Not necessarily. Sometimes you've just got too many CVs to go through. Yes there will be decent people without degrees, but there are decent people with degrees too and you don't always have the time to go through hundreds of applicants.
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OT - Degree required when hiring
- Thread starter Chinman3000
- Start date
thedonkeycentrehalf
Moved back to wear the gloves (again)
- Jul 7, 2003
- 9,345
I left school and went straight into full time employment. A few years ago I became the subject of a big discussion about people specs.
I was working for a major employer in the Sussex and they were pulling together new Senior Management roles. When the HR people created the people description, my Director called in the HR Director as the person spec stated that it was essential that the person had a degree. The HR Director said that he always liked to have educated people in senior roles.
My Director then asked the HR Director if they thought I was suitable for one of the new roles. The response was that given the quality of my work, my reputation and wide range of experience that my Director would be foolish not to consider me. At this point my Director said that it was a shame I would have to be excluded from the process as I did not have a degree (although I have had various technical qualifications over the years).
The HR Director was advised to reconsidered his stance and the person specs now state "Degree or equivalent experience". I should also say that I then went into the competitive process and got the job beating several degree laden people!
I have always ignored the education part of any person spec and back myself to prove my worth for a job.
Many of us have worked with people who have degrees but no common sense as they have never had so much as paper round before but get parachuted into jobs because they have a degree. As my first ever manager once said, "you can have qualifications the length of your arm but if you can't do the job, you're no good to me." Thirty plus years on, it is still very sound advice.
I was working for a major employer in the Sussex and they were pulling together new Senior Management roles. When the HR people created the people description, my Director called in the HR Director as the person spec stated that it was essential that the person had a degree. The HR Director said that he always liked to have educated people in senior roles.
My Director then asked the HR Director if they thought I was suitable for one of the new roles. The response was that given the quality of my work, my reputation and wide range of experience that my Director would be foolish not to consider me. At this point my Director said that it was a shame I would have to be excluded from the process as I did not have a degree (although I have had various technical qualifications over the years).
The HR Director was advised to reconsidered his stance and the person specs now state "Degree or equivalent experience". I should also say that I then went into the competitive process and got the job beating several degree laden people!
I have always ignored the education part of any person spec and back myself to prove my worth for a job.
Many of us have worked with people who have degrees but no common sense as they have never had so much as paper round before but get parachuted into jobs because they have a degree. As my first ever manager once said, "you can have qualifications the length of your arm but if you can't do the job, you're no good to me." Thirty plus years on, it is still very sound advice.
LamieRobertson
Not awoke
I used to quite like the Three Degrees
Shropshire Seagull
Well-known member
Well I got a degree - but I did it the hard way.
I left Longhill with 3 O-levels and 6 CSE and started on an electronics technician apprenticeship with Thorn EMI in Newhaven
Just 9 months and I was into motorbikes - worked at Redhill Motors / Franklynns in H/H and raced them for nearly 10 years.
At 26 I realised [after a 2nd redundancy] that I could do better for myself but need some qualifications to open doors.
I did an A level in Accountancy and an A level in Economics at night school - H/H 6th form
THEN I DID MY DEGREE AS A MATURE STUDENT
5 years [hard slog - no partying Trigg] 2 nights per week at Mithras - whilst still holding down a full time job and starting a family.
In 1994 I graduated with a 2:1 in Business Studies.
I have no doubt that this opened up career doors for me and boosted my career - I would thoroughly recommend it to anyone, but a word of warning - you will have to make some serious compromises to your life-style and time management.
So when I see "degree" on a job app - I think, I'm in the right pile for starters ... it was all worthwhile ...
Don't knock degrees just because you've not got one!
I left Longhill with 3 O-levels and 6 CSE and started on an electronics technician apprenticeship with Thorn EMI in Newhaven
Just 9 months and I was into motorbikes - worked at Redhill Motors / Franklynns in H/H and raced them for nearly 10 years.
At 26 I realised [after a 2nd redundancy] that I could do better for myself but need some qualifications to open doors.
I did an A level in Accountancy and an A level in Economics at night school - H/H 6th form
THEN I DID MY DEGREE AS A MATURE STUDENT
5 years [hard slog - no partying Trigg] 2 nights per week at Mithras - whilst still holding down a full time job and starting a family.
In 1994 I graduated with a 2:1 in Business Studies.
I have no doubt that this opened up career doors for me and boosted my career - I would thoroughly recommend it to anyone, but a word of warning - you will have to make some serious compromises to your life-style and time management.
So when I see "degree" on a job app - I think, I'm in the right pile for starters ... it was all worthwhile ...
Don't knock degrees just because you've not got one!