Why is it About the Skill Sets and not Suit or a Degree?

What holds more relevance in a job interview- your degree or expertise?

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Does your attire matter even for an online job interview?

Have you been emphasizing on gaining the skills or just acquiring degrees in hand?

What is the actual need-theoretical knowledge or hands-on experience?

Welcome to the tech and coding age where new skills sets develop and the previous ones fade away in no time. Such is the age when the need for the workforce who is able to handle complex situations, outside the jurisdiction of education, has increased manifold. Skilled employees who learn new skill sets and are able to evolve at lightning speed mark the need of the hour.

Does that mean that education is absolutely futile? The answer is ambiguous. One cannot rule out the necessity of having a degree in hand. But considering the volatile and ever-evolving market, the demand for skill sets has definitely overpowered the basic education needs.

Arpit Jain, CEO of Promatics Technology Private Limited, emphasizes the relevance of skilled manpower more than educated manpower. He says, "The technical know-how is what is more crucial in changing times."

Let us consider why skill set overpowers suit or degree in today's time.

1. Would degree ensure a good job?

With the need for skills and experience for a job, the degree requirements have taken a back seat. With the changing times, the employers seek experience and test the risk-taking ability of employees. No longer would a specific four-year degree render you fit for your dream job.

You need to have multiple skills to be able to match the job requirements.

Rajat Bhatia, founder of "Geekay Bikes' (revolutionary eco-bikes), revokes the relevance of degree in providing a job or secured income or even the evolution of a sparkling idea. He is from a humble commerce background and how he went to invent the technology of eco-bike has actually nullified the need of having a quantum of degrees in hand. He says, "One out-of-the-box idea is all you need for a successful start-up or even impressing your boss at job. The degree in hand is a mere formality."

In most cases, the college fee surmounts to an inordinate debt which is again an issue if you do not get a job right after college.

2. Suit or No suit

Professionalism demands dressing up in the business suit manner. However, with most of the jobs being possible from home or jobs like coding, skills are of paramount importance. It doesn't matter whether you dress up as a business tycoon or a fresher out of college.

Sakun Aggarwal, owner of Parveen Brickworks strongly rejects the idea of business suits in most cases. He admits, "A suit would matter if you are in a corporate meeting addressing your clients or Board of trustees. It isn't necessary at all when you are programming new software. The relevance of a suit is negligible if you work in extreme weather conditions or in a labour-oriented genre.

3. Hone your skill set

How to rev up your skill set is what matters when you seek to climb the corporate ladder. Your promotion and incentives are based on your performance, which is a result of how you apply your skills on the job and not how educated you are. "If you are interested in numbers, developing on-the-job engineering skills or chartered accountancy is the right place. Studying for law or arts would be a misfit to your innate skills," admits Rachit Bhandhari, managing director at Rachit Bhandhari &Co.

Over to you- In this dynamic paced world, identify your skills and match them to the job. Gone is the era that you would first focus on the job and then develop skills or knowledge keeping the job in mind. In this era of risk takers and contrarian thinkers, skillsets are more important than focusing on completing the conventional college degree which does not give you hands-on experience of the real world job scenario. Learning while on the job is the buzzword.