So next year will be my first year at waterloo for CS

[Reality Check]

and I wanted to ask you guys how you suggest I spend my summer. I definitely plan on trying to get ahead but I'm not sure where to start. I understand I'm going from top in the school at my HS to just average at waterloo. I'm not really sure which I should give priority in the summer, math or programming? But yea any suggested concepts I should teach myself or any preparation suggestion at all?

[nike52]

If you're taking coop, I think having greater programming skill will increase your chances of job placement, and also help you in uni courses, but less than if you did math by itself. While working on math would help you fare better in the uni courses, and also improve your programming skill, but improving it less than if you did programming . The way I see it then is that you can maximize your chances of job placement, maximize making uni courses easier for you by concentrating on math, or both. I'd probably work on programming, which would maximize my chances of job placement, because I want to be a programmer. It's like they say when companies are looking for employees, experience trumps marks . Take my advice with a grain of salt though, I'm not in university, and I'm giving advice with my limited knowledge and experience.

[Tony]

I'd contribute to an open source project of choice.

[Reality Check]

Wow excellent idea Tony! Thanks man I think that's the answer.

[wtd]

Download DrScheme and play around?

[Reality Check]

Oh yeah I definitely wanted to get acquainted with scheme as well.