What is meant by "equivalent combination of education and experience"?

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1

What I make now self-employed is pretty much the standard entry level position for web designer working at a “real job” these days. I don’t consider my job a “real job” because I work for myself and I work on my own terms, schedule, etc. I love this about the job. However, I’m at the point where I think I’m ready to work for someone else as long as the pay is twice as much as what I’m making now…and I get to stay in my home town.

So, I browsed a few job sites online and saw a few positions open. A couple of them required BA degrees (pathetic because I never hired anyone with a degree–their portfolio sucked 99% of the time). However, I’m seeing more and more employers deferring that with an emphasis on real-world experience with a minimum being 2 years.

What I am seeing more and more these days is the following wording for job requirements: “BA degree OR equivalent combination of education and experience”

Does anyone know what exactly is meant by “equivalent combination of education and experience” ? Does that mean SOME years of college and SOME real world experience? Or, does it mean an Associate’s Degree + real world experience?

2

BA = x * Education + y * Experience

= : equivalent

  • : combination

If you have learned enough through experience to know the equivalent of what a graduate with a BA knows, then x=0 but y is big enough to balance the equation, and you meet the requirements.

3

Dan, but how does the employer calculate that? Do they just look at your work history? Since I am a one-man web development company, I have a wide range of clients. Am I inferior to the guy that has worked for the same employer for 1 year? Just wondering how recruiters/HR evaluates people like me (I do have about 3 years of college credit).

4

They look at your work history.

It’s very subjective, but a few years in the field is generally the equivalent of a BA