Is the future of degrees in jeopardy?

Google made a big announcement last year, in 2020, which could change the future of jobs and higher education: Google is offering a selection of vocational courses that will help job seekers find jobs. This may seem like a normal thing, but it is considered a wake-up call for today's education system, especially for higher education institutions and universities. Why this is so, we will first talk about its background.

The debate in the world has been going on for some time now that universities do not adequately equip students with the real world skills required in practical life, and even after many years of study, students get jobs in practical life. Are struggling to do.

Kent Walker, senior vice president of global affairs at Google, says, "College degrees are out of reach for many Americans, and you don't need a college diploma for financial security. We need everything from professional programs to online From education to jobs, there is a need for a training solution that is accessible to the people. "

"The new Google Career Certificates are designed based on our existing programs to enable people to pursue IT support careers without a college degree," says Walker. "Launched in 2018, the Google IT certification program has become the most popular certificate on the course, thousands of people have found new jobs and increased their income after completing the course," he said. . "

These courses, which we call Google Career Certificates, teach the basic skills that help job seekers find work quickly. However, instead of taking many years to complete like a traditional university degree, the duration of these courses is about 6 months.

The most interesting and important thing that Walker has said here is that "for our own job at Google, we will consider these new career certificates as equivalent to a four-year degree for the relevant job."

On the other hand, says Stefan Casreil, CEO of a well-known company, I have hired many programmers during my career. It doesn't matter to me if anyone has a degree in computer science. The important thing is how well they can think and how well they can code. In fact, no degree is required for any of the top 20 best skills in the company's latest skills index.

This is further strengthened by the fact that freelancers are rapidly emerging in today's job market. Many companies are interested in embracing the new concept. Glass Door, a popular Jobs website, lists 15 more companies that no longer require a degree for employment. These include Apple, IBM and Companies like Google are also involved.

Interestingly, a six-month course costs less than امریکی 300 - so many university students spend only one semester on textbooks. In addition, Google said it would provide 100,000 scholarships for those in need of new programs. Google claims that their courses, which will cost very little compared to traditional university education, will immediately prepare students to find work in career fields with higher salaries and better career opportunities. No degree or previous experience is required to take the course. Each course is designed and taught by Google employees who are working in related fields. After the completion of a program, Google also promises job search assistance. The company says participants can "share their information directly with Wal-Mart, Best Buy, Intel, Bank of America, Hulu, and Google itself for jobs in these areas." Completion will provide participants with hundreds of apprenticeship opportunities.

The bottom line is that Google can't break the higher education model overnight, but it has sounded the alarm for universities. It is true that there are some degrees, including midsection, dentistry, engineering and law, which cannot be replaced by a short course of 6 months - then many companies will prefer those who have a traditional degree for a long time. These certificates are currently only for Americans, and it is difficult to say how much the rest of the world is interested in adopting this concept. But it is definitely a big step in the world of education. For the first time, universities and colleges are realizing that they have a competitor like Google.

It remains to be seen how higher education providers will react to Google's certifications in the coming years and whether they will make any effort to adopt them, but it is becoming clear that Jobs' future is not in degrees. Rather, it will be conditional on skills and no institution in the world will be able to escape its effects.