Does Formal Education Matter In Hiring Software Developers? Not Necessarily, Experts Say

Formal education is not the only thing employers consider when hiring software developers. According to experts, the ever-changing technological landscape of the world is one of the reasons why software developers' work experience is more important than formal education.

Courses Can't Keep Up On Rapidly Evolving Technology

Courses developed by education systems cannot keep up with new forms of technology. Nicholas Thompson, who's from Grit Studio, said newer technology has popped up by the time institutions and colleges developed a course, Forbes reported.

Employers look for critical thinking, real-life problem solving, work ethic and creativity among potential hires, and those qualities aren't taught by classroom education alone. Chalmers Brown of online payment service Due said the most important thing about software developers is their ability to "get the job done" and help propel a firm towards success, the news outlet added. Formal education has a significant appeal, but treating it as the only basis for hiring software developers and tech people isn't enough.

Lisbi Abraham of Andela said hiring a technical worker shouldn't highlight how a person obtained knowledge, but "how much they know and what they've done with it," Forbes noted. Employees who have no formal classroom education tend to be better outside-of-the-box thinkers than their counterparts who received formal education.

Jobs That Value Experience Over Educational Background

A 2013 report from High Fliers Research found that college graduates who don't possess real-world training or work experience have small chances of getting hired, according to the Huffington Post. Moreover, an analysis from ZipRecruiter listed six qualifications that appear the most in 250,000 job advertisements.

Fifty-one percent of companies look for communication, 21 percent for time management, 19 percent for ability to work with a team or group, 12 percent for independent motivation, 11 percent for Microsoft Office skills and 7 percent look for the ability to function in a fast-paced workplace, Business News Daily reported. Some jobs that value work experience over educational background are automotive service technicians and mechanics, machinists, electricians, carpenters, plumbers, steamfitters and pipefitters, Yahoo! Finance listed.

Some fields, however, value employees with advanced degrees and are often giving them higher salaries. This includes engineering, architecture, business, health and social science, according to a separate report from Yahoo! Finance.

However, staying and gathering work experience in the same field trumps a higher education degree. This means that employees who have worked in the same field longer receive higher pay than recent graduates with advanced degrees.