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The "univers" in university means something. A university degree is about more than just the knowledge gained in one's major. It's a signal that the person has

The "univers" in university means something. A university degree is about more than just the knowledge gained in one's major. It's a signal that the person has had exposure to the breadth of human knowledge. It might be a millimeter deep but the breadth gives them context in which to operate in society. None of that means this knowledge can't be acquired individually, just like having a particular major doesn't preclude someone who didn't attend university from gaining that knowledge on their own. It's simply a signal that this particular bundle of knowledge has been seen and at least understood at a surface level. In theory that should allow those evaluating the candidate to skip over testing competency and knowledge in these areas outside of the job's focus but still relevant to functioning in society. Many schools will give credit for life experience, some through testing, some through interviews and reviews of one's professional work. IIRC, Western Governors University is one of the leaders in this practice.

MaxBarraclough 4y ago
> A university degree is about more than just the knowledge gained in one's major. It's a signal that the person has had exposure to the breadth of human knowledge. It might be a millimeter deep but the breadth gives them context in which to operate in society. This may be true of the USA, but not universally. Here in the UK we don't have the concept of a major at all. An undergraduate student typically only takes modules pertaining to their chosen field, and perhaps a small number of more general modules on, say, study skills and writing.