Online: Trending Now

Unique biweekly insights and news review
from Ray Schroeder, Senior Fellow at UPCEA

What Matters More: Skills or Degrees?

We increasingly hear employers, prospective students, and futurists saying that it is all about the skills, not about the degree.  What does that mean for higher ed?

Historically, employers made the baccalaureate, and in some cases advanced degrees, the gateway to an interview. If you did not hold the sheepskin, you would not get in the door. But, times have changed. Rapidly advancing technologies such as artificial intelligence, big data analytics, robotics, and the advent of quantum computing have created an environment in which much of what is learned in college becomes outdated in a few short years. Certainly, the “soft” skills of creative thinking, critical thinking, communication, and leadership do not go out of date and remain in demand by employers. But, the “hard” facts and skills of most of the disciplines are changing as technology ripples through the economy and society. 

So, what we hear from industry is that they want workers with the soft skills that do not go out of date as well as a basic understanding of the current hard facts and skills that will be useful for just a few years before they must be upskilled for a new generation of technology. This combination of knowledge and skills may not require a degree.

Futurists such as Mike Colagrossi suggest in the future we will acquire skills rather than degrees: “Increasingly there are more and more renowned and prestigious companies that no longer require a college degree for work. Recently Glassdoor created a list of major companies where a degree wasn’t required. Some included powerhouses such as Apple and Google. Why the sudden cultural shift from the bigwigs?”  

Writing in the business magazine Inc, Justin Bariso quotes LinkedIn CEO Jeff Weiner on the qualities employers are seeking: “These are qualities that you don’t necessarily pick up from a degree. There are qualities…that have a tendency to be completely overlooked when people are sifting through résumés or LinkedIn profiles. And yet, increasingly, we find that these are the kinds of people that make the biggest difference within our organization. Increasingly I hear this mantra: Skills, not degrees. It’s not skills at the exclusion of degrees. It’s just expanding our perspective to go beyond degrees.” 

The US Labor Department is expecting that by the end of the year we will be facing a shortfall of more than two million skilled workers in our economy.  Corporations are already feeling the pinch.  For these openings they are no longer looking for white collar or blue collar workers, but, instead “new-collar” workers,  “(a) new-collar worker is an individual who develops the technical and soft skills needed to work in technology jobs through nontraditional education paths. These workers do not have a four-year degree from college. Instead, the new-collar worker is trained through community colleges, vocational schools, software boot camps, technical certification programs, high school technical education and on-the job apprentices and internships.” 

In this environment of changing expectations for applicants, higher education is taking yet another hit, this time from Google. The tech giant launched an IT Support Specialist certificate through Coursera in 2018 that is now enrolling tens of thousands of prospective applicants for the in-demand field of IT support. “Nearly 75,000 people have enrolled according to Natalie Van Kleef Conley, senior product manager for Grow With Google. And Conley said the program is just ramping up. Nationwide, over 150,000 IT support staff roles remain unfilled, according to data from Burning Glass Technologies. Federal data show the average annual starting salary for these jobs is $52,000.”  With Google in the lead, there is little doubt that other corporate leaders will follow, creating specialized certificates customized to their field. 

While this shift in employment requisites develops, we are now in the eighth straight year of declines in college enrollment. Hundreds of colleges have closed their doors in the past few years and hundreds more are teetering on the brink.

In the near term, I agree with LinkedIn CEO Jeff Weiner, “It’s not skills at the exclusion of degrees.” But, increasingly, evidence of attainment of the stated skills will be mandatory. Also, increasingly the degree will become optional. Our business in higher education will be to fulfill those basic soft skills by certifying the core skills of creative thinking, critical thinking, communication, and leadership. At the same time, we must be ahead of the curve on teaching technological implementation; emerging practices and technologies; and cultivating in our students’ flexibility in the application of knowledge to new environments. To the extent that we succeed in these areas, we will keep the degree relevant to both employers and prospective students alike. Are you prepared for this changes? Will you lead the charge at your university to confront the emerging new realities of our role in the broader learning environment?

