Should Student Focus More On Skills Training Or A College Degree?

Should Student Focus More On Skills Training or a College Degree?

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Should Student Focus More On Skills Training or a College Degree?

Introduction

Since early childhood, everyone hears from his family members that it is significant to have a good education. It is considered to be the key to live a successful life. That is why he is encouraged to study as long as he can but many successful people believe that students should focus on their skills but not college degrees. The reason behind it is that, over the last few decades, the market of the job has been transformed in many aspects. There are several degree holders in the market as a result of which getting a job only through a college degree is becoming difficult, therefore, the person who has a degree with a right skills sets can beat his competitors easily.

Discussion

The degree and education can give a lot of to an individual and help in determining that whether he or she is a hard worker or not but the most significant requirement for a candidate getting a job is to possess powerful skills set. These set of skills are considered to be a necessary element for overcoming many challenges which they may face on a daily basis. is Multiple degrees or qualification cannot give a dream job but the courses which are based on skills can help you attain these jobs. This is where degree steps down the ladder and does not give sufficient inside into an individual. It has been believed that the person who does not perform well in a college degree is not smart enough to get a job, but this is not true. The reason test score does not reflect the smartness of an individual is that system of education all around the globe are oriented towards making him skilled at a particular task, that may not have necessarily much value in life. So, the marks of degree do not reflect the true person's smartness (Hulten & Ramey, 2017). Every person requires to possess a powerful skills array in order to be successful at their job. It includes the ability for communicating, managing time or team, and working as a team. It is not enough to have just one skill in specific and then struggle with others. The college degree can enable a person to indicate the communication skills level but may not display the capability for working within a team or for managing a team. Most hiring managers hire the employees for their organization on the basis of critical thinking, social skills, communication skills, and problem-solving skills (Pereira, & Costa, 2017). If a person does not have the ability to communicate their work with a team, or if they are not capable of managing their subordinates, a college degree will not be helpful in this regard. It can only be useful for a job of entry-level as wide skills sets range are not needed in this regard. So, in order to progress the success leader, everyone requires to have roles which need higher responsibilities. If a person is about to start his career in the later period of their life and does not have much experience, then they should highlight their appropriate skills in their resume (Nickson, et, al., 2017).

Good interpersonal skills can permit a person for participating efficiently as team members, satisfying the expectations of the customer, solving problems, making decisions, and working efficiently with the other employees. These skills permit for empathizing and building rapport with the colleagues that lead to the stressful environment of work. There are several ranges of areas that cannot be covered by college degree but interpersonal skills can help to achieve it which include communication skills, verbal communication, non-verbal and nonverbal communication, listening, emotional intelligence, team working, conflict mediation and resolution, team-working, persuasion, negotiation, and influencing skills, problem-solving and decision-making. Communication skills can help a person to receive or transmit the appropriately to and from by writing or speaking without any misunderstanding which cannot be achieved through college degree (Pereira, & Costa, 2017). Similarly, the skills of emotional intelligence can help a person manage, understand, and recognize the emotion of a person and then utilizing them positively for achieving the required results. The skills of team working are also significant as it can help a person to work in teams or groups both informal or formal which cannot be possible through a college degree. Moreover, the skill of influencing, persuasion, and negotiation that enables a person to find efficient solutions to any problems whether by searching a better alternative through sharing ideas or persuading other about the efficiency of work. Spencer Thompson who is considered to be the founder of Sokanu said that "it doesn't matter whether you come from high school or come from a PhD".

