I’ve known some of these Don Quixote types in real life and I gotta say- other than conceding that they “never give in, never give up” which I guess is some sort of value on the Protestant Work Ethic ladder, I have to wonder why. (they are not all Protestants- I don’t mean this in a literal or anti-religious way).
What’s so special about becoming a computer scientist that someone who has no obvious aptitude for it and has to struggle through it should be the poster child for persevering? Go be a Kick^&* urban planner or sustainability expert or nurse practitioner or media relations manager.
It’s nice to say that with X number of hours anyone can become an expert at anything, but what’s wrong with steering kids towards fields where they have obvious talent and aptitude instead? I know someone who went to Vet school the hard way. Undergrad- that’s four years. Then a post-bac program- another year. No admissions to US Vet schools, so a year “on the beach” while applying overseas. No decent options for post-grad so stayed overseas for that country’s version of a residency, then back in the US and essentially repeating the residency all over again. Now working part time as a vet at a big box store and living hand to mouth while paying off the loans and applying all over the country in the hopes of getting a full time job at an animal hospital. Current job is more like a cross between a vet tech and a groomer btw- with compensation to match.
Nobody had the wherewithal to sit this person down about 10 years ago and say, “I know you love animals but there’s got to be something else you love”? Don’t the first 12 rejections from Vet school seem like a sign from the universe that persevering may be exactly the wrong next step here???