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The World we live in today is different than it was in the 1900s, and with every new century or even decade that we step into, we see a range of new advancements waiting for us to catch up to them. Our global education system is thus also, very much, a part of this ever-changing dynamic. The educational system serves as the foundation for any economy. The employment opportunities being fully utilized and to be reaped to their maximum potential require a very well educated and skilled labor force, experienced being the keyword here. Education doesn’t necessarily equip us with the right practical tools needed in the real World. Research by the Harvard Business Review on whether higher education is preparing us for real-time jobs supports the fact that the current market demands require a change in perspective of the educationists. 

Changing Market Dynamics

Today’s World is dominated by dynamically altering technology and ever-changing demand skill sets. The jobs that were considered high end a few years back seem to be depleting in demand as the time progresses. The job markets have changed drastically over the years, and the jobs that were available in the 1990s and 1980s are no longer needed in a digitally-driven world. According to a study published in Forbes, several jobs are becoming obsolete, even though they were some of the significant economic contributors back in the days. Hence, the question here that arises is whether paper qualifications are enough and necessary to cope with ever-changing market dynamics?

Who is Considered Educated?

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However, how we define an educated individual in today’s World is a question that holds a lot of importance. Is an educated person someone who owns a set amount of qualifications and degrees, or is it someone who has been through a learning process, is now capable of higher mental functioning? A research study supports the idea that skills in project management and logical thinking, alongside math and statistics, are prerequisites to jobs. Still, these can, in any case, be outsourced or automated easily. Thus, the primary education needs to be supported by technical skills that are often learned while into a job or outside the formal education system; unless you pursue the technical studies as your majors. Paper qualifications thus do tend to deem you educated, but there are technical skills that aren’t always learned via a formal educational route. 

Does Paper Qualification Accommodate for the Lack of Relevant Skills?

Since all professions are not the same and have different prerequisites, specific jobs require a paper qualification for the individuals to classify as professionals, i.e., doctors, lawyers, engineers, and accountants. And even though these degrees and formal qualifications are the way to your job, they are not the path for you to be successful in the position, unless backed with adequate skills. There are cases where individuals have formal degrees in one subject and have ended up carving career trajectories based on the skills that they picked up while growing up, either learning it in an extracurricular activity or pursuing a passion or hobby on the side. Moreover, a formal degree doesn’t guarantee that you have ended up polishing the necessary skills needed in the practical World, e.g., interpersonal and communication skills. There are cases where the students are better performers in formal examinations but have a hard time working alongside people and getting their point across in a room full of peers. Thus, again proving that skills learned to tend to overpower the paper qualification itself when it comes to them being useful in pragmatic terms.  

Is Experience Most Important Than Qualifications?

It is essential here while answering the question in the discussion that we analyze what is considered more important in the job market; experience or qualification? Or are they both equally important in their rights? A degree or a formal diploma doesn’t necessarily have to do with seeing what the job or career would be. Still, it also has to do with how reformed the person is intellectually, socially, and even ethically. The degree or qualification is the way to get into the job more market where experience then later does lead the stage. But even during that time, formal qualifications with the relevant job are appreciated in high-end jobs. It is argued that a formal education transforms a person in ways more that go beyond giving him the necessary knowledge. 

However, those support the other side of the argument tend to support their claim of experience being more critical by questioning if someone who has just studied about a particular subject, with little or no practical implementation of the knowledge, would be better at a job as compared to someone who has grown through different levels through possible experience, for the same job role. And more often than not, the latter tends to take the lead in the argument that has been put forward. Even while hiring people, the job reviewers tend to look at experience before the educational backgrounds, reiterating the importance that experience holds in comparison to the paper qualifications of the candidate.

Conclusion

It is essential to understand that even though qualifications are crucial, they are no longer that relevant in today’s World. The World has examples of children who are tech experts having learned the IT skills sitting at home with no formal qualification in the following subject matter. Some leading companies, such as Google, in the World, don’t require you to have a college degree necessary, and that shows that paper qualifications, even though essential for personal development, are no longer a necessity in helping you build the career that you want. 

Someone keen to learn, with the World’s knowledge brought to him in the comfort of his room via the internet, can learn heaps from it. But it cannot be ignored that certain professions require formal education and cannot just be learned sitting at home. Thus, maybe, now is the time for the educational system to reform itself in a way that teaches students the theoretical knowledge with ample practical experience incorporated in their formal education so that they can learn what interests them in the most wholesome way possible.