Hiring in Information Technology (IT) ~ To look for a degree, or not a degree, that is the question.

A lot of people have different views and opinions on this. I’m hoping reading this article and my thoughts on this will broaden your perspective on this topic.

In this day and age there are so many skills you can learn online. If you take the past year into consideration with the pandemic and lockdowns happening all over the world, colleges and university campuses closing for extended periods of time, etc. There is no doubt that online learning is becoming more and more the future of education. All the more reason why I believe that when it gets to hiring people these days it’s important to keep an open-mind and not be so quick to throw out a CV just because you don’t see a prestigious school or a fancy education title on there.

That said, don’t get me wrong I am not saying a higher education does not matter. I understand it takes long hours of study and hard work to obtain this qualification and I respect that. However in light of this article this is not the focus here, it’s to highlight how to respond to the opposite. How to look at an applicant’s CV that does not have higher education or a specific degree listed on there.

Allow me to elaborate.
Let’s say, hypothetically, there is a job being advertised for a Software developer position.

I receive 2 CV’s.
Applicant #1 has a degree in Software engineering with a good university. References to some projects worked on (experience) and what technology he/she is familiar with.

Applicant #2 has no higher education, but does have online courses and certifications listed, a link to some freelance work or self hosted projects (experience) and a skills matrix of what technologies he/she is familiar with.

Who would I invite to attend the interview? …My honest answer, both of them.

We all know the obvious answer why Applicant #1 will be invited.
But why Applicant #2, you may ask?

Applicant #2 indicates to me that regardless the reason why he/she couldn’t obtain a higher education (whether it’s due to not being able to afford it or other reasons) that he/she didn’t let that stop them.
It shows me this individual took initiative, has drive and taught themselves a skill which in return created a window of opportunity. This individual is a problem solver, wants to succeed and applied in all likelihood being well aware of the competition, but still did it anyway.

By giving a applicant like this a chance to attend a interview and allow them to talk further about their skills, experiences and personal qualities in person might just turn out to surprise you and ultimately help the company. The point is Applicant #2 also shows potential and might be capable of great things one day because you were the one that didn’t focus so much on what lacked on the individuals CV but rather what stood out.

Elon Musk said in a 2014 interview that when he does interview a potential employee he looks for “evidence of exceptional ability” rather than a degree from a prestigious university.
When Elon Musk was further asked whether he considered which college the job applicant attended when evaluating a potential employee, he responded:

“There’s no need even to have a college degree at all, or even high school. If somebody graduated from a great university, that may be an indication that they will be capable of great things, but it’s not necessarily the case. If you look at, say, people like Bill Gates or Larry Ellison, Steve Jobs, these guys didn’t graduate from college, but if you had a chance to hire them, of course that would be a good idea.”

Elon Musk is incredibly intelligent and successful, but what I admire the most is his eccentric way of thinking. He does not limit himself nor does he limit potential candidates. If someone like him can be open-minded and flexible about something like this, surely the rest of us can too?

These days you can find so much information online and learn from it. YouTube videos, online courses, articles, podcasts and directly from the experts themselves.

Take Lex Fridman for example, he is a research scientist working on human-centered artificial intelligence. He taught Deep Learning and Artificial Intelligence Lectures at MIT and recorded the sessions to share with the public. He even tweeted about this at end of 2018.
I mean how insanely cool is this — You could actually study his lessons without even attending MIT.
He also hosts his own podcasts where he has conversations with highly intelligent and remarkable people (including Elon Musk) on diverse and interesting topics.

To my way of thinking, I’d like to leave you with one last thought: Be the person that keeps an open-mind and looks beyond the obvious when hiring. It’s not about how the knowledge got obtained but more about what they have learned, the knowledge they hold and the experience they have gained. This should be the focus. The same knowledge can be obtained in non-conventional ways.

And… if by chance you are a future applicant reading this article out of interest and you are that person that can’t or couldn’t afford to go to a college/university, but you have a dream. I would say hold tight onto that dream and don’t stand in your own way. Get out of your head and instead focus that energy on being proactive by creating possibilities for yourself. Yes, it will take hard work, dedication and some sacrifice but if you stay persistent and don’t give up on your goals and that dream, then one day you can be the person to write an article about YOUR success story and inspire others to do the same.

Remember, “It’s supposed to be hard. If it were easy, everyone would do it.” ~ Tom Hanks in A League of Their Own