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If IT is on your radar but you’re not sure how to get started, you’ll be happy to know that you may not need another degree – or a college degree at all!
On reputable job posting websites like Indeed and Monster, you may find a pattern in the qualification sections of job advertisements for IT positions such as web development, cybersecurity,
software development, mobile app development, and help desk support: “High School diploma or GED required.”
Many IT job advertisements demonstrate that a significant fraction of IT positions do not necessitate a four-year degree or even a two-year degree. If the lack of a degree has prevented you from pursuing a career in technology,
you should know that the majority of IT jobs only require verification that you have the necessary credentials, such as certifications and prior experience, to perform the job. Because applicants don't have undergraduate degrees, hiring managers don't rule them off as contenders.
Not a calculus whiz? You don’t need advanced math for a large majority of IT jobs. You just need a growth mindset and the wiliness to learn new things to help yourself and other people better harness the power of technology.
And if you’re a people person, you’re in luck. A big portion of tech jobs require you to work on teams or help colleagues figure out solutions to their technology problems. If you aren’t a people person, you actually might struggle in IT.
Communication, creativity, problem-solving and attention-to-detail – all skills you may already have – give you an edge if you’re switching careers into IT. This is where your transferable communication skill will make a difference.
– Creativity is essential in software and web developer roles, where you’ll be expected to come up with bright ideas to create and enhance new products.
– Problem-solving is the most important skill to have in tech. If you know you’re tenacious about figuring out solutions, you’ll excel in the field.
– Attention-to-detail is required if you’re trying to fix a line of code or identify a cybersecurity threat, and this skill will get you far in IT.
This depends on which area of IT you decide is best for your career change. Here are a few of the many popular IT careers that don’t require a degree:
Prove that you have the knowledge and skills to help people solve complex technology problems in a corporate environment. Help desk technicians need to be able to troubleshoot and resolve hardware, software, and network issues.
Prove that you have a handle on HTML, Python, Ruby, CSS and JavaScript and that you can use these languages to create attractive and functional web products.
Demonstrate experience in a help desk, technical support or networking role and complete cybersecurity training to land one of the hottest IT jobs today. Employers often give preference to candidates with cybersecurity certifications.
Be able to offer solutions and support for software, hardware, operating systems, applications and company data and be aware of how to protect against viruses and malware.
If you decide to return to school, there are a number of respectable entirely online programs that provide you a lot of flexibility. You can frequently finish your coursework in these programs asynchronously, which means you are not required to log in to class at a specific time.
There are several reputable fully online programs that give you quite a bit of flexibility if you do decide to go back to school. In these programs, you can often complete your coursework asynchronously,
which means you don’t have to log on to class at any particular time. All of your coursework and course lectures are available 24/7, and you can generally work around your job schedule.
This is a great option for people who don’t want to quit their jobs as they ready themselves to switch careers. Just remember that going back to school can be costly, and technical degrees (or any degrees beyond a high school diploma, for that matter) aren’t required for many positions.