Ikke's Blog

Not really, no. More and more employers these days are interested far more in work experience than degrees. Things like volunteer work and internships, as well as previous jobs, go a long way. They indicate far better than any degree could that you have some idea what the hell you're doing.

I have been working without a diploma for the last six-nearly-seven years. Only once have I been asked about a diploma in an interview and I got the project anyway.

In my experience, the piece of paper is not important, it's knowing your stuff and convincing the interviewer that you know your stuff.

Having relevant experience helps. In my case, I just had to say: "if you wanted a diploma, I'd still be studying instead of giving you a CV with five years of very relevant experience to interview me about; do you want someone who can deliver the project or someone fresh from school who doesn't know what the real world smells like?".

Your mileage may vary.

If you're more than 2/3rd's complete, my advice would be to finish it. While it's true that you can easily find work right now, not finishing the degree will bite you in the long run. And you'll never be on top of the material like you are now. If you can't finish the original program, consider the shortest exit route that still gets you a piece of paper.

Well, Bill Gates dropped out of Harvard to found Microsoft :) Granted, he eventually got his degree some 30 years later. It wasn't the degree that got him where he is today (but that's another subject of its own :)