Within the entire field of STEM, technology may be the fastest growing field today, as almost every job around relates in some way to computers. It’s only fitting, then, that Computer Science is one of the most popular electives here at the Career Center.

The Computer Science pathway has a goal of being job-ready. It starts in freshman year with the class DE Webpage Design and Multimedia (non-DE options are available), or sophomore year with the DE Computer Programming course. Webpage Design and Multimedia focuses on the “front end” of computer science, which is similar to the actors in a play. The class teaches programming languages like HTML, CSS, and JavaScript. DE Computer Programming focuses on the “back end” of programming, playing a similar role to a tech crew during a play. This DE class offers six credits for NOVA, which is two classes (one per semester). You use a web application framework written in Python called Django. Students who take Webpage Design and Multimedia have an advantage in this class since they can program the front end as well as the back end.

Rising freshmen and sophomores should keep in mind that there are specific requirements to take DE classes in their grade levels: they must have at least a 2.25 GPA at the end of their current grade level, have completed and passed at least 1 high school course in middle school, and they must apply to NOVA, register for the course on NOVA’s DE website, and upload their transcript. Rising sophomores will be guided through this process with other sophomores taking DE classes, and rising freshmen should reach out to their current counselors if they have questions.

One positive about taking the computer science pathway is that it is a very popular pathway for NOVA’s Associate’s Degree. This is the equivalent of two years of college, taken all in high school for both college and high school credit. Most students taking Computer Science are intending to pursue either an Associate’s Degree or General Education Certificate (the equivalent of one year of college) at NOVA. 

Alongside the positive of completing half of college when you’re still in high school, the computer science field is growing by the day. Almost all jobs out there will require some familiarity with computers, and more jobs require some form of computer programming experience— especially in the STEM field. Artificial intelligence is also growing fast, and while some say it may replace computer science jobs entirely, it could also take the field farther than ever imagined. No matter what advancements are made, the Computer Science field is the future of our world.