Information Technology & Society

I often wonder why people these days underestimate the world of Information Technology, well, my world to be honest. They think that people who are majoring in IT have no choice/interest in other fields. In their head, IT is the easiest major you could find, pretty much “the same as” business. I met this old Indonesian man while having a trip in Sydney last year. I thought he’s a nice man; he approached me and asked where I come from. But by the time I told him I’m an IT student, he said:

Dulu IT masih jarang sekali peminatnya. Tapi sekarang, IT graduate sudah banyak dan berlimpah. Orang-orang yang ambil IT itu kebanyakan karena mereka tidak punya pilihan. Mereka tidak tahu apa yang akan mereka kerjakan di masa depan. Akhirnya mereka mengikuti teman atau orang lain. Mereka cuma mengikuti trend, seperti yang terjadi pada major bisnis dan ekonomi. Mayoritas dari mereka juga orang-orang pemalas. Mereka memilih IT karena IT itu sangat mudah. Tapi kenyataannya tidak sedikit dari mereka yang akhirnya putus dijalan, drop out, atau ganti major lain.

That’s pretty much what he said to me. I actually wanted to scream and angry when he said those words. He’s attacking me! I’m one of those “mereka” who are very lazy and have no future in life. WHAT??? But he’s lucky, I didn’t say anything; I didn’t want to offend him or something – although yes, he’s not only underestimate IT people, but also other issues eg. my religion, Islam. I don’t know, I just think he’s a crazy old man hahahaha. Respect to elder man, ok!

But anyway, he’s not the only person who has this kind of opinion. The reactions from different people that I talked to are varied. Some are positives; others are either negatives or “plain”. Some are very surprised that I have a great interest in this field: a “guy’s field”. Some do not appreciate what I’m doing.

I hate people who like to compare IT major with… let say, science. Of course they’re very different! Science has a very good reputation, mainly because it’s a hard subject to study – I have no doubt about it; it’s very hard. It’s filled with cleaver hardworking people (hey, IT has those people too!!!). I know that IT has less workload compare to science, but why those people bother about this thing??? Can they just appreciate what we’re doing? Their way of thinking is so traditional, that they want all people to be majored in science. What will the world be if ALL humans are scientists??? There will be no computers, no technology, nothing! They should be thankful to IT people, coz without us, other fields will not grow and expand like you see right now. They’re all related and supporting to each other, they cannot stand by themselves.

In my opinion, all disciplines are NOT EASY if you never want to put extra effort in it. I’ve met a lot of people who change their degree because they couldn’t do any better in IT. They chose it because they think it’s easy, but they’re surprised that it’s indeed a very difficult subject. I believe that if you work hard and put efforts on the subject, you will never consider it’s easy, you will never consider it’s hard either, but you will consider that you can handle it; you are confident that you’ll succeed and be better in that subject. No matter what subject you’re taking, it’s just about how hard you work.

There are some important aspects that I always consider in choosing a degree: Do I like and enjoy doing it? Am I good at it? Do I want to learn more about it? I never want to choose something that I don’t like. I want to be able to do something that I personally enjoy. I consider every small thing because I don’t want to regret one day. I don’t want to waste my time doing something that I’m not interested in. I personally choose IT as my degree mainly because I love it! I’ve been attached to the computer since I was a kid (MS DOS, remember?). I love sitting in front of computer and do anything with it. And I guess that’s the most important thing! If you don’t like computer, then don’t do IT!!!

I guess, IT is related with other fields that I’m interested in. I love maths, especially calculus and algebra. I prefer doing maths questions rather than writing a formal 500 words essay. I hate writing essays!! Doing IT has given me a chance to avoid essay or report writing. Wohooo! I also prefer definite and straightforward rather than opinion-based answers. That’s why I never like politics.

Ok, people. Don’t ever get the wrong idea about something you’ve never known!!! Think before you talk. NOT hear before you talk. It’s time for us to appreciate what other people are doing. It’s not about WHAT they’re doing. It’s about HOW they are doing it.