Recent CS graduate wanting tips on next steps in career

[dpatel304]

A sign of any good programmer is that they program, and not just what they are paid for, but just for fun as well. If you weren't applying what you learned during your studies, then maybe you should ask yourself if you really like programming or if it's just a good way to make a living.

I definitely could have done more outside of my studies, as well as during my first few years of work, but I didn't. I regret it, but I'm trying to change it now, and I'm just looking for some direction from the more experienced people in my field.

Learning something that is totally unrelated to what you want to achieve sounds like a great way to improve your career changes.

It was a simple question. I have been reading forums containing people in the field, and a few of them said that knowing Mandarin could be a great asset to have.

Just, FYI, the job that I landed right now I got because of my exceptional speaking/writing skills. Those skills are not really related to my programming skills, but it set me apart from other candidates, and landed me the job, so, although Mandarin is not directly related to programming, I do realize that for certain jobs you have to be more than just good at one thing.