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Balancing Traditional University Degrees vs. Coding Bootcamps: The Journey of a Company's Hiring Evolution

The debate of hiring people with non-traditional education still has work to do, Dale Carnegie's 8-week course is still relevant and hiring managers might be dealing with a messy life

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The Deputy
July 18, 2024

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“Only knowledge that is used sticks in your mind.”

Dale Carnegie

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In today’s email:

  • Job News: Balancing Traditional University Degrees vs. Coding Bootcamps

  • Overheard at coffee:Dale Carnegie grads are still winning friends and influencing people

  • Trending AI Tools: An innovative way to create stunning AI Videos with Haiper AI Video

  • Hot Jobs: (keep scrolling down ⬇️)

  • Recruiting Fails: Life is messy, give your hiring a manager a break ❌

Job News

We work with many Chief Technology Officers and Executives who ask us to find software developers and technical talent and every time the topic of coding bootcamps vs. traditional university degrees comes up. 

The other day (names and cities changed for anonymity) in the bustling city of Techville, Barracuda AI's Chief Technology Officer, Carl Sinclair, told us he preferred hiring developers with traditional university degrees. He valued the comprehensive education and critical thinking skills these candidates brought. However, his reluctance to consider coding bootcamp graduates began to stir debate within the company.

Mia, a team lead at the company, argued that bootcamp graduates offered practical skills and fresh perspectives. Despite Carl's skepticism, Barracuda AI's projects started lagging due to the rapid pace of technological change. Finally, Carl agreed to interview some bootcamp graduates. 

While we submitted a diverse range of candidates with university degrees and coding bootcamps, Alex, a standout bootcamp graduate, impressed Carl with innovative problem-solving and up-to-date knowledge. He ended up hiring Alex and as well as another candidate, Samuel, making Barracuda AI more agile and innovative. Carl realized the value of blending traditional and non-traditional backgrounds.

Somewhere at your company, there is a debate over hiring candidates from traditional universities vs. bootcamps or online programs.

Here is The Deputy’s advice for candidates:

Bootcamp Graduates:

  • Showcase Practical Skills: Highlight projects and hands-on experience. Demonstrate your ability to solve real-world problems.

  • Continuous Learning: Stay updated with the latest technologies and be ready to learn quickly.

  • Highlight Diverse Backgrounds: Emphasize any additional degrees or work experience that add to your skill set. Example, if you worked in sales or marketing, then made the switch to developing code, this could be a good combination because you know sales and technical skills.

University Graduates:

  • Show Adaptability: Prove that you can adapt to new technologies and methodologies quickly. Don’t give up on learning after you get your degree.

  • Highlight Projects: Showcase practical experience gained through internships, projects, or collaborations.

  • Stay Humble: A degree from a prestigious university is valuable, but be prepared to continuously learn and prove your worth in a dynamic industry.

Be aware that hiring managers are going to quickly judge you by your resume until they interview you and learn more about your story. Talk about what you have built and the contributions you made in each of your experiences. You are more than your resume.

Overheard at coffee ☕️

Speaking of bootcamps, for some reason the early 1990s eight-week Dale Carnegie course is still popular and who could go wrong with his popular book, How to Win Friends and Influence People?...

Notable alums include Ronald Reagan, Johnny Cash, Tony Robbins, Lyndon Johnson, cosmetics entrepreneur May Kay Ash, Warren Buffett and automaker Lee Iacocca. Sadly, cult leader Charlie Manson was a student of Dale Carnegie too. 

I have studied Dale Carnegie’s material over the years and it’s cheesy but I admit, his work has helped me over the years. I still have some of his notecards to remember. Like the quote, “Only knowledge that is used sticks in your mind”.

Don’t put all your eggs in one Dale Carnegie course to do well in your next job, but you can’t go wrong remembering someone’s name after you meet them in a meeting.

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Recruiting Fails: Meet people where they are, not where you think they should be. I saw this on reddit the other day and it’s a good reminder that on the other side of your email, someone may be dealing with some bad cards in life.

I have a friend who is frustrated that he keeps waiting to hear back from an employer after his interview. The hiring manager keeps telling him they will follow-up at the end of the week. My advice to him is to stay patient and keep following up because you do not know what that hiring manager is dealing with on the other side.

While it’s not a heart attack, it could be something else. Life is messy and sometimes the mess spills into work.

as seen on the recruiting community in reddit

Do you have recruiting Fail Stories?Reply with your epic fails – we'll feature them. Own your blunders, embrace vulnerability, and let's all level up together.

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