What the world's top 10 tech billionaires studied

[Swa]

I wouldn't say the university model is outdated when so many posts (especially overseas) seem to call for a Masters degree or higher.

This is a case of horses for courses. The skillset / qualities required to be a successful entrepreneur are different from those required to be a professional. Some of those qualities are not even teachable in a classroom. An entrepreneur without a degree does not necessarily lead to the conclusion that degrees are now unnecessary.

Most of those successful entrepreneurs will still have degreed worker drones in their companies, turning that entrepreneur's vision into a sellable product / service.

The world is becoming less professional. Universities had their place when it was the factory owner and the factory worker and nothing ever changed. It's not only this which changes things but also the fact a degree doesn't mean you're suited for or can do the job any more.

It kinda is: (M.W.)

Definition of qualified​

1a: fitted (as by training or experience) for a given purpose : COMPETENT


All their degrees are relevant. A degree isn’t just some sort of certification that trains you to do specific tasks, it teaches skills such as critical thinking, quantitative reasoning, abstraction, logic, research, foundational knowledge, etc., and the required formalisms. Some are geared towards certain areas more than others, but a degree doesn’t necessarily train you to do anything in particular any more than high school economics, biology, maths, trained you to be an economist, biologist or mathematician, yet without this basic knowledge and these tools, it would be very difficult to reason about the world in general.

That is nonsense thinking and is exactly why someone gets out of university and they are like a deer in headlights when it comes to doing the job. A degree if it is relevant should be geared towards the field or else it doesn't qualify you and is essentially just schooling.

Sometimes it is a requirement and sometimes it isn’t, but your odds of navigating through higher levels of management are better if you have a degree.

It should be relevant degree. And as we have seen countless times in corporate SA it's not about what you know or your qualification but who you know when working up the ladder.

A lot of the requisite knowledge is taught at university. Even without an obviously relevant university course, the ability to reason at the right level is critical.

I disagree. They don't teach the critical thinking that's needed for entrepreneurial advancement. Neither schooling systems are geared towards that but towards book knowledge because they come from a time when that was the requirement.

 

[cguy]

The world is becoming less professional. Universities had their place when it was the factory owner and the factory worker and nothing ever changed. It's not only this which changes things but also the fact a degree doesn't mean you're suited for or can do the job any more.

I think you will find that the requirements for the higher end jobs are far more geared towards graduates than non-graduates. More so than they used to be. Both the "factory" owners and top workers tend to have degrees. A degree has never meant that you're suited for a job or can do a job, it's conditional variable, that improves the likelihood of being suited for several classes of jobs, many of which are coveted.

That is nonsense thinking and is exactly why someone gets out of university and they are like a deer in headlights when it comes to doing the job. A degree if it is relevant should be geared towards the field or else it doesn't qualify you and is essentially just schooling.

Sorry, but you are clueless about the applicability of degrees. People working outside of their field of study is ubiquitous in the higher echelons of the work force. "just schooling"? Are you not aware of the differences between those with and without schooling? It's really the same thing with degrees. There is a reason that degree holders tend to earn more, move around the world easier, hold higher level positions, and make up the majority of the world's most successful people. If you call this the result of being a deer in headlights, well, then shine on.

It should be relevant degree. And as we have seen countless times in corporate SA it's not about what you know or your qualification but who you know when working up the ladder.

Yet, as per the SA article, every single Tech CEO listed had a degree. 70% of billionaires have degrees. It's about both what you know and who you know. It's naïve to think it's just the latter.

I disagree. They don't teach the critical thinking that's needed for entrepreneurial advancement. Neither schooling systems are geared towards that but towards book knowledge because they come from a time when that was the requirement.

The critical thinking for entrepreneurial advancements is exactly what they teach. The idea of there being "book knowledge" vs "street knowledge" is a rather juvenile distinction. Having bits of both is ideal, and having the former as well is always an advantage.

