So, my Degree is currently going down the pan. My university has made numerous changes to my course making it almost impossible to have the original choice of degree I originally wanted.
I will be leaving with some form of degree but it begs the question of if it was even worth it in the first place. What would you choose as an employer, a degree or someone with experience?
I'm lucky in the fact I've got a bit of both by working a lot during my degree to get links into companies that give good references.
Serious question, I'm more looking at the IT/Telecomms industry here
A degree is hugely important.
Unless you get really lucky and even then you will still need to excel, work very hard etc, it is much more difficult to succeed in a professional work environment without a degree. It is also more likely to take longer. It was easy enough (although not at the moment due to the current economy) to get regular job like Tesco, Sainsbury, KFC, Local Authority admin assistants (although even some of these have degrees).
Unless you design something or have epic skills which very few other have, it is hard to establish yourself independently from the competition. And the job / work market place is tough at the moment.
If you want to get to management or earn a decent salary without getting very lucky i.e. business or idea which makes you lots of money (for the few new start up entrepreneurs that succeed lots fail) then you need a degree to get started. Even then you need a degree + experience.
•With or without a degree, it takes the right attitude, self motivation, aptitude and drive to be successful in work. Depends if you want to rise to the top or simply follow instructions and get comfortable in a subordinate technical / operational role, be it making burgers to designing buildings.
•So many have degrees these days you often need one to get a foot in the door / interview including for more basic entry jobs which historically would have been an apprenticeship or some sort of vocational based training.
•So many have worthless degrees, which offer no or very limited direct employment prospects and having done one they still have no life skills, very little ambition or motivation, but they do still have a degree which is more than someone without.
•Some have good degrees in a field that is in demand but still won’t necessarily succeed over their piers although they will earn a reasonable wage and remain employable. Depends on your own career motivation and drive.
•How will it look to an employer if you are trying to go for a job, selling how good you are, hard working etc but you tanked out of a degree, it will not reflect well???? Falling at the hurdle before the first hurdle.
•If you want to go for Chartership to a professional institution, you will need a degree or to have passed their exempting certificates / degree. Without these you may need 10-15 years experience + portfolio + interviews etc. Doesn’t seem like much but in some industries, to be the manager, director, earn decent money you need to be recognised professionally. The professional institutions seek to protect their emembers and the value of what they offer e.g. Chartered Engineers.
•You can work your way up in IT / telecoms but you could be in a basic support role for a long time without a degree and what if you don’t have the right personal skills to rise above this level. Without a degree, you could have limited scope to go further.
The drive to succeed and your personality is ultimately more important than a degree as this will keep you going. You may find taking a break from uni, getting some work experience will bring this out and you will then have an option to go back and do a degree. Just remember as you get older, have a family etc the time available and energy to do this becomes more limited.
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