Whether you are in high school today or are considering transitioning to a career in IT from another industry, you may often look at the long list of required qualifications in job postings and ask yourself, “do I need a college degree to work in the IT field?”

Spend some time on the many subreddits dedicated to the Information Technology industry, and you’ll quickly find that you are not alone. IT is a broad field, and as such, there are multiple paths towards success. Often, no two people will follow exactly the same path while they work throughout their careers.

This is in contrast to more traditional fields, such as Medicine, Law, or Finance, where an established path of education, entry-level, associate, and professional roles is clearly defined. Also in these fields, it is clearly understood that if one wishes to transition to a new field, say Medicine, then they would most certainly need to return to school and complete the required coursework to obtain a degree.

So what makes IT so different?

Anecdotes abound

It won’t take long for you to find conflicting information regarding whether a college degree is required for technical positions, or if it will provide you much value throughout your career. Uncertain newcomers to the job market can quickly find themselves on the receiving end of personal anecdotes from established IT professionals. Brief quips such as:

“You don’t need that degree at all if Sysadmin is the goal.”

“No. You don’t need a degree. There are many, many roles within these fields and a minority would require a degree.”

“While many companies would prefer it, it’s not required most of the time. I’ve worked with plenty of people without degrees.”

None of these statements are necessarily untrue, but they are purely anecdotal. Yes, there are many people working in a professional capacity today who have achieved success without going to or completing college- that, no one can deny. If we take a more macro view, however, we will see that workers with a bachelor’s degree earn nearly twice as much as those who only complete high school. These are just cold hard facts about the society in which we live, and we should caution anyone who is looking to make life-changing decisions to not turn a blind eye to the facts.

It is quite easy to look the other way when all you are thinking about is getting your first job in a new industry. That goal can seem like such a steep mountain to climb on its own, that concerning one’s self with future earning potential is a distant afterthought. This can have serious consequences and create artificial limitations on your growth and earning potential as you work to move up within the industry.

The value of any degree over no degree

If you decide to pursue a degree, must it be in Computer Science or Computer Information Systems? To this, I would say to someone seeking a role working on the infrastructure side of the technology world (ie. not a developer) I say: absolutely not. If you pursue a technology-focused degree, then you will have an even more friction-less time getting past HR personnel and Hiring Managers screening resumes. But having any degree, any degree at all, is a positive differentiator between you and the rest of the people you are competing with for a job.

When I am in recruiting mode, I seek candidates who have a degree- any degree. I may prefer a candidate with a four-year education from a traditional college or university, but candidates who have completed two years of coursework that is more singularly focused on the trade of IT are themselves ahead of the curve and stand out from the masses. Why is this? There is something I am looking for that is hard to find. I’ll call it grit. I want to hire people who finish what they start, who look at someone as big and audacious as moving far away from home for four or more years, living on their own for the first time, making it to class every day, and taking test after test after test, and come out the other side with that little piece of paper that proves they did it. They set for themselves a goal, made a plan, and executed on it successfully. That is a pretty compelling story!

There is a tendency, at least in the United States, for the end-goal of going to a college or university to be getting a job. “I work hard in school so I can get a job.” There is nothing inherently wrong with this mindset, however, it does ignore one big thing: the college experience. Part of going to a university is that you don’t learn only about the work that you will one day perform. You must also become versed in art, language, science, and the humanities. This may all seem like unnecessary information in the moment, I certainly know it felt that way to me all those years ago, but having a well-rounded educational experience has paid dividends ever since. In addition to what is learned in the lecture hall, there is the social aspect of college life. Meeting new people, experiencing different ways of life, and building relationships early on will almost always prove to be a positive thing throughout your personal journey. You may be able to find a cheaper or faster way to get into the workforce, but that won’t necessarily mean it will be better

When does a degree not make sense?

Taking a step down from the soapbox, I must pause to completely contradict myself. While I wholeheartedly believe that getting a formal college education will not only give you an advantage when seeking employment and throughout your career, and while I think the college experience is one most people should seek out, there are cases where it simply does not make sense. For instance, if you have been working as a professional in another industry for many years, and are looking to make a career change into Information Technology, then the notion of dropping everything and heading back to school may not only be unappealing, but unrealistic.

Further, if your financial situation is such that you cannot or should not take loans to fund your education, then the decision might be made for you. In these cases, and those like them, I fall into line with much of the internet talking heads. You do not need a college degree to get a job in IT, and you do not need a college degree to become successful. But make no mistake, you will be at a disadvantage relative to the competition, and you will need to work even harder to set yourself apart from the crowd. Make time to work on personal projects related to IT, build a home-lab, volunteer at a local technology focused non-profit in your area, complete online courses to demonstrate that you can start what you finish.

Whatever you do, whether you obtain formal education or not, don’t expect that anyone will give you a job, raise, or promotion because you are entitled to it. You must seek it out, you must work for it, and you must rise above your peers to beat out the competition. Anything you can do to give yourself an advantage and prove that you are the best investment for an employer’s business will break down the barriers that stand before you. And barriers there will be, while the job market is hot right now, the more experienced workforce knows that opportunities are available at new companies. Competition can still be fierce, so set yourself apart, work hard, and be patient. Keep at it for a while and all of the pieces will begin to fall into place.