 

[Swa]

I think you will find that the requirements for the higher end jobs are far more geared towards graduates than non-graduates. More so than they used to be. Both the "factory" owners and top workers tend to have degrees. A degree has never meant that you're suited for a job or can do a job, it's conditional variable, that improves the likelihood of being suited for several classes of jobs, many of which are coveted.

Being a requirement doesn't mean you are more suited for the position. It's simply the belief you are more suited.

Sorry, but you are clueless about the applicability of degrees. People working outside of their field of study is ubiquitous in the higher echelons of the work force. "just schooling"? Are you not aware of the differences between those with and without schooling? It's really the same thing with degrees. There is a reason that degree holders tend to earn more, move around the world easier, hold higher level positions, and make up the majority of the world's most successful people. If you call this the result of being a deer in headlights, well, then shine on.

You are clueless mr "why do I have to keep a qualification up to date". I am well aware of the difference between people with schooling and those without schooling. Schooling however doesn't make you suited for every job. The same way a degree can never make you suited for every position. Believing that you are better qualified for having a degree and not for having a relevant degree is a fallacy, and it's the belief in this fallacy why graduates are like a deer in headlights when they enter the real world non spoon fed working environment. It gets them in but they only get the qualification on the job and often through doing other courses.

Yet, as per the SA article, every single Tech CEO listed had a degree. 70% of billionaires have degrees. It's about both what you know and who you know. It's naïve to think it's just the latter.

Again are they qualified? This is also not a worldwide standard as this article points out. It's also not applicable to the most influential people through history, some of which didn't even finish formal schooling.

The critical thinking for entrepreneurial advancements is exactly what they teach. The idea of there being "book knowledge" vs "street knowledge" is a rather juvenile distinction. Having bits of both is ideal, and having the former as well is always an advantage.

They don't. Graduates only start learning critical thinking after entering the working environment. And on the subject of degrees being requirements, so has work experience become. Because recruiters have actually noticed that degrees are not worth what they are claimed to be.

 

[cguy]

Being a requirement doesn't mean you are more suited for the position. It's simply the belief you are more suited.

Why would anyone want to hire people they believe are less suited?

You are clueless mr "why do I have to keep a qualification up to date". I am well aware of the difference between people with schooling and those without schooling. Schooling however doesn't make you suited for every job. The same way a degree can never make you suited for every position.

That's Dr. "why do I have to keep a qualification up to date" to you. I never said that schooling makes people suited for every job - not having schooling, however, doesn't really make one suited for very much at all though. If you can imagine arguing that you don't need to study past grade 8, that's effectively what you're doing one level up, with degrees. Once again, it doesn't necessarily make someone suited for any job, but it will certainly help considerably in comparison to the baseline.

Believing that you are better qualified for having a degree and not for having a relevant degree is a fallacy, and it's the belief in this fallacy why graduates are like a deer in headlights when they enter the real world non spoon fed working environment. It gets them in but they only get the qualification on the job and often through doing other courses.

So, people who spend years studying advanced theoretical topics, doing practicals, experimentation, projects, academic research, etc. are "Deers in headlights", but those who arrive in the working world with just their matric, are wise and battle worn by their ~4 years fewer of existence, and somehow know the language of the streets. Ok, then...

Again are they qualified? This is also not a worldwide standard as this article points out. It's also not applicable to the most influential people through history, some of which didn't even finish formal schooling.

Yes, they are qualified through experience. Experience they would likely never have achieved or utilized as fully if they didn't have their degrees.

They don't. Graduates only start learning critical thinking after entering the working environment. And on the subject of degrees being requirements, so has work experience become. Because recruiters have actually noticed that degrees are not worth what they are claimed to be.

Look, if you want to argue that there is no critical thinking in studies until the work environment, that's insane, but it's also your prerogative. The rest of the world disagrees. You're also creating a false dichotomy between degrees and experience here. A degree and experience trumps all. Everyone with a degree will eventually have both, and those with just experience will only ever have the one. Those with only experience, will mostly only have experience doing work that does not require/prefer a degree, so the experience isn't likely to be of the same quality either.