53 % of Companies Removed College Degree Requirements For Jobs in Past Year

Intelligent.com has published a recent survey report that examines the continued practice of eliminating degree requirements on job postings and the rationale behind it. The report also explores the value of experience versus education when evaluating candidates. Researchers collected feedback from 1,000 hiring managers across the United States.

According to survey results, 53 percent of hiring managers say their company eliminated the bachelor’s degree requirement for certain roles in the past year. Among this group, 60 percent say they removed the prerequisite for entry-level positions, 57 percent say mid-level positions, and 33 percent say senior-level positions. With regards to the top reasons for eliminating the bachelor’s degree requirement, 64 percent of respondents say they wanted to increase the number of applicants, 59 percent say they believe there are other ways to acquire skills besides a 4-year degree, and 58 percent say they sought to create a more diverse workforce.

Currently, 76 percent of hiring managers believe their company is ‘very likely’ or ‘likely’ to favor experience over education. However, many companies still recognize the value of education, with 72 percent of hiring managers admitting that having a bachelor’s degree is ‘very valuable’ or ‘valuable’ when evaluating candidates. Conversely, other degree or certification types are not considered as valuable, with only 24 percent of respondents seeing value in certificate programs, 23 percent in associate degrees, 16 percent in online degrees, and 8 percent in boot camps. Additionally, 66 percent of companies require candidates to take an assessment to test hard skills, while 64% have applicants complete a test assignment.