Many Large Employers Drop College Degree Requirements in Favor of Experience and Skills

By Yehudit Garmaise

As workers proved harder to find for employers, who faced many vacant positions since January 2019, when the pandemic hit, many large employers have dropped their previous requirement that only college graduates need apply, the Wall Street Journal reported.

While at the start of 2019, before Covid hit, 46% of nationwide job postings required at least a bachelor’s degree, in November, that number had dropped to 41%, according to an analysis by the Burning Glass Institute, a think tank that studies the future of work. 

With the number of job postings far exceeding the number of unemployed people looking for work, many large employers are focusing more on the experience and skills of applicants, rather than on their degrees.

September saw 10.7 job million openings but only 5.8 million Americans were unemployed. Employers’ shift in whom they seek to hire is the result of high demand for workers and low unemployment.

The majority of American jobs at IBM, for instance, no longer require four-year degrees after the company conducted a review of hiring practices, said IBM spokeswoman Ashley Bright.

In addition, Google and 150 other companies provide an on-the-job training program to hire entry-level workers.

More than 100,000 Americans have completed Google’s online college-alternative program that offers training in fast-growing fields, such as digital marketing and project management.

In addition, Delta Airlines has said it prefers its pilots to have earned four-year degrees, but they are no longer required. 

Walmart, the country’s largest private employer, which said that 75% of its salaried store managers started their careers in hourly jobs, said it values skills and knowledge gained through work experience.

While of course, many occupations, such as doctors, engineers, and professors, require high degrees, many good-paying jobs, such as sales, managers, and many other skilled laborers require training, but no degree. 

The burgeoning tech field, for which many young people have a knack, often requires on-the-job training, but not necessarily four-year degrees.

While studies show that college graduates typically make more money than those with high school diplomas, the many unfilled positions caused by the current tight labor market are increasingly causing employers to seek job applicants based on their experience, talents, and self-education.

Approximately 70 million Americans 25 and older work today without college degrees, said Bridgette Gray, the chief customer officer of Opportunity@Work, a nonprofit that wants to cut degree requirements. “Around four million are already in high-wage careers.”

College is a clear pathway to upward mobility, but it shouldn’t be the only pathway.”

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