Starting a Degree Finally, Because Now the Robots Care About Them

When I was younger, I had the FOMO about going to college, but until now I thought not having a degree wouldn’t matter.

I got an HNC in Computer Studies back in the day, then built a 34+ year career in computing, marketing, and web development. Clients and employers cared about what I could do for them, not what certificates I had on the wall.

Nobody ever asked about grades when I was building websites or debugging code that made their businesses work.

For decades, that was enough. Until robots took over.

The filters changed

Recruiters used to read CVs. Now they never see your actual documents – they just run applications entirely through software.

If your profile doesn’t include the right keywords, “degree,” “BSc,” “BA,” whatever the algorithm expects, you might never even make it to get in front of a human being.

And ironically, the shift came because of artificial intelligence. The same kind of tools I use every day to automate processes for clients are now the ones silently deciding whether people like me get seen.

That’s when I realised: my lack of a degree hadn’t held me back until the robots started caring about them.

Looking for the quickest, cheapest, real option

The dream, of course, would be to give myself a year or two off. Study full time. Heck wouldn’t it be lovely to go overseas? International College of Management, Sydney anyone?

But realistically, I’m not interested in “college life”, prestige or academic games. My priority is something affordable, legitimate, and flexible enough to fit around my self-employed work.

That said, it would be cool if it was useful and interesting too.

Back in the 1990s, before my daughter came along, I did start a computing degree with the OU. I really enjoyed it, got to learn the OG OO language, SmallTalk, and found it challenging but doable. Anyone who knows our family story around my daughter’s birth will understand why my studies went on indefinite hold.

After researching a pile of options, Open University, University of the People, top-up degrees, RPL credits, I found a few routes that make sense for people in my position:

• Top-Up Degrees: If you already have an HNC or HND, many UK universities let you jump straight to the final stage and finish in about a year (or two part-time).
• Part-Time Online Study: The Open University and Arden University both allow you to pay module by module and study at your own pace.
• Student Finance England Loans: You can get a tuition-fee loan even if you’re self-employed and over 50. You only repay if you earn above £25,000 a year.
• Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL): Your work history and previous qualifications can reduce the time and cost dramatically.

Why Arden made sense

Arden stood out because it’s flexible and practical. I can study online, pay monthly, and use my HNC and career experience to skip ahead. They accept mature students who’ve been working in tech longer than most of their tutors have been alive, and they focus on results rather than ceremony.

I’ve also contacted the Open University to check if my old M206 module from 1998 still carries any credit. Even a few leftover points from that era could shorten the journey. As of yet they can’t find me and keep asking for the same personal details over and over.

Why I’m doing it now

It’s not just about passing filters, though that’s part of it. It’s also about finishing something I started, proving to myself that experience and formal education don’t have to be either/or.

I want to show that lifelong learning isn’t a slogan. You can be in your fifties, running your own projects, building software, and still decide to complete your degree because the world changed and you’re adapting with it.

The irony isn’t lost on me that AI made me go back to school.

But maybe that’s the right response, keep learning, keep evolving, keep coding?