Waaay too old…

Of course not, dude. I switched careers from music to software dev at 28 without any formal education (now 7yrs later a senior dev).

Don’t ever, and I mean ever, let anyone tell you that you’re too old to try something new. If anyone ever does, know, deep in your heart, that person is insecure and afraid of being their authentic self. Go forth, try new things, learn new knowledge, find out you don’t like things, sometimes get frustrated, and discover the things that make life worth living for you. You will be so much happier if you set aside what anyone else will think of you and focus on “This interests me”

In 4 years, you will be 26. That will happen regardless of your decision. But you can choose now whether you will be a 26-year-old with a CompSci degree, or a 26-year-old without one.

(It’s also pretty common in IT to see people go back to formal education to update their skills)

Practically one foot in the grave, time to retire.

I can only join in with the others, I started my IT bachelor at 21, finished at 25 – and was by far one of the younger students.

Nah I started at 29.

Is 22 too old to start…

Nope.

Am a heck of a lot older…and have gone blind. I’m still learning things all the time. If it is firing your curiosity it is worth giving a shot. By all means go for it!

…and thank you for the post. You have convinced me to try something new myself. Enjoy!

it’s never too late to start studying anything

No. You can absolutly get somewhere in your lifetime. At 22, you are just a forth of the way through an average lifetime, with 3/4 left. You have plenty of time to do all sorts of things. You are not to old to try something new.

I started IT school at 21 after 3 years lost doing nothing. I started a bit older but also a bit more mature so I finished those 3 years easier than some. Now at 28 I am a freelance consultant enjoying my job and respected for my knowledge. 22 is definitely not too old, I’d say it’s the right time to start. Your first job will be what determines what you can become so try to find something where yiu can continue learning as much as possible

And don’t forget to enjoy it. If it you passion as well it’s an amazing job!

I’ve been a professional software engineer for over ten years now. I didn’t study anything to do with computers until I was 20; I’d been aiming for a different career and was halfway through a degree before I discovered I didn’t enjoy it and wasn’t getting very good grades, so I swapped.

While at uni, I was part of the student mentor program where I did teaching assistant work for the lower years. One of the students in the lab group I assisted was a guy in his forties who’d seen his factory job automated away and decided if computers were going to take his job, he’d go learn how to work with computers and move into the sector that was creating jobs rather than removing them. He was a good student and picked things up quickly. I have every confidence he’s still out there doing well as an engineer.

22 is a perfectly fine age to start. If you’ve got the right attitude - the desire and motivation to focus on your studies and put in the work - you’ll do great.

One thing worth being aware of beforehand though is how a lot of your studying might go. The professor I assisted in those labs told me about an observation that’s been made in the teaching profession, and I saw it in action myself. A lot of computer science and programming is about finding the mental model that helps you understand what’s happening, how the computers work. Until you find it, you’ll be stuck. Then, something will click, and it’ll make sense. The professor told me they don’t see the usual bell curve of grades - they see two. One cluster of students at the bottom who don’t get it, and one higher up who understand. A lot of learning computing is less of a linear progression and more a process of running into the wall until you chance upon the particular explanation or analogy or perspective that works for the way you think, and then suddenly that particular concept is easy, and it’s onto the next one. This series of little clicks is how you progress.

Once you’ve got a few core concepts down it’s easier to work out how new things fit into the mental model you’re constructing, but be prepared for the early bits to have some frustrating periods where it feels like you aren’t getting anywhere. Stick at it, and look around for other resources, other books or tutorials, other people to explain it their way. I frequently saw a student look totally clueless at my explanation, but another student who’s understood what I said would paraphrase it slightly differently, and that was all it took for the clueless student to suddenly understand and pass the exercise. That lightbulb moment is as fun to experience yourself as it is to bring about in others. You just have to hang in there until it happens.

The answer to is X years too old to start Y activity is almost always no.

When I was studying to get a CS degree at a major university there were many people older than 22, even a couple in their 40s. 4 years won’t slow you down.

not at all. i fell into computing in my mid 20s. somehow i managed to learn enough to get myself hired at one of the largest technology companies in the world where i’ve now been over 20 years.

has it been easy? definitely not. without that classic computer science degree my peers have i’ve had to be scrappier and move faster to be on top of emerging tech where the playing field is a little more equal. i can this “surfing” the tech.

since i started i’ve participated in the birth of the internet, mobile, public cloud, big data, startups and now ai.

if you love it you can make it happen - just be realistic and stay scrappy ❤️

There's no such thing as too old. Certainly not for such a broad, definite question.

My colleague in retirement age accepts and applies new concepts and approaches.

I think you can do it at 22.

Absolutely not! I started at 25 next to my it job, best decision ever. Tough though, already had a kid and 2nd one was born during.

22? Old?

Bahahaha. I’m still learning complex stuff and I’m double that.

Not at all. This might be useful, https://teachyourselfcs.com. Have a think about what you want to do with it after learning. I was quite happy not learning CS and just coding instead!

You are never old to learn new things!!!

22 is not old, you will be fine!

Yes. 22 is too old. /s

This reminds me of:

An Entire Generation is Studying for Jobs that Won’t Exist

AI is taking over a lot of jobs, now it is coming for the writers who wrote about “machines taking over the world.”

By Mohit Pandey

TLDR: The increasing capabilities of AI are making many jobs obsolete, including those that require coding. Hollywood writers are protesting the use of AI in scriptwriting, as they believe it diminishes their role and creativity. The Writers Guild of America (WGA) is negotiating proper attribution and copyright issues regarding generative AI technology. Some argue that computer science degrees will become more important as understanding AI systems will be crucial. However, economists suggest that AI will displace jobs over time rather than causing instant mass unemployment. The need for humans to be trained in AI to be unbiased and proficient is emphasized. The disruption caused by AI is evident in layoffs across various industries. The potential of AI to eliminate jobs is a concern, but others believe it can create new job opportunities. IBM, for example, has announced it will replace 7,800 roles with AI. The future of jobs remains uncertain, but instead of rejecting AI, industries should consider incorporating it to enhance their work.