[Purple Haize]

PH I've seen that too but I think the tide is turning a bit in some fields.

Agreed. I can really see it in your field. It changes so quickly that 4 years is a lifetime

[jbock13]

Then again, if Corinne Brown can be a Congressman and can't even speak the English language properly, then I suppose this woman can serve in the Legistature.

[ATrain]

No degree will pretty much disqualify you from most federal and state jobs...at least that's what I've seen. Not that I agree with that, but right now that's the way it is...and government is slow to change unfortunately

[Sly Fox]

You don't need a degree to serve in any public office at the federal level last time I checked.

[Yacht Rock]

ATrain, I have about 5 family members that work for the state of California in various capacities and only 1 of them holds a degree.

However, you are right, for most of the decent paying positions, a degree is required. But then again, I never look to the government as a paragon of good hiring practices.

From a private business perspective, degrees are becoming more a "nice to have" but not necessary thing. Much more valuable is practical experience in an industry, which a lot of degrees don't offer.

Hiring is a gamble and recruiters would rather hire a known quantity than someone that was given a rubber stamp by a university.

[ATrain]

You don't need a degree to serve in any public office at the federal level last time I checked.

Public office no, but to hold an actual federal job, yes. At least to get above a GS-7.

Yacht, I was just going by VA's hiring practices.

[flamehunter]

Speaking of Gov't hiring practices, here's a real life situation that just happened to friends of ours. Their son graduated in May from LeTourneau with an Air Traffic control degree. In January the government decided that the ATC's in the country are too white and too male. They changed the rules for getting into FAA school so that all you need is any 4 year degree and to have been working steady for the past 3 years (and females/minority status preferably). That immediately disqualified their son and all others who graduated with him because they had not held down full time jobs while going to school. ATC studies require a lot of extra training time in simulators and such which makes a FT job next to impossible. He is working part time now for a computer repair shop, not sure where he's going to go from there. I believe LeTourneau and some other schools may be considering appeals/lawsuits (if those are even possible.).

[ATrain]

Never said government hiring practices were perfect or even reasonable. I just said that for most gov't jobs, above a GS-7, you'll need a degree of some sort. Scary thing is, the people that create these jobs (i.e. Congress), don't need one, as Sly said.

[thepostman]

be a minority and a female and own a company and you'll win contracts like crazy...