Should I go back to school to become a programmer?

Learning Python and a degree in CS are two very different things. Are you good at math? because most CS programs are about 70% math with some programming in there as well. I suggest spending more time trying to figure out what you want to do with your life before going back to school. Because I know lots of people who found CS boring and would rather never touch a computer again in their lives. The grass is always greener, etc.

I understand your predicament, it seems to happen to many architects. I worked for a space planning company and had the best of both worlds. While AutoCAD drawings/design were a small part of the job, the majority of my work was creating databases and small applications for clients to help them automate the process of space planning. There was a lot of logic and thought intensive work involved and paid very well. There are so many companies that have thousands of employees and need the ability to plan ahead for new headcount, lay offs, etc as well as find easy ways to keep track of all their square footage and needs. So you could look into a space planning position if this interests you. You could google "Strategic space planning jobs" or "Archibus jobs" and see if anything pops up that sparks your interest. Good Luck!

"I think what kept me from pursuing programming more actively was not having a particular goal to accomplish with it. More recently I have had some ideas that I think would be valuable tools both to myself and others." Nthing others (and noting your comment that you'd be way ahead of others in a programming class), I'd say don't go back to school (unless it's for business, like GuyZero suggested). Instead, pick an open source project that uses python and find places to contribute - there are bound to be some bugs you can fix. That will give you exposure to more of the language than you'll find in Teach Yourself to Program books, and more real-world examples. At the same time, start turning one of your ideas into a functional tool. The combination of solving quick programming problems (on the open source project) and working on a larger project (your own idea) will help you learn a lot while keeping your motivation high.

OK. So being a self-employed coder is an entirely different kettle of fish and you'd be better of going back for a business degree. Whether you're a independent contractor or an entrepreneur, actually writing code will be one of the least of your worries. Connecting with customers, marketing, sales and accounting will be equally as important and IMO harder to teach yourself. But it's definitely possible to be a profitable independent software creator. Google up "microisv" Funding this is, again, a different story. You'll either need to do it off-hours from your regular job or get funding from friends, family or credit cards. You could do it while at school but I'm not sure what you would gain personally from taking that route. You'd know more about development but be further in debt. Overall it's definitely possible and there are a lot of people who love the lifestyle of being a one-person coding shop. I would say that a passion for doing it and an ability to learn as you go along are the only two prerequisites.

GuyZero, you said it yourself, I want to make a living writing my own software, not writing code for someone else. I'm hoping that this will be profitable enough to sustain me. I was imagining going back to school to learn the skills while simultaneously deferring my debt. In the process I could write some of my own software so that, hypothetically, by the time I finished school I would have my sustenance and my shiny new self-employed career.

There's really no better way to learn programming than doing it. Having done training for self-taught programmers, I have to disagree. This is comparable to saying that the best way to learn architecture is by doing it. I will go back to the question of what you want to accomplish. Do you want to write programs for a living? Do you want to make a living writing your own software? I don't see myself working as a programmer in a company... So I don't get it. You need a job. But you don't like your current job. Fair enough. You'd like to learn to program. OK. So maybe you should go to school to learn to program. Which is one way to do it... but I can't quite get back to the fact you need a job. If you went back to school for CS what would you want to do for a living? if not be a programmer at a company, then what? Going to school is fun and all but it's not a long-term proposition unless you really, really like school. But eventually they make everyone graduate and then you're back to square one. What is it you want to do?

If so, how can I make it happen? That's your question. Here's your answer: More recently I have had some ideas that I think would be valuable tools both to myself and others. I don't see myself working as a programmer in a company, but creating the types of programs I would like to see for myself. You're already learning Python and you have ideas for useful tools. Just commit yourself to one of those ideas and do it. Don't be discouraged if it doesn't come out perfect. Just keep making progress and working on the challenges you come up against. There's really no better way to learn programming than doing it.

I went from a BS in Arch. (class of 91) to a career in programming. My path was this, and keep in mind computers had been a kind of hobby for me for a while, but in college it was more about Ultima, and less about programming. First I was working as an apprentice/draftsman fo a while, when CAD was about a year away from breaking into the mainstream. I stopped working as an apprentice, and started doing CAD work for 3x my previous hourly rate. From there I got into 3d, and rendering, and then into CD-ROM based multimedia. Then in '93 I got involved with an interactive television project. The people involved in this went on to get involved with the web, and I went with them, learning HTML first, then CGI, perl, ASP, Cold Fusion, Java and finally Ruby. By '96 I was not doing anything related to graphics/multimedia at all, just straight programming. I find that the architecture training, if applied correctly can help with things like information architecture, software architecture, and page design. You also probably picked up some project management skills along the way. I've also thought about going back to school for a CS degree, but every single person I speak to about it - some of whom are well-respected CS graduates, says it would be a waste of time and money. What you do need, though, is a passion for whatever it is you are going to get into. If you love it enough, you will get up to speed very quickly. The hacker ethos is one of self-education. Although I don't have direct experience, I would think a CS degree is to a programming job what an english literature degree is to being an author. (neither sufficient, nor necessary)

In response to a few: I am good at math and enjoy solving logic problems. I have enjoyed greatly the little bit of coding I have done. In my programming classes I would be way ahead of the coursework. In one class I finished the entire semester's assignments in three weeks. I think what kept me from pursuing programming more actively was not having a particular goal to accomplish with it. More recently I have had some ideas that I think would be valuable tools both to myself and others. I don't see myself working as a programmer in a company, but creating the types of programs I would like to see for myself.