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I skipped college and went straight for the job. Learned more in one year at a software job than most people get in four years at a college. But that is a gre

by bkovitz 17y ago

I skipped college and went straight for the job. Learned more in one year at a software job than most people get in four years at a college. But that is a great point: a lot of organizations, particularly big organizations, use a college degree as a "credential" for their first level of sorting through job applicants. Yes indeed, college has become a clumsy sort of job training. That's how it is, and we have to deal with that. However, colleges are not all the same. Small liberal-arts colleges are keeping the "community of scholars and teachers" tradition alive. Community colleges have a peculiar split in focus: between vocational training and college prep. Big state colleges offer undergrads training mostly in bureaucratic hoop-jumping, in order to fund real research.

abalashov 17y ago
That's the thing, though; it's only a differentiator for the first level, the entry level, in the absence of any other significant information. If you have anything of substance in your resume to get past it, most likely that will be considered far more important than your formal educational background by a factor of 10. I worked nearly full-time while in college (also full-time) for 2.5 years before dropping out, much of that time spent at a small local ISP in Georgia. I came in as tech support out of high school, and a year and a half later ended up its chief system administrator and basically operating the facilities side of the place. After that ended, I dropped out. Noone at any job I have held since or in between (and I've held quite a few) has - after a look at my resume - thought to inquire about my degree, whether I had gone to college, whether I had graduated, or anything like that. The focus was all on the experience. And since that point I have not been considered an "entry-level" applicant at any subsequent job, so there's no interest whatsoever in using entry-level criteria to differentiate me. The only problem is that first hurdle, and it's not impossible to overcome. It may be challenging, but it sure as hell is cheaper and easier to overcome that challenge than to go to college to achieve the same end -- assuming, of course, that that's your only purpose in going to college.
- bkovitz 17y ago
  And let's not forget the most effective way to get a job: contacts. Sending out résumés is pretty weak, even if you have a degree or two.
  - abalashov 17y ago
    Of course. Out of my 6 or so jobs in 3 1/2 years I think the first one was the only one gotten that way. I think there was another one where the hiring manager found me on a job board, if that counts. The others - and everything that's happened since in the consulting world for me - are all predicated on relationships build in the course of working, as well as being socially involved in the discursive space of my profession.

by bkovitz 17y ago

abalashov 17y ago

That's the thing, though; it's only a differentiator for the first level, the entry level, in the absence of any other significant information. If you have anything of substance in your resume to get past it, most likely that will be considered far more important than your formal educational background by a factor of 10. I worked nearly full-time while in college (also full-time) for 2.5 years before dropping out, much of that time spent at a small local ISP in Georgia. I came in as tech support out of high school, and a year and a half later ended up its chief system administrator and basically operating the facilities side of the place. After that ended, I dropped out. Noone at any job I have held since or in between (and I've held quite a few) has - after a look at my resume - thought to inquire about my degree, whether I had gone to college, whether I had graduated, or anything like that. The focus was all on the experience. And since that point I have not been considered an "entry-level" applicant at any subsequent job, so there's no interest whatsoever in using entry-level criteria to differentiate me. The only problem is that first hurdle, and it's not impossible to overcome. It may be challenging, but it sure as hell is cheaper and easier to overcome that challenge than to go to college to achieve the same end -- assuming, of course, that that's your only purpose in going to college.

bkovitz 17y ago
And let's not forget the most effective way to get a job: contacts. Sending out résumés is pretty weak, even if you have a degree or two.
- abalashov 17y ago
  Of course. Out of my 6 or so jobs in 3 1/2 years I think the first one was the only one gotten that way. I think there was another one where the hiring manager found me on a job board, if that counts. The others - and everything that's happened since in the consulting world for me - are all predicated on relationships build in the course of working, as well as being socially involved in the discursive space of my profession.