How important is a degree to work in I.T.?

drbx19 said:
Plus the module options are not all that great for someone with my interests (networking - not programming).
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Have you checked whats actually involved in each module?
I wanted to be a programmer, so i chose the "Software Engineering" module in my final year. it turned out to be more like project management of software projects and didnt involve any programming at all.
You might not be able to do a networking module, but you might be able to find one that doesnt involve any coding.


On another note: i am now a programmer and i would never have got this job if i didnt have a degree.
 
Personally, i have no qualifications i'd brag about, but have been an I.T. Manager for 6 years now. Experience certainly counts for a lot.
Just look at some of the press/website ads asking for I.T/Systems Managers with 'degree' level education, then offering a pittance in wage.
There was a thread a short while back on here about one such ad. It wasn't isolated though i found quite a lot.
I agree degree+experience > everything else, but if the OP really doesn't want to do the final year and wants to get into the industry, i'd say do it, go look for a job.
Degree holders can quote all sorts of technical blurb about I.T. that i'd never know, but put them in my shoes for a day, they'd be pretty much clueless, experience is key imho.
 
Banzai_Joe said:
Personally, i have no qualifications i'd brag about, but have been an I.T. Manager for 6 years now. Experience certainly counts for a lot.
Just look at some of the press/website ads asking for I.T/Systems Managers with 'degree' level education, then offering a pittance in wage.
There was a thread a short while back on here about one such ad. It wasn't isolated though i found quite a lot.
I agree degree+experience > everything else, but if the OP really doesn't want to do the final year and wants to get into the industry, i'd say do it, go look for a job.
Degree holders can quote all sorts of technical blurb about I.T. that i'd never know, but put them in my shoes for a day, they'd be pretty much clueless, experience is key imho.
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I could say the same back to you, try doing my assignments for a day ;D
 
Some really conflicting opinions in the thread feel sorry for the OP if he was unsure before then its gonna be worse now.

I did a foundation degree then topped it up to an honours degree. so can speak from experience but i did 2 years on top of my foundation rather than 1.

You have an opportunity here and one you should grab with both hands although people say "a degree isnt important its just a bit of paper etc" so is your CV and unless you are looking at low level IT jobs then a degree is pretty much expected.

I went back to uni as a mature student as I had the experience but not the degree and was finding it increasingly difficult to get the jobs i wanted. A lot of companies want some type of formal proof that you do know something on your subject (in some cases for insurance reasons) before they will let you loose on their IT.

I graduated last year went and refreshed my RHCE and walked into a job with a large semi-conductor company so what I hoped to achieve has happened.

Look at it this way if you do it you have lost nothing but if you dont you have lost the opportunity which may not present itself again. :)
 
I kind of agree with Djwayne, but i do think it really is horses for courses, and even geography plays a part.
Higher paying, higher profile companies in the London area may well value the quals over the experience first off, obviously other companies think vice versa, otherwise i wouldn't be doing what i'm doing now.
A lot of companies like semi-trained (foundation degree) workers who they can then train (or put onto training courses) themselves to give them bespoke skills for their particular company.
I've been in my job for 6 years now and my salary has gone up by £9.5k from starting salary, and the starting wage was a lot more than my previous job, so i've done ok.
 
Djwayne said:
You have an opportunity here and one you should grab with both hands although people say "a degree isnt important its just a bit of paper etc" so is your CV and unless you are looking at low level IT jobs then a degree is pretty much expected.
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you are lumping all IT jobs into one bucket...

application development = degree is useful (but you still dont stand a chance against an experienced developer with no degree)

networking / system support = degree is almost worthless industry qualifications rule (experience is even better)...

(there are other specilised areas I know)
 
edscdk said:
you are lumping all IT jobs into one bucket...

application development = degree is useful (but you still dont stand a chance against an experienced developer with no degree)

networking / system support = degree is almost worthless industry qualifications rule (experience is even better)...

(there are other specilised areas I know)
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My reply was based on the OP not IT in general I am fully aware there are some very experienced guys in senior positions without the benefit of a degree but even in networking / system support the degree is beneficial a simple case of better to have it than not :)
 
When I started in IT 14 years ago not having a degree didn't stop me and I've progressed well since.

Now though, I hardly see anyone entering the company (Hewlett Packard) without some form of degree.

Times have changed and the job market is tougher - I'd do everything to make sure I had the edge over other candiates, of which a good degree would be a major component.

You could go in on something like a help desk and try to progress from there - but it's tough and slower and you'll have to put up with no end of **** whilst you're there (you know what they say, **** rolls downhill).
 
I have a mathematics degree and blindly stumbled into the IT stuff. Work realised I was good with computers and gave me responsibilities to do with IT. It led on from there.
 
