

Ask HN: Would you hire a dropout? - RonenA

Assume that they
1) Are fully qualified for the position, and
2) Dropped out to purse self-employment/self-education/work, not because they couldn't handle school
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se85
Yes.

Then again, I'm biased.

A proven track record of being self motivated and being persistant with their
goals are far more valuable traits in an individual than a piece of paper
saying they went to some college or university for several years.

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niggler
The first is hard to ascertain without a conversation, and it's very hard
without a conversation to convince many people (myself included) that you
didn't just drop out because you couldn't handle school.

I try to shun away from dropouts because school signals, more than anything
else, an ability to slog through tedious tasks. And unfortunately, not
everything you will do is glamorous.

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Skywing
Based on your description, why wouldn't you? If those are your requirements,
and a degree is not, then I don't see the problem.

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aleprok
Really depends why they dropped out. Here in Finland I would not hire any drop
outs, because money is not good reason to drop out because students like me
get cash to live on our own while studying in upper secondary school,
vocational school, universities until something like age of 28. If they can
not handle graduating from the school, how the heck I can trust them to become
better at the job and keep their interest even if it might become little bit
boring.

The only reason I accept for dropping out of school is money problems, but
even then I trust those people more who will work on the side of their
studies.

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lscott3
I've yet to be asked for any type of degree (I don't have one) for places I've
been hired for, consulted at and/or interviewed for. I've also seen people
highly decorated with degrees and certificates that can barely get an
interview. I think it all depends on the person, their attitude, their ability
to connect with people and willingness to learn from others.

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ankurcha
Depends on the job requirements. For a R&D related or senior position, I might
be a little on the edge. School is not just about the degree it has a lot to
do with development of the core educational foundations.

Remember anyone can program, not everyone can find a solution.

~~~
xiaoma
Michael Faraday solved about as many difficult problems as any scientist in
history and did it without a formal education. And in his time there were even
more barrier to working class people joining academia than there are now.

Skills and an apprenticeship under the right mentor trump the piece of paper
in terms of real world results. It's really tough for more conservative types
to realize this until the researcher in question is so famous that they no
longer have a chance of hiring them, though.

<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_Faraday>

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dllthomas
A part of the problem is the difficulty in distinguishing people with 2 from
those without 2 who simply claim it.

Any difficulty distinguishing people with and without 1 is more important, but
is present regardless.

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nileshbhojani
Yes, given these assumptions. But that person needs to be better than the
other candidates (not JUST qualified for the position). I would also like to
understand what he/she did after dropping out of school.

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FlyingAvatar
As a "drop out" technical manager, I have hired about 50% with CS/CE degrees,
10% with non applicable degrees and 40% with no degree at all.

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davidandgoliath
Drop-out from high school, or university/college? I'm part of the latter group
& hire people from that pool frequently.

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slajax
I would actually prefer to hire a drop out over someone with a degree.

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pmtarantino
I would add a question: how many jobs ads are asking for a degree?

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dholowiski
I am a dropout. So, yes I would hire someone like me.

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lifeguard
You mean like Bill Gates or Steve Jobs?

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NickKampe
Absolutely, hackers don't need degrees. In fact, we frown upon them.

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sjg007
Yes.

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rprasad
No, but my industry is license-based, and acquiring the license requires a
degree and a very expensive test.

The problem for most jobs that "require" a degree is that a degree signifies a
minimum knowledge base and experience with the subject matter (if not
practical experience) of the position. The point at which work experience
becomes more important than having a degree depends heavily on the position.
Thus, for example, work experience will probably always be more important than
a degree for something like design, but a degree may be more important for
starting out in development (assuming that you do not already have work
experience in the relevant areas).

Further: people in my industry tend to pursue a formal education, work, and/or
self-education simultaneously (or at least two of these options). Any
candidate who couldn't handle work and education simultaneously would simply
not cut it, unless they opted for work because they could not afford to work
and pursue an education at the same time.

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ucee054
The degree is there to _show_ that the candidate is qualified. One can't tell
by mind-reading a candidate.

Unless the candidate was too poor to afford the school, or born in the 3rd
world, or something like that, there's not much excuse for not having the
piece of paper.

If you decide to hire the dropout, you are _gambling_ on "this guy dropped out
because he's the next John Carmack, not a loser". The odds are poor.

ADDENDUM: The degree acts as an arbitrary filter because you simply do not
have the resources to exhaustively examine every candidate. you only take a
closer look at the candidates that make it through the filter.

