Sorry for the clickbait title, but I released a new Engineering Career report today based on the career trajectory of every engineer in the US over the last 10 years (130+ Million job transitions) and here is the rub on college pedigree:
There are only small differences between folks with top-tier degrees and no degrees
I compared the top 20 university engineering programs to engineers who graduated from other schools and engineers who never completed a degree. The reality is that there is only a small difference over time. While top-university graduates ascend to leadership at higher rates, over time the difference in percentages remains small.
Faster promotions for top-tier graduates: Of the engineers who reach senior roles, those who graduated from top-tier programs tend to get there about 2-3 years quicker than others. Considering college could be an added 4 years to your timeline, it may be faster to just start building on day one. On the whole, you're likely to beat your Stanford counterparts to the job.
Of course there are other reasons to go to college, like making connections and learning how to eat 24 del taco tacos in one sitting... but it's worth a discussion.
Please checkout the full report if you found this interesting, it's completely free and it was a labor of love. https://www.signalfire.com/blog/engineering-career-trends-pt1
The study looks interesting and provides a few additional insights.
Regarding the "degree or no degree" debate:
For many positions, it does not make a significant difference. However, there are situations where a formally educated engineer may take a completely different approach. This is particularly important in fields like R&D or systems engineering, where deep theoretical understanding can lead to breakthroughs or more efficient designs. It is this nuanced understanding that can occasionally set degree holders apart in high-stakes scenarios.
That said, self-taught or less formally trained engineers can still achieve exceptional outcomes, especially if they are self-motivated, continuously learning, and focused.