C++ Beyond the Syllabus #0: Welcome! (a non-technical intro)

Ever wonder what C++ features never made it into your university syllabus, but are keys to success in the real world?

Hi, I’m Jared Miller, and my goal is to help bridge that gap.

Welcome to C++ Beyond the Syllabus, where I’ll be diving into cool dev tools, language features, and libraries that should be in your toolkit, but aren’t always taught in school.

I graduated from the University of Michigan in May 2022 and have been a Software Engineer in the high-frequency trading (HFT) industry since then. HFT is a fast-paced, exciting field within the financial markets, offering unique challenges and learning opportunities.

Back at Michigan, I was a TA for various computer science courses, teaching labs, holding office hours, and writing exam questions for topics ranging from function syntax to distributed systems.

School provided a solid foundation in CS fundamentals and critical thinking. However, continuous learning has been the key to my growth as a software engineer. Whether from Stack Overflow, a peer recommendation, official C++ docs, or other sources, most of us regularly come across new C++ features and libraries. Using these mini (self-)discoveries to our advantage can supercharge our growth and development.

Instead of glossing over these discoveries, I keep a running list and explore each item in depth when I have time. I ask myself:

• What can this be used for?
• How is it used?
• How does it work under the hood?
• When should I (not) use this?

Starting today, I’ll be sharing regular introductions to features and concepts I’ve found useful, but didn’t necessarily learn in school. Some tools I will have used in practice, while others I will explore alongside you. I might make some mistakes, and that’s okay — mistakes are an essential step in mastering any skill (cheesy, but true).

I do not claim to be an expert in these topics, but I have learned from some incredible peers and mentors, experiencing first-hand what best practices can make an engineer stand out.

From the nuances of move semantics to lesser known features of the STL, and powerful third-party libraries like Boost, I’ll cover the tools that can give you an edge in your career. Whether you’re a student looking to stand out in interviews or a full-time engineer aiming to expand your skill set, I hope you find this blog useful and enjoy learning alongside me.

I plan to publish a new blog post once per week, give-or-take. Subscribe to get the latest updates directly in your inbox, and please don’t hesitate to share your thoughts and questions in the comments!

Without further ado, please check out my first technical blog post here: C++ Beyond the Syllabus #1: Peeking under the hood with Compiler Explorer

Collaborators

A special thanks to a few friends who took time to edit and review this post:

• Janay Bengal (LinkedIn)