Why Learn Programming?

1. Learning one or more programming languages opens many doors

Most IT Minor Advisory Board members (i.e., Recruiters) told the IT faculty that they will hire many more IT Specialists who have taken one or more robust programming courses. They said this is because they would then know that the IT Specialist can learn hard, new technical topics and can do tough, new technical tasks. They will also be able to communicate better with technical co-workers. They will be able to participate as full partners on high-potential technical projects. “Coding is the hottest skill on the job market, the modern-day language of creativity, and a powerful force in the economy. And now it’s making its way into Congress, high school classrooms, and even the newsroom.” View the Slate article.

2. Python is rising fast as a popular language

“Over the past decade, the Python programming language has exploded in popularity amongst programmers in all areas of coding. From web developers to video game designers to in-house tool creators, many people have fallen in love with the language. Why? Because it’s easy to learn, easy to use, and very powerful.” – Joel Lee, 5 websites to learn Python programming

3. Python is regarded a good first language to learn

“After some days researching I decided that Python was the right choice for me. The reasons for going with Python as a first language were:

  • Python is a very high level language, which means it comes with a lot of functions and abstractions out of the box. This means you can spend more time thinking about programming logic and algorithms, and less time thinking about correct syntax.
  • Python is a general-purpose language, which means you can use it to create virtually any type of program or software, from web scripts to games. This means you should be able to use it to code projects you are actually interested in.
  • Python is an interpreted language, which means you won’t need to waste time learning how to compile code. You simply downloaded an integrated development environment (IDE), write your code and press “Run.”
  • There is a huge amount of programming books, videos and courses online that use Python as their language choice.
  • Python is used in the real world as well. Some very large companies like Google and Facebook use it on parts of their platforms and products.”

–Daniel Scocco

See also: “Is Python a good language to learn?”