Good points. Recommendations from others can help build a job seeker’s credibility and help them overcome any potential bias from hiring managers about their ability to do the job.

I love this post, because there are so many who fall into the category of “non college degree,” who are quite intelligent and successful. It reminds me of the book,
7 (Seven) Kinds of Smart: Identifying and Developing Your Multiple Intelligences,” by Thomas Armstrong. My daughter is not college smart, but is a crackerjack restaurant cook who is highly creative and intuitive. But she has suffered feelings of inadequacy because she doesn’t have a college degree in culinary arts.

Your tip about showcasing stories that reveal how someone has been successful in their career hits home with me. Alongside that concept, I ask clients to share any endorsements, testimonials, quotes about their work in publications they’ve received from their boss, vendors, clients, or other business contacts. Even community service awards and endorsements can be valuable to showcase success.

Best,
~Kathy

These are excellent points and recommendations. I should clarify that my post is generally addressing the correlation between education and job success for a candidate who has been working for several years. A college education and a great internship can certainly differentiate an entry-level candidate, but as people move through their careers, I believe success in previous positions, rather than education should be the deciding factor. Thanks so much for commenting!

Thanks for sharing your story. I love your quote about opening doors…are you on Twitter? Sounds like a great tweet to me!

Regarding my particular company which is a full service advertising/marketing/public relations agency; our Hiring Managers most often require at least Bachelor degrees in Communications and Marketing due to the nature of the positions. They also want to ensure that candidates have exposure to what the college experience offers, group organization involvements, and specifically, the coursework background to specialize in those areas. It’s not JUST to screen applicants. In addition, internship experience is required to gain entry level Account Service and other positions as “ramping” up/training new employees is always a consideration. The ad agency is a bit of a different animal than a corporation.

Job Seekers often mistake that if they have a sales background that it translates directly into Account Service for advertising and marketing, but actually, it doesn’t. Selling products and services is only one component of the skills, knowledge, roles and responsibilities of advertising account service personnel and communications practioners such as research, public relations, sales data analysis, creatives, brand planning and management, to name several.

We do have accounting and other positions where college degrees are not mandatory, but those are the minority cases.

I support the points of this article, and would add:

I think it’s more important to be RELEVANT and appear innovative to the industry you want a job in. For example, if you didn’t get your bachelor’s in advertising/marketing/communications, public relations, etc., but want to be in advertising, then become a social media networking guru and get knowledgeable about the digital realm.

Join organizations in the field you are pursuing, market yourself on your resume including the software proficiency in applications that you have, and network and do your research on accounts (clients) because many are different and require different skills and proficiencies.

Think about your own personal brand: Find the inherent truth about yourself/experience/skills/talents/etc. and how you can make a statement and/or show on your resume or custom cover letter that will connect with that industry’s hiring manager on an emotional level and invite them to act on finding out if you’re a good fit.

Get creative, problem solve how to analyze barriers, generate ideas to solve them, do your research, and support them with results and then you’re on your way to overcoming the obstacle of not having a college degree in areas where you want to work.