Not necessarily. Most technology companies I have found won't care too much about credentials. It all depends on what you're applying for. For instance a financ

Not necessarily. Most technology companies I have found won't care too much about credentials. It all depends on what you're applying for. For instance a finance or insurance company may still care but the makers of New App 13 probably don't. Now the government still cares. They care a great deal which kills prospects around the MD / DC / VA area. I was a contractor with only a 2 year degree so most companies were legally not allowed to charge more than about a junior level's worth when I first started. That was difficult. It was even more awkward when I was in charge of leading the technical side of a multi million dollar government project and my company couldn't bill for me beyond a Software Developer 2. The Bay area mostly doesn't care BUT (and this is a HUGE BUT) many companies, like Google, make their hiring determinations based on the knowledge of very scholarly topics. So it's kinda indirect.