College Essay

Programming is the action or process of writing computer programs, and I am captivated

by it. Programming is one of those things that you either love or hate because I have to be patient

and able to think through problems. One thing that I love about programming is that there are so

many languages to learn, Visual Basic, C++, C#, JavaScript, Python, and many more. With those

various languages come diverse ideas and concepts that make endless possibilities of what I can

do. Visual Basic can be used to make more of a video game style program, while JavaScript is

more for practical data analysis programs. Programming is used everywhere: video games, cyber

security, websites, and much more. It reminds me of a puzzle because when one thing doesn’t

work, then it makes the whole program fail. So finding that problem and solving the “puzzle” is

something that I really enjoy doing.

I always lose track of time whenever I am programming because when I code there are so

many things that can be achieved in a program. For example, when working on a program, I

could be designing a home page or planning out game play page. Depending on what language I

am typing in, I can also write the code, run the code, and if the code doesn’t work then I can

debug the code to find the problem and fix it. That debugging process is what causes me to lose

track of time. The puzzle aspect and thought process that goes into finding that issue captivates

me.

There are many different ways to learn how to code: Google, a textbook, teacher, friend,

etc. Personally, I find that being in a class with a teacher and other students is very helpful. For

example, I have take Computer Programming I, Computer Programming II, and AP Computer
Science that I took online. These classes are hard and challenge me to work through problems

and to further my problem solving and decision making skills.

My older brother is learning to program in college and is majoring in Computer Science.

His education and desire to learn programming in college has been pushing and inspiring me to

get interested in coding as well. I look up to my older brother and he started bringing his

programs home for me to see. When he comes to visit we stay up all night and don’t even realize

it because of how captivating and timeless it is. What he is doing and what he has done is so

fascinating to me and has helped us to spend more time together. This led to more of a bonding

experience between us because we have similar interests. Therefore, my love of programming,

influence from my older brother, and help from teachers and classmates have helped me to

decide that I want to major in Computer Science in college/.