Moreover, the skill learning process is considered to be a more dependable and reliable process. It can help a person to be organized and manage his time efficiently. These skills also teach a person to be self-regulated or have the ability to take responsibility for their actions. Once David Blake who is considered to be the co-founder of learning platform Degreed has said in a speech that "It shouldn't matter how you picked up your skills, just that you did." The more we develop the skills of life individually, the more these have an impact on the world by recognizing the awareness of culture and citizenship builds global cooperation easier. According to the recent research, the industry of customer service had more than two million open position last year and more than sixteen million positions in the field of sales and such number is rising day by day (Nickson, et, al., 2017). These two industries do not need college degrees but still have high wages job and better opportunities. In sales, one has the ability to creating a fine income by utilizing his appropriate skills. Similarly, it also helps to respect the diversity which allows imagination and creativity for flourishing the more tolerant society. These skills sets can also develop a habit of negotiation which is considered to be the ability for networking and empathizing (Paccagnell, 2015). The development of skills of life can also assist the students in analyzing options, making a decision, and understanding why they make certain choices after graduation. It also helps in developing a higher sense of appreciation and self-awareness for others. Statistics show the rate of skilled-person required in the labour market:

According to the Economist, return on investment of a degree does not remain higher for the youth. The value which is added from the degree of college decreases on increasing the number of graduates. Richard Lambert said in his speech that, “The global economy is rapidly evolving and if the UK is to retain its position as the fifth largest economy in the world we need highly-skilled graduates who are able to respond to these developments” (Paccagnell, 2015). The foundation of Bill Gates is also encouraging the employers to hire the employees the basis of their skills rather than to hire them on the basis of their college degree. By utilizing a degree of college, employers are overlooking those people who are capable but do not have a degree which isn't helping the employers, economy, and the workforce. According to recent research, despite the high rate of unemployment, more than three million jobs in America are unoccupied because the organizations cannot search people with the right or appropriate skills. CEO of IBM, Ginni Rometty said, "Getting a job at today's IBM does not always require a college degree". Similarly, according to the CEO of LinkedIn, "What matter most is relevant skills" (Federer, 2018).

The development of skill enhances the capacities of employees and their opportunities at the workplace by proposing more scope for satisfaction and creativity at work. The future well-being of any state ultimately depends on the rate of employment and how productive employees are at work. It has been believed that one per cent rise in the days of skill training can lead to a three per cent rise in productivity. Several evidences show that the combination of good education with the right skills in the labour market can raise the productivity of both enterprises and workers (Kappelman, et, al., 2016). The market full of a skilled person can contribute to boosting future development and innovation, encourages both foreign and domestic investment, job growth, and lowering underemployment and unemployment, leads to a higher salary, expand opportunities of the labour market, and decrease inequalities of society. Freelancers are earning more than a professional degree holder; they do not need any degree to start their career. All they need to focus on particular skills training rather than the degree. Many researchers believe that the future of work won't be degrees, it will be related to the skills of the job. The degree can be considered as a tremendous debt without any true guarantee of a financial payoff in the future.

Following statistics shows the demand for skills in the labour market:

Conclusion

So it is concluded that having a degree of college is no longer a guarantee of searching for a job or getting a higher wage. The thing which attracts the employer is whether the candidate possesses the appropriate skills or have relevant experience. Those who are already studying should apply for the internships and try to get some skill sets with the degree.

References

Kappelman, L. A., Jones, M. C., Johnson, V., McLean, E. R., & Boonme, K. (2016). Skills for success at different stages of an IT professional's career. Commun. ACM, 59(8), 64-70.

Hulten, C. R., & Ramey, V. A. (2017). Education, Skills, and Technical Change, and Future US GDP Growth-Introduction. In Education, Skills, and Technical Change: Implications for Future US GDP Growth. University of Chicago Press.

Federer, L. (2018). Defining data librarianship: a survey of competencies, skills, and training. Journal of the Medical Library Association: JMLA, 106(3), 294.

Nickson, D., Price, R., Baxter-Reid, H., & Hurrell, S. A. (2017). Skill requirements in retail work: The case of high-end fashion retailing. Work, employment and society, 31(4), 692-708.

Paccagnella, M. (2015). Skills and wage inequality: Evidence from PIAAC.

Pereira, O. P., & Costa, C. A. A. T. (2017). The importance of soft skills in the university academic curriculum: The perceptions of the students in the new society of knowledge. International Journal of Business and Social Research, 7(3), 25-34.