You know what’s funny? Growing up, the advice was always the same: “Beta, get that degree.” Our parents, teachers, even relatives at weddings, everyone repeated the same thing. And to be fair, that advice made sense back then. Degrees were everything. They were like golden keys that opened doors.
But fast forward to today… things look different. The real buzzword now? Skill based education.
Don’t mistake it for just another trendy term. It’s a big shift in how the world values people. Employers don’t care only about what’s written on your certificate anymore. At the end of the day, they’re looking at the results you bring in.
My Wake-Up Call
I’ll give you a personal example. A few years ago, one of my closest friends worked day and night to finish his MBA. He spent lakhs on tuition, studied every theory, memorized every framework. But when it came time to find a job, he struggled. Why? Because companies wanted people who could execute digital campaigns, analyze data, or manage clients, not just talk about case studies.
On the other hand, another friend of mine didn’t even finish college. Instead, he picked up coding and web design online. Within a year, he was freelancing and making more money than most fresh MBA grads. No degree, just skills.
It suddenly clicked for me, the rules have shifted.
So, Do Degrees Even Matter Anymore?
Okay, let’s not go extreme here. Degrees aren’t useless. If you want to be a doctor, engineer, or lawyer, you can’t just skip formal education. Nobody wants to be treated by a “WhatsApp University” surgeon, right?
But here’s the real talk: for a lot of careers today, the degree doesn’t guarantee much. A fancy diploma framed on your wall won’t save you if you don’t have skills to back it up.
Think about roles like social media manager, graphic designer, sales executive, digital marketer, even some tech jobs. A degree might get you noticed, but results are what seal the deal. They want to know, Can you design a campaign that brings sales? Can you put together a website that runs smoothly? Can you solve real problems?
That’s why skills are slowly taking the driver’s seat.
Why Skill Based Education Feels Like the Future
What I really like about skill learning is how fast, hands-on, and direct it is.
You don’t need to spend four years and mountains of money to prove you’re capable. You can take a 6-month course, practice like crazy, and you’re already job-ready.
Look at coding. You don’t need the “prestigious degree” tag to begin your journey. With bootcamps or online courses, you can pick up the skills to create actual projects.
Or digital marketing. You run a few ad campaigns, track numbers, tweak strategies, you’re already ahead of half the people with degrees in marketing who never touched Google Ads in their life.
Another big reason? Skills evolve quickly. Universities often move at a snail’s pace when updating their syllabus. By the time they include “social media marketing” as a subject, a whole new platform like TikTok or Threads might already be ruling the market. But with skill-based learning, you can pick up new trends in real-time.
What Companies Really Want
If you scroll through job postings these days, you’ll notice something interesting. Many of them say “degree optional” or “degree not required.” What they really want is proof, your portfolio, projects, or practical experience.
Big players like Google, Apple, and IBM don’t treat degrees as must-haves anymore. That shiny degree doesn’t impress them as much these days. They’re asking, “Show us what you’ve built, what you can solve, how you think.”
And startups? They care even less about degrees. They’re running lean and fast, they just want people who can deliver.
That’s a big signal right there.
The Sweet Spot: Mixing Both
Now, let me be clear, I don’t think the future is about blindly picking one side. It’s not a battle between skills and degrees, it’s about making them work side by side. A degree shows you the path, but skills are what get you moving. Skills are the furniture, paint, and design that make the house livable. Both together make the magic.
For example:
- A business graduate who learns data analytics? Hot property.
- A teacher who picks up digital course creation? Suddenly global.
- An engineer who masters leadership skills? That’s a future manager right there.
See the point? A degree with zero skills feels incomplete. But skills layered on top of a degree? That’s powerful.
What Students Should Keep in Mind
If you’re still studying, I’ll give you one piece of advice: don’t wait until graduation to figure things out. Use your free time to explore skills. Do internships, freelance, or even start small projects.
That way, when you walk out with your degree, you also walk out with a portfolio, some experience, and a lot more confidence. Trust me, that makes you 10x more employable.
For Working Professionals
Already in a job? Great. But the learning doesn’t stop. In fact, it’s more important than ever to keep upgrading yourself.
The world is changing faster than ever. AI, automation, new tech, everything is shaking up industries. If you keep learning, you’ll adapt. If not, you risk falling behind.
That’s why skill based education is like a safety net. It keeps you relevant, no matter what curveballs the future throws at us.
Big Picture
So, what’s the bottom line here? The world is clearly leaning towards skills. Degrees still have their place, but the power they once had is fading.
A degree can get you inside, but skills keep you moving forward. But it’s your skills that help you stay in the room, shine, and grow.
And honestly, that’s what the future demands.
The Takeaway
So here’s my simple advice: stop looking at education as “degree versus skills.” Look at it as “degree plus skills.” That combo is where the real magic happens.
Thank you for being with me till the end, and I’ll come back again with more such insights.
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