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UH CS Advice for Freshmen

· 10 min read
Ashish Job

Just a guide with some valuable advice for freshmen entering the Computer Science program at the University of Houston (UH) that I learned during my own experience as a Freshman here.

Covering aspects such as professional development, education, involvement in CS clubs, and seizing various opportunities, it provides practical insights to help navigate your academic and career journey successfully.

General Advice:​

  • Make a LinkedIn account

    • Keep it as professional as you can, make the profile picture a formal one, and connect with or follow things you’re interested in since it's such a great way to gain insight into opportunities and connections that can help you get into these opportunities yourself.

  • Make a GitHub and try to understand how Git works

    • Git is very very useful to learn and understand, especially for future projects so learn basic actions like pull, push, merge, commit, cloning, etc.

  • Make a Solid Resume

    • Even if you're only a first-year or haven't taken data structures yet, it's always good to be prepared and set up.
    • Try using this resume template [it is coded, but it's only in LaTeX so not too complex].
    • Include all the factors that make you stand out and update it with everything new that you come across.
    • One of my friends, Fernando, who has experience with huge tech companies like MAANG and more has a service where he can help you make your resume or elevate it to a higher level., so I would check that out to get some advice on how to "sell yourself" to recruiters better!

  • Try Making a Portfolio Website:

    • I know this sounds hard, but there are available templates out there
      • This is what I used I clicked “Create Repl” searched “Portfolio Website” and then made a portfolio website.
      • After joining the CougarCS WebDev Committee (I talk about this better later in this document), I was able to grow some experience and made a new portfolio website.

  • Attend Events:

    • There will be club events and sometimes it might be closed unless you’re a member, but sometimes they aren’t so feel free to go to those.
    • Last year, Google came and gave very strong advice about resumes and how to define your path to your goals.
    • Attend competitions like CodeRED [last year’s website], Cloudathon [last year’s website], Chase’s Code for Good [last year’s website], and DataCON [this one’s first time will be in Spring 2024].
    • Attend Workshops for Career Fairs and the Career Fair itself, even if you’re only a first year, they like it when you come out and sometimes they even offer you positions, and you’ll learn the tricks to do that in the workshops.

Education Advice:​

  • Time Management:

    • I would put some focus on Major related courses first but still keep your mind on the other classes too.
    • Use Google Calendar or something else to stay on top of your game and organized, it really helped me manage all the responsibilities I had.

  • Outside Learning:

    • Before my COSC 1336 class, I watched YouTube tutorial videos on Python
    • You’ll eventually get a grasp on avoiding hard coding (coding specifically to get every value that you want instead of through efficient methods), so don't worry if it takes some time, it'll come

  • Find a Mentor:

    • You can always speak to me through any source (email, LinkedIn, in-person), but if you don’t want to talk to me specifically, don't worry I won't be hurt
      • You can connect and talk with your TAs cause that's what I did, and I would say that I’m pretty close with all of my TAs now
      • You can also go to PGH 5th floor to find people to talk to concerning what to learn or better explanations on code, or opportunities (connecting helps a lot in this field)
      • There are plenty of quiet spaces around campus that are good study spots, so eventually, you'll find the spot that suits you best (I personally used the Carrels in the Library like the 6th floor I think)
      • Pull up to your TA's office hours, surprisingly a lot of people don't show up to ask for help, but it's a great time to ask questions and even connect with your TA.
    • Pretty much never feel afraid to ask for help, cause most of the time, unless they’re busy, whoever you asked will be down to help out

  • Do the extra credit or optional exams:

    • Even if they’re extra time, they end up teaching you something new most of the time
    • Also, these help out massively in case of bad scenarios where you might not have done your best on an exam/quiz/assignment

  • Tutoring:

    • TAs, LAUNCH Tutoring, and CougarCS Tutoring are some available sources that I can think of for getting any help on questions you have (I’ll post the CougarCS Tutoring Discord Server Link below) (also sometimes ask the teachers themselves for help)

  • LeetCoding:

    • I know it might be daunting but the better you know this, the better you’re prepared for Data Structures and for technical interviews for internships
    • Also don’t just memorize but understand the fundamentals behind each problem, and remember, if you find it hard there are plenty of sources online and at school to ask for help.

  • HPEDSI's Classes

    • Taking classes as a student here is free, and it teaches you about basic AI/DS prinicples, so an interesting thing to check out and take advantage of as a student.

