We're looking to fill an IT post.
3 Yrs work experience or a 3 Yr degree?
Both?
Either?
Look at the skills & experience of the applicants, not their sex, age, colour, sexuality.
Depends - would lean towards experience though (and I have two degrees!).
These days the quality of degree educated individuals is disappointing.
Perhaps with real world work experience the training investment / learning curve will not be as steep for the non-degree educated individual?
Whoever is more likely to hit the ground running
In order I would chose first:
1. Experience and degree (however the candidate with just the experience may have a stronger/better ability anyway)
2. Experience
3. Degree
Experience, but grill em in the interview.
The IT bod who started in my office last month was a joke, despite (I'm guessing) having experience. Didn't know sh't, couldn't answer a question straight, postponed meetings with the boss so he could go for a fag etc. Clueless.
Depends, there will always be the jobs that mandate or look down on people without degrees. Some of it is also personnal, I have a degree and to me I do take some pride in that, I have worked with people who have had a bit of a chip on their shoulder as they don't have one and seem to think that people look down on them, so part of the decision will also be based on do you want the "achievement" of the degree.
It also depends if they want to bring on a graduate to train up or want someone to hit the ground running. Personally I have recruited 4 IT security consultants, two have degrees two don't. I didn't even consider the degree but the last job they did, how well they would fit my team and their aptitude to do the work. I have interviewed people with a degree but no experience and would say that I would rate the experience over the degree.
So if you are not heading for companies who mandate degrees and are looking to hit the ground running certainly don't rule out the experience option as you will find that companies will value it
if you'd be going to Derby uni - get the experience.
if its Cambridge - go to uni
Depends on the applicant - people with experience only can get set in their ways - a degree educated bod if any good will be keen to continuely move on and learn.
You can only treat the case on its merits!
Look for Profesional Qualifications if they are experience only. They should have managed to pick up a couple by now. What sort of IT job? Look for Developer quals like Sun Certified Java, or Network quals like Cisco or Sysadmin skills like RHCE/RHCT or MSwhatever. Then discard the MS ones as they are more use as bog roll.