The way i look at it is:
If OP and his uni riend are looking to get jobs in the same sector of I.T. OP decides to spend another year studying to get his full degree, but his mate leaves and finds a job in I.T.
Then a year later they both go for the same interview for the same job. Who do you think is more likely to get the job if its between the two? The more educated or the more experienced?
For me it would be the experienced guy i think, as often they are expected to hit the ground running and someone with experience will win hands down in that race.
But that's the burning question i guess.
 
Banzai_Joe said:
The way i look at it is:
If OP and his uni riend are looking to get jobs in the same sector of I.T. OP decides to spend another year studying to get his full degree, but his mate leaves and finds a job in I.T.
Then a year later they both go for the same interview for the same job. Who do you think is more likely to get the job if its between the two? The more educated or the more experienced?
For me it would be the experienced guy i think, as often they are expected to hit the ground running and someone with experience will win hands down in that race.
But that's the burning question i guess.
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1 year is no experience, if they were the only two candidates I would take the one with the degree (as long as it was a good grade and a sensible subject and all other things being equal) however in reality both of them would be up against peope with 5 / 10 / 20 years experience...

again IT is not one area, in some areas a degree will be very useful.
 
edscdk said:
you are lumping all IT jobs into one bucket...

application development = degree is useful (but you still dont stand a chance against an experienced developer with no degree)

networking / system support = degree is almost worthless industry qualifications rule (experience is even better)...

(there are other specilised areas I know)
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Agreed

Whether you need a degree depends entirely on what area of IT you want to go into.

If you want to go into development then a degree to get your first job seems pretty much essential.

If you want to do support, networking support etc.. Then there's no point
 
As an employer... (dev company)

* undergrad roles in dev require pertinent coding experience i.e. coding as a hobby, coding apps at home, coding for fun ultimately. we combine this with work ethic and evidence of having an ordered mind to select. We have tens of people applying for the jobs available.

* Our entry roles in dev require a degree in software engineering or something close; mathmatics is good too. also require ability to code in our choice of language; unless they have other skills i.e. degree math and we will cross train. A couple of years in commercial dev also goes a long way. We have <10 people applying for these jobs, its harder to recruit but not impossible.

* our senior roles are all about experience and a degree doesnt figure. these people are really hard to find.

* our support/IT roles are based on industry qualifications. these people are easy to find (remember we are dev comp, so we dont need industry best)
 
I don't have a degree and never intended to get one despite my parents' best efforts. Failed my GCSEs first time round. Retook them twice. Did a Nat Diploma and Nat Cert in Engineering sometime after that.

But during my two GCSE retakes, I got hooked into IT (never even heard of this before). Found that I was quite good with computers and wanted to learn more about them.

While I was doing my Diploma, a lecturer noticed my "potential" and offered me a place in his evening Networking course he was doing at another college. I approached my parents about this and they were not happy. You would think they would want to support their child who had been "noticed" by someone about this talents. But no. Anyway, I paid for the course myself (£250 for 12 week course, not easy for a 19yr old working in retail at the time). But in order for me to be "qualified for networking", I needed to take another course which was 6mths longer and cost £600. Again, parents were not willing to help with the money, so I had to bail on it. Which sucked, cos I was onto something.

Anyway, fast forward to now and all I have is an A+ cert which I did back in 2007 which was paid for by my employer at the time. I still want and need to get my Network+ and then move onto MCSE/MCSA at some point. But right now, I am happy in what I am doing and like some have mentioned on here, experience > degree. Until the job requires certain skills, I am in no hurry.
 
Weazle said:
Wow .... so much bad advice on this thread.

You've got a year left, you should finish it off. It is better to have that "piece of paper" and not need it instead of needing that "piece of paper" and to not have it.
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This, 1 year is nothing, just finish it off. :)
 
Can make a large difference in salary as well.

Applied for a job in 2001 , a mate applied for the same job as me as there were multiple positions available. We were both offered the jobs but as my mate had a degree he was offered 5k more salary than me even though his degree was in history and not IT.

Think a lot will depend on what level and area of IT the OP aspires to.
 
Banzai_Joe said:
The way i look at it is:
If OP and his uni riend are looking to get jobs in the same sector of I.T. OP decides to spend another year studying to get his full degree, but his mate leaves and finds a job in I.T.
Then a year later they both go for the same interview for the same job. Who do you think is more likely to get the job if its between the two? The more educated or the more experienced?
For me it would be the experienced guy i think, as often they are expected to hit the ground running and someone with experience will win hands down in that race.
But that's the burning question i guess.
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But when his friend leaves and tries to find a job, he might come up against one of last years graduates.
Neither have any experience, one of them has a degree. Who gets the job?
A year later, his friend still has no experience but no degree either.

If you cant get a job because you dont have the right qualifications, you'll never have any experience.
 
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