"There was a time when qualifications were the only thing that mattered. If you had a degree, you could fit almost anywhere: in jobs, in business, and even in society. That era is gone. Over the last few decades, the world has changed. Now, skills have taken over as the real requirement for success. Whether it's landing a high-paying job, running your own business, or even managing simple day-to-day tasks, skills matter everywhere."
"Qualifications are about formal recognition. They're the degrees, diplomas, or certifications that prove you studied something. But skills are different. Skills are about actually doing something, whether or not you have a certificate for it. For example, imagine someone who is a car mechanic but has also learned programming on the side, without any formal degree in computer science. That knowledge becomes part of their skillset."
"If skills are so important, then why do so many young people enter the workforce without them? A recent report by Cengage Group found that only 30% of 2025 graduates had secured full-time jobs related to their degree, with nearly half (48%) feeling unprepared to even apply for entry-level positions [1]. Another study by Cambridge University Press and Assessment revealed that only 45% of students globally felt ready for life beyond school, the gaps are clear."
Formal qualifications once provided broad access to jobs and social roles, but the landscape has shifted so that practical skills are now the primary requirement for success. Skills enable people to perform tasks, adapt to changing roles, and combine diverse abilities—such as a mechanic who also programs—to gain advantages. Degrees still confer formal recognition, but credentials alone are often insufficient without applied, in-demand skills. Recent studies show low alignment between degrees and employment and widespread feelings of unpreparedness among students and graduates, indicating persistent gaps between education and workplace requirements.
Read at eLearning Industry
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]