Do you really need a degree to work as a Designer?
This is something I have been thinking about a lot lately. This article is not just specific to Designers – it also applies to Developers (I just shortened the title for the sake of the article promotion). If you asked me this same question a few years ago, my answer may have been very different to now.
Back when I was studying my degree I was operating in the frame of mind that the degree was everything. How else could a student get motivated to spend hundreds of hours doing all that work? If you are studying a degree, and you see the degree as trivial, then chances are you won’t be too worried about passing it.
I was a self-taught Designer before I started my degree. But, I am always uneasy about stating I have X numbers of years experience because some people don’t consider undergraduate years as valid experience. For instance, some jobs ask for a minimum of “2+ years post-graduate experience”, which makes you feel anything you done before that degree is worthless.
I worked quite a few places as a Designer before I graduated – I was never a lazy student. My degree was 4 years long, and for my 3rd year I worked for Intel in Dublin as an Intern. Outside of the US, the Dublin site is the 4th largest in the world, with 5,000 employees. During my time there I worked on everything from Web Development, to Logo identities and Branding initiatives internally. It was an invaluable experience seeing how the corporate world works. I wouldn’t necessarily want to experience it again any time soon though. But… if we were to go by some agencies requirements, that whole experience I had there doesn’t count? Huh?
Over the years I have encountered a lot of really talented Designers and Developers. And guess what? They didn’t all have degrees. Pardon?
Yes, that’s right… a lot of them were self-taught. Personally, I think someone who is a self-taught Designer/Developer should be more appealing employment wise because it shows that they have had the tenacity to learn a profession without being spoon fed information in a classroom.
When you go to a job interview the reality is you will be grilled about what you have done, and what you can do for the company. That is really what it comes down to.
Most Universities don’t teach Web Design too well. Often because a lot of the academics teaching the subject have been in the academic bubble for quite some time, and aren’t in tune with what’s going on out there. There are exceptions, of course. I found the Graphic Design part of my degree to be taught really well. I learned loads from my tutors, who were all successful Designers turned Lecturers.
I think it is great to have a degree, but looking back at my own experiences, and people I have connected with over the past few years, I view things a little differently now.
Talent should be recognised regardless of any barriers to entry. If you’ve got the skills, you’ve got the job. That’s the way it should be.
What do you think?
Do you agree with me?
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This is a subject close to my heart and one that I’ve often thought about writing.
I think that a degree becomes useful when you are working within a large multinational company but compare that to smaller companies, agencies etc. then I do not believe that degrees are viewed as that important.
It’s a tough question to answer and to be honest I don’t think there is a right or wrong answer.
Yeah it is a tough one, and like yourself, one I’ve thought about a lot. My experiences have been quite mixed. It used to really frustrate me when I first graduated that some companies were asking for experience that was impossible to have going by their rigid requirements.
In the corporate world the degree will make a difference to your pay grade too. At Intel for example… you can climb in pay for each qualification you get, which is reviewed every quarter and then again at the end of the year. They have a pay grade system, probably a lot like Microsoft and other corporate giants.
In the smaller agencies the degree doesn’t really have much of an impact to your pay… it’s all about what you can do, and the results you deliver.
Hi Mark
Great post – just wanted to throw in my twopence worth from the agency side of the coin.
I work in a recruitment agency, and I agree with you – I don’t think a degree should be a pre-requisite of being considered for a job (in most cases)
I have a degree in Business / Marketing / IT, and I’m very glad of it. But after I got it I then came out into the big bad world and started really learning about Business / Marketing and IT.
We do have clients who have it as part of the criteria, and again depending on the position, I would advise them to move it to the “Desirable but not essential” category in their criteria, so that candidates who don’t have a degree can be considered based on their experience.
From my point of view, if I had a job advertised for a web designer, and someone applied who didn’t have a degree but good experience, if they were otherwise suitable for the job I would be talking to the client on their behalf to have them considered for the position.
Sometimes it works, sometime not, but if you’re having difficulty, find an agency with good contacts in the field you’re interested in and develop a relationship with them.
You should have much more success if they go along and say “I know Mark doesn’t have a degree, but I’ve met him and I think he’s a good match for ….” than just sending in your CV.
Again from my point of view if I looked over your CV for a designer position, I think it looks good that you have the experience, without labelling it as pre or post grad.
Of course all of that’s just my humble opinion!
Aidan
Thanks for the comment, Aidan. It’s interesting to have input from an agency’s perspective.
It’s a tough one to have a definitive answer for because I can understand why some company’s see having a degree as essential. For them it’s a means to validate that the candidate is trained properly, and has the skills to do the job effectively. But that isn’t always the case!
I have about 6/7 years experience designing… but only 2 of those are post-grad. I was working as a Designer long before I graduated though (real jobs), so I don’t think stating I have 2 years experience would be accurate, yet some agencies simply wouldn’t recognise those other years I have as being valid. So you see where my frustration stems from, hence the motivation to churn out this article to see what others thought.
