Degree v. Experience

Have started looking for a new job (need more of a challenge and am tired of being on the road, and want back into the design and programming side) and it seems that the market is getting a little better. It seems that employers are emphasizing a degree over experience, do you find this true in your company? Is there a good reason, seems to me experience is more valuable?I have 10 years of controls design, plc programming, hmi, servo, etc.. But am finding it hard to even get in the door because I don't have a Associates in Electronincs (5 classes short), though I have a BS in another field.Thanks for your thoughts.

There are resume writing books out there for non-degreed people. One that caught my eye was layed out like a yellow pages ad. Experience was highlighted at the top in bullet form. Phrases were pasted on either side. Experience in cronological order was in the middle. Education at the bottom.
Hopefully the reader is sold by the top part and will overlook education.
In the past I have modified my resume for each application by repeating on my resume the very catch phrases used in the ad. This was done in an attempt to get past the clueless HR screener.

I do not find this to be the case, at least in this field. I would just put down B.S., Date, School.

A good resume is a must though, why not post your resume in the job section and we can give you some feedback on it.

It depends on the company. Generally speaking (and this is very generally) smaller companies with smaller bureaucracies will be less concerned with degrees and more concerned with experience. The degree works as a very easy filter tool for people who don't know what they are looking at (i.e Human Resource). If your resume gets directly to someone who knows what they are looking at the experience can shine through. That direct resume route happens more frequently with smaller companies.

But on the flip side, if you are dealing with a one man show and the one man is an Ivy League lawyer the degree probably carries alot of weight again. So there is more correctly a bureaucratic sweet spot you are shooting for.

Keith

kamenges: I think you are right on...went to a open house for a Target warehouse that was looking for technicians/electricians and they were very exited about my qualifications, but didn't get past the phone interview by a corporate hr person. My current job is with a small (<20 people) company, with some office staff, but mostly technical personnel.

My resume is attached...comments welcome.

Thanks

You were at LMS Walt a long time. You should be able to list, describe or otherwise quantify specific improvements you made over time. Examples would be, reduced machine build time by 25%, reduced turnaround time on repairs, worked with vendors to negotiate better cost multiplier, etc.
Show that you are better than others.
I can see why Target would pass on you as an electrician. Your resume doesn't read like an electrician. They may know more than you think.

I've always hired the man, not the education. If I find someone with good work ethic, intelligence, and drive, he is good for me. I can teach skills, I can't teach character. I think, though, I am an exception.

Looking at your resume I can see why Target passed you by. If I was hiring for a warehouse I would be looking for a general electrician. Think about what is in a Target warehouse. Your equipemnt consits of conveyors and fork lifts. Other than that you have lights and HVAC. To them you probably looked over qualified.

Suggestion on the resume. As someone else mentioned, tell how you have improved things. I have few other things. Do not take this as nit picking, it is just things I see that would raise Red Flags to me. I listed them as they jumped out at me

1) You list Soldering as a job skill. IF you have any electrical experience this is a pretty much asuumed skill.
2)When I see someone list AC/DC Drives with nothing else I think this is a person who has seen them in a panel but really does not know a whole lot about them. There are many types and brands of AC drives, list the ones you know.
3)You list Schematic, Auto CAd and Electrical Panel Layout, these are all basically the same thing.
4)You say "Vast Experience" but only list 1 type of PLC.
5)You say design experience but do not list any details under your job descriptions
6) This kind of leans into 5. You have 12 years with one company but you do not say what the company made. Also you gave descriptions of the jobs you did but they were pretty generic. I would expect someone who had been at 1 place 12 years to be alot more descriptive.
7) Education: Law Enforcement does not apply as far as I know in this field so you would probably be best leaving it out. You graduated in 94 and started something totally different in 96. First thing that comes to mind (not saying it is true) Why if he graduated top of his class in Law Enforcement did he start wiring panels. Was there a reason he could not get a law enforcement job.

You know I have heard alot about your resume has to go thru HR. This is true but the only thing HR is looking for is catch phrases. They are not really review your resume. If it has the right lingo they are going to give it to the Department head. He is going to give it a glance and try and read you from this. He is deciding if you are worth his time.
With big companies one of the catch phrases is "x" years of education and or "x" degree, so yes the lack of a degree does hurt some. That is where you really have to show your experience.

I look for 'the knack'. Education is a 'knack' enhancer.

willing to travel?

Willing to make a change and travel far for work? Come over to Asia!
Sometimes a change of location is what you need; and perhaps spruce up your resume too. Since you work at LMS Walt for a long period of time, you should be able to further detail your scope of work and make it look more attractive.
Just my $0.02 thought.

I have used zebra printers. Can you answer communications questions, commands, protocol, actual logic to print in the right location?

I too, have found that smaller firms are more interested in experience. However, I would suggest that you expand your resume and give a lot more detail as to your accomplishments and the types of jobs that you've handeled. I've found that a resume that can run up to three pages is still acceptable for technical people. For most others, it seems to be no more than two pages. List more of the PLC and HMI types that you've worked with. Give some job locations (you've traveled, as have most of us in the PLC field) along with site descriptions.
Godfrey is right, give some examples of the improvements you've made.
Best of luck to you. I've been retired for five years now, and I do enjoy it. Did enjoy the field work, to a point, but it does get old. It does seem to be a requirement in this field however.

I dont know how USAmerican or Canadian resume usually looks like. But i could not get myself to read it trough.

to Clay .B , I think you are not right in everything, for me your words look like when you a guest in your house , then he is coffing , then you say to your familyb listen all of you , you have to be careful this guy might have cancer or aid , remember if i review your resume i will teach you how many mistakes i can pick up , life is more easy and people acting like you make it very complicated , thanx

Tip: Both is better