Opinion on Raikes School/formerly JD Edwards Honors

jtmorehead
Wed, 10 Sep 2008 16:57:00 +0000

I just thought I’d weigh in on this.

First, I agree with johnny on the faculty turn over, most of it was due the fact that the program is new and still solidifying a curriculum. The only truly disgruntled professor was Bruce Avolio, who felt as if the students he taught were being a bit disrespectful and that teaching the class was a waste of his time. The feeling of the students towards leadership classes were pretty much mutual, very few have liked them.

Second, as for majors, I have to second what Bigredmed say and emphasize it some more. The best way to ‘succeed’ in the program is to major in computer science, computer engineering (or EE), or some business major. It is feasible to major in other things, and math is probably high on the list of compatible majors, but really, if you aren’t seriously considering one of those three majors, you are running the risk of joining the program and deciding not to continue later. This obviously isn’t the end of the world, and there have been a number of JDE/JSRSCSM dropouts that have done well in their respective fields, but its something to consider.

Third, the reason I decided to join the program/school, and one of the best value adds from a student perspective is Design Studio. For a student, the Design Studio experience is a great chance to get real world software development experience and interact with professionals in the field. While you could theoretically achieve the same ends by pursuing internships while attending school, I believe that the ability to work with a team of people you have already spent a good deal of time with, paired with program oversight and concurrent curriculum (shoddy as it can be at times), leads to more success and a better experience. Plus, having all of the people around you on different projects in the same framework allows for a synergy of learning, at least to a degree, in that you end up discussing each others projects and getting some of the benefit without putting in too much extra time.

Fourth, the comradery and atmosphere can’t be played down. I have some of the best friends in the world thanks to the closeness afforded by the living and working conditions.

Finally, The program is hard. You’re pretty much ‘working’ for 9 months straight, with work often spilling into weekends and breaks, so you have to keep that in mind. Its fun when you get things done, but it can be grueling at times. While this can, at times, detract from the college experience, I believe that it prepared me very well for the ‘real world’. I had a job (with Microsoft) in November of my Senior year, as did many of my class mates, and I know that I wouldn’t have had such an opportunity without the experience and networking the program provided.