College & Careers

Elder son thinks cloud certifications will get him a job faster than a degree. I work in cloud

coral_sparrow_9924

Class 12 has just started and our elder one has found videos of people getting jobs with certifications and no degree. His plan is certifications alongside a 'cheap, easy' BSc, and skip the engineering entrance race altogether. The annoying part is that I can't fully argue. I work in cloud, and some of the best people I've worked with came in that way. But I also know how many CVs get filtered out before a human ever sees them. Kanna is serious about this. If you hire, or your kids have gone this route, what would you tell a 16 year old?

5 comments

  • hazel_bottle_1563

    mine is 13 and already quoting the same videos. no answers, just solidarity 🤷

  • fern_veranda_5858

    cybersecurity here. certifications got people into my team, but nearly all of them had a degree as well, often an unrelated one. the degree gets you past the filter, the cert gets you the conversation

  • indigo_trail_4041

    I've hired a few people without degrees and they were good. But every one of them had two or three years of real work to show for it. At 16 he has neither yet. BSc plus certs isn't a bad plan, as long as 'easy' doesn't mean he coasts for three years 🙂

    • coral_sparrow_9924

      The coasting is exactly the worry. He's picked the BSc for the free time, not the subject. We're going to have that conversation separately.

  • hazel_veranda_8510

    What does his week look like under this plan? 'BSc plus certifications' needs to say which ones, in what order, and how many hours. If he can write that down, take it seriously. If he can't, it's still a video talking.

  • bronze_hammock_2801

    I interview for SRE roles. No degree, no interview, at most firms I know, whatever the certs. That may change by the time he graduates. I wouldn't bet a 16 year old's options on it.

    • coral_sparrow_9924

      'Don't bet on it' is the line I'm using with him. Not a no, just that. He's also been told to write down the week, as someone suggested above. Due Sunday.

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