 

This article originally appeared July 10th, 2019 in Inside Higher Ed’s Inside Digital Learning Blog. 

A man (Ray Schroeder) is dressed in a suit with a blue tie and wearing glasses.

Ray Schroeder is Professor Emeritus, Associate Vice Chancellor for Online Learning at the University of Illinois Springfield (UIS) and Senior Fellow at UPCEA. Each year, Ray publishes and presents nationally on emerging topics in online and technology-enhanced learning. Ray’s social media publications daily reach more than 12,000 professionals. He is the inaugural recipient of the A. Frank Mayadas Online Leadership Award, recipient of the University of Illinois Distinguished Service Award, the United States Distance Learning Association Hall of Fame Award, and the American Journal of Distance Education/University of Wisconsin Wedemeyer Excellence in Distance Education Award 2016.

Other UPCEA Updates + Blogs

Key Findings from 2024 UPCEA Marketing Survey

As more and more institutions face internal and external pressures to identify and cultivate new revenue streams, many are turning to online and professional continuing education to attract new learners and address fiscal shortfalls. While this continued increase in supply undoubtedly benefits the student, it makes an already saturated market even more competitive. UPCEA’s 2024…

Read More

UPCEA Announces Retirement of Chief Research Officer Jim Fong, Reinforces Strength of Research and Consulting Division

Washington, D.C. – April 7, 2025 – UPCEA, the leading association for online and professional education, today announced the upcoming retirement of Jim Fong, its founding Chief Research Officer, after years of transformative leadership in the field of higher education research and consulting.  Fong first became involved with UPCEA as a volunteer leader while at…

Read More

Observations from a (Pretend) Prospective Student: The Do’s and Don’ts of Enrollment Communication

I’ve been through the college enrollment process before, and to be honest, it’s not exactly something that I wish to do again. And yet, as part of my role at UPCEA, I regularly step into the shoes of a prospective student during our Enrollment Process Reviews. These “secret shopper” exercises involve posing as potential applicants…

Read More

Data and Insights from the State of Continuing Education 2025 Report

The 2025 State of Continuing Education study examines the evolving role of online and professional continuing education (PCE) units in higher education, focusing on program offerings, institutional support, technology integration, and collaboration across academic units. This year’s findings highlight a growing emphasis on workforce-aligned education, with institutions increasingly prioritizing corporate training, industry credentials, and employer…

Read More

Annual Conference Follow Up: Translating PCOE Innovation into the Future of Higher Education

In an era of heightened urgency, higher education institutions find themselves at a pivotal crossroads—confronting enrollment cliffs, shifting demographics, and growing skepticism about the value of a degree. Further, shifting federal policy and changes at the Department of Education will challenge postsecondary leaders like never before. Amid this turbulence, one area consistently demonstrates adaptability, innovation,…

Read More

New report from UPCEA – 2024 Staffing & Structure Survey Results

Amid growing demand for flexible and career-oriented education, online and Professional and Continuing Education (PCE) units are at the forefront of institutional innovation and revenue sustainability. Whether through degree programs, microcredentials, corporate training, or other non-credit offerings, these units play a critical role in expanding access to education and meeting the evolving needs of learners…

Read More

Whether you need benchmarking studies, or market research for a new program, UPCEA Consulting is the right choice.

We know you. We know the challenges you face and we have the solutions you need. We speak your language and have been serving leaders like you for more than 100 years. UPCEA consultants are current or former continuing and online higher education professionals who are experts in the industry—put our expertise to work for you.


UPCEA is dedicated to advancing quality online learning at the institutional level. UPCEA is uniquely focused on excellence at the highest levels – leadership, administration, strategy – applying a macro lens to the online teaching and learning enterprise. Its engaged members include the stewards of online learning at most of the leading universities in the nation.

We offers a variety of custom research options through a variable pricing model.


Click here to learn more.

The Nation's Top Universities Choose UPCEA Consulting

Informed decisions. Ideas that work. The data you need. Trusted by the top universities in the nation.