Is a college diploma worth the 2 years?

1

Due to some circumstances, i am not able to attend university in my country with my high school diploma. However i was told that if i get a college diploma i would be able to attend a bachelor’s degree program.

My point is, i’am 24 years old, and lets say by the time i get my college diploma, i will be 26, and then i would want to get a bachelor’s degree that’s 4 years, i will be 30 years old.

I simply think that i would be more productive learning from fcc and other resources and maybe get into a bootcamp, with less time spent, and more work done.
Maybe i will get an online bachelor’s degree when i start working as a web developer, but for now i cannot waste time any time on degrees that take such long time.

Please let me know what you think.
Thank you.

2

Hi there!
I don’t know where you are from, but isn’t there another way to get a High School Diploma that’s gonna get you into university? Like a general test or something? From what I have researched, getting a job without a high school diploma is really really hard, even as developer.
Try to find non-traditional college programs that don’t require 4 years, like this one: https://code.berlin/en/ :slightly_smiling_face:

3

I don’t think i explained it thoroughly, i apologize.
I already have a high school diploma, its the college diploma that i was mentioning.

Thank you for the suggestions. I will look into non-traditional and online college programs.

4

It probably depends on what you want to do.
But you can find work without a diploma easily, it’s mostly about your portfolio anyway.

My friend got a job as a web developer a year ago after doing online courses and self teaching for a year at a small wordpress firm.

5

Exactly what i was thinking!
I mean, if a degree is so important, i can simply get one while working as a web developer.

6

The only place where I can see you need one is if you want to work for a bigger firm where they have lots of applicants with various degrees. But then again, working a few years in the field, building a good track record and a solid portfolio should trump the lack of a degree anyway!

7

I know absolutely nothing about the job market or higher education in Jordan (it sounds like a “college diploma” is similar to what in the US would be an “associate’s degree” from a community college or junior college, but that’s just a guess). The only thing I’ll contribute is that if what is making you hold back is that you would be 30 by the time you finish your education, don’t let that scare you too much. I promise that life doesn’t actually end at the big three-oh (regardless of what my father told me when I hit that birthday). Quincy actually started a hashtag on Twitter #devafter30 for people to share their experiences joining the profession as adults. I got my CS degree later than is traditional and in a lot of ways it helped me focus and get more out of my education. Here in the US I was able to work professionally while I was in school, and I certainly would have done FCC if it had been around at the time.

8

It is like an associate’s degree.
I think i will stick to fcc, bootcamp, etc…, as a starter into the industry. Then I’ll get an online bachelor’s while i work.
Appreciate for the advice.