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How likely is a company willing to hire a college graduate with a masters degree as opposed to someone with experience.

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Angie’s Answer

It can depend on the job and the nature of the work. I'll give you a real-life example. I am currently interviewing candidates for a data analyst role who are very different in nature. One candidate has real-world experience and no masters. The other candidate is completing their masters in data science and has minimal real-world experience. Both have sound technical skills. Neither have experience in the industry I'm in (high-tech). It's a difficult decision because I can go either way with the candidates. What I think about then is competency, potential, drive, culture fit, and growth opportunity. I will probably go with the more junior person because of these reasons: they have the essential skills to do the work, they have potential to grow into the role, and they come across as more eager and driven. The fact that this person has a masters was not a deciding criteria, but it gave the person credibility and me confidence that despite their lack of experience, they have enough of a foundation to pick up on the areas where they're short, once on the job.
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Richard’s Answer

This can be a very individualistic answer. First - thoroughly read the job description. Thoroughly. Is there an experience requirement? What level of degree is required? Bachelor's, Master's? Doctorate? Do you match the experience requirement? As a hiring manager, I can quickly discern whether a candidate meets our posting within minutes. Do not assume experience will be an acceptable substitute for a required degree. More importantly - are you located in the geographic location of the potential job opportunity? Also, disclose EVERYTHING! Trying to obscure anything lurking in your past criminally (even misdemeanors), past employment, degree programs, will likely be discovered in a background check.

Richard recommends the following next steps:

Read all job descriptions thoroughly
Do not misrepresent your capabilities or experience
Disclose everything on the application
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Austin’s Answer

Kellen,

Good question. Companies like candidates with an education as well as those who have relevant work experience. Having good work experience/having a masters degree does not mean that you are automatically going to be chosen over someone with the trait that you do not possess. Hiring decisions are rarely based on one facet of someone's resume, decisions are based on the whole of someone. Every company may have different preferences so it really depends what the company does and the job that you are applying for. Some careers that are highly technical like to see work experience while there are some jobs that actually require a masters or other graduate degree. What the desired traits are will be published by the company and should be noted on the job description. Often, employers want BOTH a degree AND relevant work experience. For example, the job I currently have required me to have a B.A. as well as 1-3 years of work experience; having just one of these two qualifications would not have worked as I needed both to be hired.


Because of the subjective nature of employer preferences and the different qualifications that different jobs prioritize you should read each and every job description very carefully to discover what their preferences are. At the end of the day you should not be worried about all the other people applying for jobs, focus on yourself and your qualifications. You can't control what kind of people apply to the same job as you so it is not worth it to worry yourself. Doing your best and focusing on your qualifications is what you should be doing.


I hope this helps and I wish you the best of luck in your job hunt!!


Best,

Austin

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Kristen’s Answer

Kellen,

That's a great question. It really depends on the specific job that you're applying for, as there are many industries that hire candidates directly out of college without any specific work experience as long as they have a degree in the right field that provides the right base knowledge. For example, public accounting firms hire entry-level auditor positions that are students with accounting or business administration degrees directly out of college with no work experience required. However, it is usually a good idea to have work experience on your resume even if its not directly related to the particular job or field that you're pursuing. Work experience can help demonstrate that you can handle a set of responsibilities, have a strong work ethic, etc.

Hope this helps and good luck!
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