Proposal
Skills vs. Degrees: What should matter more to a company when hiring a
candidate?
My topic on why college degrees should not be the deciding factor for hiring
decisions is important to me because I’ve seen my mom, who doesn’t have a
college degree, get completely overlooked for a position at a company she already
works for, when she is 10 times more qualified and experienced. The company
instead hired an outsider with no loyalty to the company, but who went to school
and got a degree. This topic interests me, not only because it’s personal but because
in this generation employers often look for college degrees as the main criteria for
hiring a candidate for a job. Understanding the value of skills and experience over
a college degree can allow companies to focus on different qualities when hiring
someone. Companies can uncover talented people who can be a dire asset to their team.
Are college degrees more useful for jobs than skills and experience? Should
skill and experienced-based hiring be the main criteria employers look for? Is it
really necessary for most “middle-skilled” jobs to have a college degree? What are
the limitations and issues jobs will experience when focusing on college degrees as
the deciding factor when hiring? What positive impacts can come from
implementing skill-based hiring for companies? Why do employers put more value
on college degrees when deciding to hire a candidate for a job when skills and
experience should be more impactful for an employer to look for when hiring?
In my essay the main subject is questioning and evaluating the limitations
that come with employers looking for a college degree over skills and experience
in a candidate. The setting of my research revolves around 21st century
requirements for hiring decisions. My research explores how skills and experience
are more useful for employees than a college degree. As well as looking at
different reasons, as to why college degrees are not always useful, like unrelated
degrees. I also plan to provide data reports on companies that have incorporated
skill-based hiring and how they are excelling because of this implementation. In
my research I analyze the usage of digital badges as a way of verifying specific
skills employers look for instead of focusing on degrees. With my sources and
research I am able to explain the limitations that come with the requirements of
hiring a candidate solely because of a college degree.
I believe companies, when looking to hire someone, need to value skills and
work-place experience over a college degree. I think companies that often only
look for a college degree when hiring, are setting themselves up for failure. These
massive job industries are often limiting themselves for finding talented,
hardworking employees by hiring based on a college degree. My research will
provide a positive insight for companies and businesses that are questioning if
college degrees are really that valuable on resumes when looking to hire a
candidate. Not only can the focus of skills-based hiring broaden a company’s talent
pool, it also opens up more opportunities for individuals who may not have been
financially able to attend college. This fast-growing job industry is hard for
employers to solely depend on basic knowledge that comes from having a college
degree. In the long-run, skill-based hiring will provide more growth and
opportunities for job industries.
Sources:
Castro, Stephanie, and E. D. Everett. “Let’s Think Differently About… Requiring a
College Degree for Most Local Government Jobs: If You Want to Attract More
Qualified Applicants, Retain Your Talented Employees, and Practice Effective
DEI Policies, Rethink Your College Degree Requirement.” Public Management,
vol. 105, no. 8, 2023, pp. 40-.
(not peer-reviewed)
Castrillon, Caroline. “Why Skills-Based Hiring Is on the Rise.” Forbes, 12 Feb.
2023,
https://www.forbes.com/sites/carolinecastrillon/2023/02/12/why-skills-based-hirin
g-is-on-the-rise
(not peer-reviewed)
MdSajjad Hosain, and Abdullah Mohammad Ahshanul Mamun. “The Roles of
LinkedIn-Based Skill Endorsements and LinkedIn-Based Hiring
Recommendations on Hiring Preferences: Evidence from Bangladeshi
Employers.” Management Matters, vol. 20, no. 2, 2023, pp. 169–84,
https://doi.org/10.1108/MANM-05-2023-0021.
(peer reviewed)
Grable, Robyn, Talents ASCEND, and Veterans ASCEND. How Skills-Based
Hiring can Boost an Organization. Newstex, Brentwood, 2022. ProQuest,
https://libdatabase.newpaltz.edu/login?url=https://www.proquest.com/blogs-podca
sts-websites/how-skills-based-hiring-can-boost-organization/docview/2759018754
/se-2.
(not peer reviewed)
Shelton, Petural. The Digital Badge Paradigm: The Shifting Change in
Higher Education from Traditional Degree-Based Learning to Skills-Based
Learning. 2020. ProQuest Dissertations & Theses.
(Peer reviewed)
HowApple Hires the Best: It’s All About Skills.” BrainStation,
(not peer-reviewed)
“College Degrees: The Job Requirement Companies Seek, but Don’t Really Need.”
HBSWorking Knowledge, Harvard Business School, 13 Sept. 2021,
https://hbswk.hbs.edu/item/college-degrees-the-job-requirement-companies-seek-b
ut-dont-really-need.
(not peer-reviewed)
Meyer, Peter. “What Companies Get Wrong About Skills-Based Hiring.” Harvard
Business Review, 30 May 2024,
https://hbr.org/2024/05/what-companies-get-wrong-about-skills-based-hiring.
(not peer-reviewed