I was recently contacted on LinkedIn by someone looking for advice and they had a very good question.
I was wondering how important is it to have a degree from a distinguished college in the field of IT?
The importance of a degree is somewhat up in the air. I personally don’t have a degree in any software or IT field. However I do have a Masters in Electrical Engineering and a Bachelors in Physics, so there is at least the assumed logic solving abilities in that combination.
There’s really three levels on this, and it all depends on the employer and hiring manager:
- I have found that some places will place emphasis on having a specific degree as they are literally looking to check off as many boxes as they can for a candidate check list and only interview those who fit 90-100% of the criteria.
- Other companies look at if you have a any type of degree coupled with some experience. The thought there is that any 4 year degree gives you some credibility in to completing a long term commitment (and that you’ll be willing to stay with the company for several years as opposed to jumping ship 8 months in to the job).
- Still other places, and more so with start ups, degrees don’t mean much. It’s all about experience coupled with willingness to learn. Many places would be willing to consider a junior level position to someone who has just completed a coding boot camp and has a good recommendation from the instructor. I’ve taught a few boot camps, and have seen some students get placed in entry level roles after they completed the course. Keep in mind though, at least here in Dallas most of them took 3-6 months to find something.
Usually talking with the recruiter or HR at the hiring company you can get an idea as to how critical the degree is for the role and which of the three categories above the employer falls in.
Don’t let the lack of a degree stop you from wanting to enter the IT industry. Start going to meet ups in your area which are over topics that you’re interested it. Learn what you can from them and network with the people there. Odds are you’ll find someone who is willing to help mentor you some and help you learn more about the topics you’re interested in. Apply to entry level roles and highlight your self-study. You never know when or how that initial opportunity will come.