April 13, 2004
A: FROM MENTOR CAROL TOMAN IN IL
Many colleges have a requirement that you take a "critical thinking"
course for graduation. Philosophy and computer science classes fulfill
this requirement. You should check the colleges that you're considering.

There's a reason that colleges require critical thinking classes -- they
help you think more clearly. Even if you don't believe you'll ever
write another computer program, a programming class helps train your
mind. I recommend a programming class for everyone. The process of
writing a program has a lot in common with giving a patient
post-discharge instructions and the process of troubleshooting a
mis-behaving program has a lot in common with diagnosing a patient, for
instance. Some people love programming (it's rather like solving
puzzles), some hate it (every step feels like a struggle), but even
knowing that about yourself is a valuable lesson. I recommend you go
for it.