked at an unpaid internship over the summer before my third year
>Went to multiple career fairs at the college
>Spoke 1 on 1 with a career advisor
Also said career advisor told me that my resume looked like shit (In terms of formatting and layout) but the content made me 99% more hireable then most of my peers that he had reviewed because of my extra shit.

Then you're an outlier
EVERY job I've ever applied to had a minimum of a CS degree and some experience to back it up (Even entry level shit). Hell my current job required me to mail a copy of my transcripts and degree to prove my education.

so in your expert opinion is trying to be a codemonkey without a degree a venture almost guaranteed to fail? Should I get good at sucking cocks?

This. Just fucking lie about that nonsense but have concrete evidence of your prowess. Have a github with worthwhile projects. I have multiple, personal repositories with 50+ stars. I could've had a fine arts degree and I still would've been hired directly in to my six figure position. Actually, one of the department heads only has a fine arts degree lol.

That job is an outlier then. I was never asked for transcripts.
>Make linkedin
>Fill out skills.
>Bullshit references.
>Bullshit experience.
>Upload bullshitted resume.
>Need transcripts for a degree you don't have? Photoshop. They can't call the school and ask for student data.
But still, having a github with actually worthwhile code is key. If you don't have your own projects then work on popular open source software, companies LOVE that.

If you have not even a degree in a totally unrelated subject then that's often a filter. It is possible to figure it out for yourself and build up such a good portfolio of work that people take you on that basis, but do you really think you're capable of that?

Another alternative is going to a coding camp. They're kind of shit since they teach you the bare minimum to throw together a web app with absolutely no theory whatsoever, but some of them work on an income repayment agreement where you pay zero tuition up front and then they take a percentage of your salary for the next 2 years if you get a job in the field.

Based on what I've seen in the industry (This IS still anecdotal) without a degree most places won't even look at your resume. Considering you may not even make it through the resume auto-sorter.
That being said...If you can prove that you know what you're doing and what you're talking about (Having a portfolio of work really helps), then you MIGHT have a chance. But it would require getting to know the guy that will be writing your cheques and that you'll be reporting to DIRECTLY.

>Bullshit references
All my jobs in industry called my references. I even got in some shit because I put a previous colleague that I did some work for as a reference and forgot to make sure he was cool with it. He ended up giving me a good reference but contacted me to chastise me a bit for not asking him.
So take this advise with a HUGE grain of salt.

Big businesses often farm out the reference-checking process to third party companies, which pretty much guarantees they'll be called.

>Need transcripts for a degree you don't have? Photoshop. They can't call the school and ask for student data.
Don't do this if the company has background checks. You have to put the school you graduated from and they will call your school to verify.

>everyone told me i get a job immidiately when i graduate. have i been memed?
yes, at least these days it is true. I graduated with a 3.2 GPA, worked as a researcher for a university, and co-authored several research papers. I struggled to find a job and had to ask family and friends to recommend me to places to work. Entry level is basically overwhelmed with applicants, it is supposedly better once you have some industry experience (which is why internships greatly help)

>Entry level is basically overwhelmed with applicants, it is supposedly better once you have some industry experience
The whole job market is completely fucked. No one wants to hire people with no experience because people jump ship the moment they get a better job offer, and yet companies would rather just raise their applicant requirements than give people raises according to their "market" value. Then you have HR departments who think it's still 2008 and it's still possible to easily hire experienced employees for entry-level wages.

Obviously when I say bullshit references you tell your bullshit references to expect it.
My degree is real so I can't speak to the degree thing but my references and experience were mostly fake.

Even if you have literally nothing, you're not losing anything by applying. The most they can do is not hire you or fire you a few weeks later when they realize you're a retard.

>it's still 2008 and it's still possible to easily hire experienced employees for entry-level wages.
It is still possible. There are so many desperate people. Welcome to Cyberpunk, enjoy your extended stay.

yep I got a 3.8 gpa in CS and haven't been able to find a job in 6 months. didn't do any internships. don't really have any ideas for personal projects. I have a hard time motivating myself without the structure of school and grading system . Been thinking about giving up and getting a warehouse job.

>Been thinking about giving up and getting a warehouse job.
I strongly recommend that you get that warehouse job as soon as possible so you can experience just how shitty it is. Work there for a month or two, quit, and use that motivation (and sheer hatred) to find and start working on personal projects.

I'll probably be too tired to do anything outside of work and sleep

You don't need ideas for your own projects. There's a 99% chance literally nobody even uses it and you sit at 0 stars/followers. Work on popular open source projects. Most of them have issues in their repos that are explicitly marked as "good first issue".

Where I work we hire entry-level "associate underwriters" fresh out of school who after about 3 years become full-fledged underwriters. We recently opened up a new department and HR put out job advertisements for an associate underwriter with 3 years of experience. It was an utterly ridiculous job ad because an associate with 3 years' experience would be imminently promoted to underwriter; who in hell would add another 1-2 years to their promotion by switching companies like that?

When I showed the job ad to the senior underwriter of the office he literally just laughed; it was that stupid. And yet a few weeks later, they hired an associate with 3 years of experience.

I just hate CS by now, i'm about to start the 9th semester, haven't really done anything for at least 3, but i keep getting urged to just continue.
I've kinda been forced into this, because i'm "good with computers", but i hate coding with a passion. and now because the next semester is about to start everyone is starting to pressure me again because i need to continue.

I said to quit after that month or two. Seriously, work a basic bitch minimum wage job for a little while to learn how shitty it can be if you don't learn to motivate yourself.

I'll apply as a nightshift shelf stocker. Seems comfy af. I actually feel excited about it unlike c*ding.

Wait until you've done it for a while. Well, either you'll enjoy it and that's great, or you'll start seething about how shitty it is and maybe start working on building up a portfolio.