Hi Mark – I do understand your frustration – in my book you would have 6-7 years experience & I would be trying to market you as a candidate based on that. When you got your degree I would consider irrelevant.
Not sure what your current situation is, but if you were on the look out, agency may be a good way to go (find one who has good relationships with design companies who you’re looking to target and get to know them / let them get to know you)
Hope that helps
Aidan
Cheers Aidan! I’m working at the minute, and pretty much sorted that way. But thanks for the advice though. A lot of candidates forget that it is a two-way process, and it’s up to them to find an agency that suits their needs.
I get often emails from local graduates asking if I have any contacts to help them get in touch with employers. I’ll be sure to send them your way in future!
Hi Mark,
Good well written post, I would like to share the opinion of an undergraduate from the Netherlands.
I totally agree with you. For me experience is much more valid then a degree. On the other hand I do understand why large corporate companies want say it’s essential you have a degree. A degree has a certain value, they are sure about the level of education (and therefore you need a certain experience?) Sure there are designers or developers without a degree who have a lot more experience, don’t get me wrong. But I do think it’s a big time saver for the larger companies not having to interview every single person who claims he has experience. In my opinion they should but they won’t because time is money. Smaller companies are usually less corporate and I think they have less room for error therefor they are willing to invest more time when they’re going to hire a new designer.
Thanks Guido! Yes, it does seem that most are in agreement that a degree doesn’t quite have the “value” that some may think it has. But there are others that disagree though – I just haven’t got many of their comments yet!
Hi Mark,
In my personal opinion if I had my time again I would not have done a degree. When I look back most of what I learned was self taught and learned most of my skills at a 1 year foundation course at the Tech. So on reflection my time at university could have been better spent working and getting stuck into web design when you still make a fortune from it, then I could now be happily retired
Found your site on twitter and have to say I’m well impressed, love the large type dotted through your text. I just started my own blog a couple of months back, even though I’m working for a design agency here in Derry I just thought I’d put something up and see what happens, dip my toes in the freelance pool. My site is by no mean as nice as yours but the spooky thing is I wrote a post almost identical to this a while back!
Having degree is nice to have but at the end of the day talent cannot be taught. You either have an eye for it or you don’t. I’ve been told I’m a talent designer but I dropped out of my degree in the second year. It is something that I really regret from time to time. Even though I have a lot more knowledge and skills that some of the one’s on my course who finished. The fact that I do not have my degree always pushes me that bit further.
A slightly jealous Tommy.
Hi Mark,
I have to say I agree with your post. Being a 2nd year student of web development at MMU I think there are a number of lecturers which are stuck in a bit of a time warp when it comes to web design. (Some not all as we have some excellent lecturers here.)
As a mature student who is relatively new to the world of web/graphic design I thought getting a degree would be the best way of getting a foothold in the industry but the more time I spend at uni the more I realise that on the job experience is a whole lot more beneficial than class based learning as you get to learn a lot of the current trends and workarounds etc.
The more I speak to people in the industry the more I realise that all my degree is gonna get me is a few interviews and it is a strong portfolio which is gonna get me in the door. So what I would say to anybody thinking of going to uni is try and get an on the job placement first as it may save you time and money in the long run and who knows you might not have to go to uni at all.
Keep up the good work,
Richie.
Hey mark, stumbled across this from your facebook page! Not all companies set rigid requirements and usually just have experience/having a degree down just as a guideline. By no means does it mean they won’t accept or look at anyone else and give them a chance if they think they’re good for the job.
The companies I’ve worked for in the software industry had a good few staff with no degrees or completely unrelated ones (e.g. Geography) and employ people based on their skills seen from the interviews. It does make me feel like the degree is useless sometimes.. but it’s always better to have one than not I think. My team leader at doesnt have a degree and even though he knows his stuff he says it comes back to haunt him now and again as some companies won’t even entertain him.
I think the debate between a qualifications and experience is interesting, but for me its a bit of a red herring.
People can develop their knowledge and skills in different ways; having a degree is not in itself enough to know that someone will fit in on your team, and equally experience doesn’t always show the degree of capability someone has.
I’ve been involved in hiring for different roles since the late 90s, and have been responsible for recruitment and selection at Front since we started.
The most useful thing I’ve learned along the way is that you have to be really clear about what you’re looking for in a role (both as an individual and as a company), and focus on building skills over a lifetime.
This really hit home, Mark. I think we’re on the same wave length. Great job and thanks for speaking out loud for those of us who didn’t do the college thing. No sheepskin does not equal inability to do the job. To many employers think otherwise and they are missing out on some good employees by taking that stand.
Hmmm, just a thought off guidoguido ‘s comment. With all the people that graduate college but having been “passed” through it because they are football jocks or something like that and they really didn’t do the work like it should have been done to fairly and properly get their degree … there is no guarantee to the employer that their college grad designer didn’t get through college in the same or similar fashion.
I was very much considering leaving my degree – however it got me a placement year in the industry and I think because it covers a range of topics, from information systems to business it would be good to have a back up. ?