Discussion on:

What's better: Four-year degrees or certifications?

Degree vs Cert.: I work in an education-related company where the unwritten requirement to be admitted to senior management is a PhD (in any field). Certifications count for nothing, though I find pursuing them an invaluable way to keep current andexpand skills.

Educators tell me employers in many regions are recruiting kids after the first year of a 2-year tech program at community colleges. It is tough to convince kids they should stay in school when the entry level job they get is identical to the one they get after a certification

Hoefer is right.: Hoefer stated that it is difficult to convince people they need a four-year degree when they can get extremely well paid jobs with little to no college. I am walking proof of that. I went to two (count em' - two) semesters of college where I started to Major in Biology. (Notice this is not even IT related.) I also have no IT certifications. I am, however, a contracted consultant doing database development. I get paid more money than my mother who is a Director of Nursing for anationally recognized chain of retirement homes. I've hit the 6-figure mark. I've been in the IT field for over 8 years. I taught myself everything I know, through books and collaboration with friends. The best thing is that you are continually learning new skills on the job. Maybe I am just a special case, but I think this goes to show that conventional education is not as revered as it once was by the business community. If you 'really' have the capabilities, I believe conventional education can slow your career track. However, one must think about the future. Then again, if I sit around and think about that all day, I would be wasting more time. I'd rather just back to work and pity the 4 or 6 year college graduates getting 20-30k a year jobs.

College Degree VS Certification: I have a degree and feel it gives me a deeper understanding of computer science, mathematics, and electrical engineering. However, the certifications give you a better understanding of software packages. I feel a person going to a university for a technical profession would best serve him/herself if they got a certification at the same time. Or perhaps the university could offer a 5 year program.

However, look at Bill Gates, he doesn't have a degree either.

From a teacher of Web Programming at one of those small tech-quickie-schools, I can attest to some of this. Even though the classes take you from zero-to-100 in 22 weeks, this school I work for has changed its/our tune. We have revamped the class structure to be about a year long - averaging about 4 hours a day for sessions. Of course, it takes a while to put all into effect once you have to pass your materials through the educational monies approval gauntlet when receiving said, and I rather think this may be what someone had mentioned previously when they said that schools are "behind" in one aspect or another. You MUST know your teachers credentials - that they are up to date & such - experience in the field and the like - but even thismay not be enough. I feel that apprenticeships are a must. Also, as I am looked up to (try and read the history of web programming in a middle-school history book - just dosen't exist) because the field is extremely new, for course update ideas, as a programmer and teacher, I can tell you that a formal education has its benefits. The students who are astute enough to shell out their own monies to attend a real college show any employer more chutzpah and fortitude. There is now way on this greenearth I can teach a student all the current trends of a $100k+ job like programming in Tcl/Tk, so I have to dumb it down to, "Let's borrow someone elses Perl script and try to analyze this". Not the way to learn the intracacies of any language. I would venture to say, however, that a person could be retrained in a tech-by-night school would it that they earned an apprenticeship during their schooling, then subsequently, signed up to work with a company who would further their education. Just myopinion.

4 yr degree or Certification: I have both a 4 yr degree and a CNE. I started out in a technical role where my CNE training was a benefit. Now that I have moved in to a management role, the 4 yr degree is much more beneficial. I would hire someonewith a 4 yr degree over someone with just a certification. My CNE certification will lapse later this summer, and I don't plan to upgrade it. I have not received any letters from my college wanting to deactivate my degree for not coming back for more classes.

Degree or Certs: As fast as the technology is changing could a university even keep current? If I had it over to do, I would go for a business or engineering degree and then get my certs on the side.
If you want to go into managment, a degree is going to be almost required. Because of the High Demand for IT people, just having certs and no experience can get you in the door but think how fast up the track you would move with a degree, certs and some experience, maybe at the comp lab on campus... (or better yet, start your own pc repair business out of the dorm room)
Ahh, to be young again...

Degree, Certification or Experience?: I attend a local Job Tech Fair last night and proposed that question to recruiters. Almost every one answered experience. Most said they want someone to be able to "hit the ground running". Many felt that colleges are very slow in keeping up with IT's fast pace and learn to duck collectors once your loan repayment starts. They cited high school kids making 50k who know how to program. Certifications are very expensive "racket" and for me to observe all the centers that have popped up in the last years promising "overnite sensations". Overall, there advice was get your "foot in the door" somehow-no elaboration- and go from there. Hasn't it always been that way?

Certs: I have seen people who come out of university programs that don't know the first thing about troubleshooting a computer. They may be able to write code, but when it comes to the day to day activities of a network administrator, experience and systems certifications pay off. I think people who want to be developers should have the 4 year degree to get the theory behind languages and how operating systems interact. For networking the degree has the benefit of showing someone you have stick-to-it-iveness, but experience and certifications tell the interviewer you will be able to hit the ground running.

I have been working in the Computer Industry for over 12 years. I did go to college for 2 years, but never finished. Not having a college degree has not impeded my career.
I have worked as a support person, repair person, project manager, LAN Admin, and now a Network Admin (routers, switches, network design).
If I decided to pursue a management position, not having a college degree might be a problem, but it depends on the company.
What I have found to be a requirement in my jobs is certification and experience. Those 2 things are the first things they ask you about. If you want to pursue a management career get the degree, if it's a technical track, then a degree is nice, but not necessary. Many of the people I've worked with in this industry have not been to college. Either way, you will need some certification... MCSE, CNE, CISCO certs and so on. I would also suggest attending a Technical School if you don't want to do the college thing.