CS Club Advice​

  • CougarCS:
    • Really good professional development org.
    • $25 per semester and $40 per year I think (but it's free if you are part of the CougarCS Tutoring Team or part of the CougarCS WebDev Committee)
    • A lot of really helpful people in there and you’ll learn a lot too
    • Biggest CS Organization at UH too
    • This is the group behind UH CodeRED btw
    • Their Discord Links:
  • Code[Coogs]:
    • This one is more of a social one, but they have solid events for you to gain experience and opportunities
    • They have teams set in place that work on projects over time, so its some really good stuff for your resume
    • $15 per semester and $25 per year I think
    • They also have competitions that you can go to and earn extra credit (these points only apply to Data Structures, but still pretty cool)
    • You can apply for an “internship” in this club, and pretty much you’ll just be under an officer and help out with certain things, and you’ll be much more likely to get an officer position later
    • Discord Link
  • CSGirls:
    • This is also another social one I think and a bit of a blend of Code[Coogs] and CougarCS overall, but they have a professional development team, kinda similar to the Code[Coogs] internship that you can join (good resume addition)
    • They do have a focus on Women in STEM having a support group, but all are welcome
    • They also have competitions that can apply to Extra Credit (but another Data Structures opportunity)
    • Discord Link
  • CougarAI:
    • This is a club that's growing right now, and looking into getting workshops going about learning how to make AI and use it
    • They also have companies come out and give out information (Mercury Data Science and NVIDIA last year)
    • They might be looking into making professional teams where you work on a project dealing with AI, so that's something interesting
    • This is also the club behind DataCON
    • Discord Link
  • IEEE - NSM:
    • This is a growing club too, and I’m not fully sure what they focus on, but they have cool workshops and events to learn more things
    • Discord Link
  • Cougarettes:
  • FITP (Future Information Technology Professionals):
    • Don’t know much about this club tbh, but they look into concepts such as Cybersecurity and Information Technology overall
    • This is the club behind Cloudathon too btw
    • Their Website
  • SASE (Society of Asian Scientists and Engineers):
  • CODS (Cougars of Data Science):
    • Similar to CougarAI but specific into Data Science
    • Another one I personally don’t know much about
  • Cougar Mathletics:
    • More of a math major club, but it can still get you connections since a lot of CS majors are double majoring or are minoring in math
    • Discord Link

Opportunity Advice:​

  • Awards:
    • DFEA:
      • Since you’re CS you’re in NSM, and there's an NSM Mentor program within the program, you can earn the DFEA (Dean’s Freshman Excellence Award) just from doing simple tasks, so I would recommend this to just beef up the resume further
    • PURS:
      • I don’t think you can do this until sophomore year but you can apply for it in the Spring semester of freshman year and pretty much, you do research in a lab, pretty cool and nice scholarship (1K)
    • SURF:
      • Just like PURS, but in the Summer, and higher scholarship (4K)
    • HERE:
      • 2-week a long program to pretty much teach you about what exactly research is and I really enjoyed it personally and made a lot of good connections, good scholarship here (1K)
    • Pharis:
      • This is the CS-specific version of SURF, and I wish I took part in this program but I didn’t, so I would recommend that you apply to this, and a great scholarship here too (6K)
    • (honestly, keep an eye out for anything, the more you stand out the better)
  • Positions:
    • Code[Coogs] Intern:
      • Like I previously mentioned its good to add to the resume, pretty easy, you get connections with people, and you have a higher chance to become a future officer
    • CS Girls Professional Development Committee:
      • Similar to the Code[Coogs] Internship, and you get to be more involved with the officer team and receive solid professional advice from more experienced members.
    • CougarCS Web Dev Committee:
      • You do have to apply for this position, but even if you don't have the most experience in webdev, if you have the motivation to learn and are able to socially connect with the team, you can probably get in.
    • CougarCS Tutor:
      • They are changing up the format of it this next year, but I did this position cause I feel that teaching is one of the best ways to learn and it helped me learn better by being able to explain the concepts to others.
    • Labs:
      • There are a lot of research labs that use CS, so I would look into labs across UH that might be looking for people in CS
    • Club Positions:
      • Honestly, just by being an active member, you give yourself a higher likelihood to become an officer, also in the smaller clubs, just ask the officers (that's what I did, and it worked)
    • Honors Positions:
      • These are solid too for honor's students if you wanna help out the next incoming class, and add a title to your resume
    • TA
      • You can only do this in your sophomore year, but if you have a good GPA, you can apply to be a TA, and it's very nice for your resume and solid pay too.