For decades, the four-year degree was the default filter for entry-level tech jobs. But that default is eroding fast in cloud, networking, IT support, and security operations, where employers are increasingly hiring on demonstrable skills instead. Michelle Marlowe, Director of Education at Pocket Prep, says the shift is clear in real study and pass-rate data, though she avoids overstating it: certifications are closing the gap fast in these fields. The numbers back her up.
About 53% of employers have eliminated degree requirements from job postings, according to
The State of Skills-Based Hiring 2025, and 85% now use some form of skills-based hiring. Marlowe says certifications fit that shift because they map directly to the skills a job requires, whereas a degree usually doesn’t. Still, she’s clear that a cert stack alone doesn’t guarantee the job: it can get you in the door, but a hiring manager may still scan for a degree.
Which Certifications Are Actually Growing
Cloud remains the foundation of most of Marlowe’s hiring conversations. She points to AWS, Azure, and Google Cloud as the base layer because almost everything runs on it. On the security side, Security+ and CySA+ dominate analyst-track hiring, while CISSP and CISM carry weight for senior and management roles. Pocket Prep’s exam data reflects the same pattern: Security+, Security X, CISSP, and Network+ are consistently among the most-studied exams in the platform’s IT and cybersecurity offerings. AI is showing up here too, with the World Economic Forum listing AI, big data, cybersecurity, and technological literacy among the fastest-growing skills employers will want by 2030, according to Scholaro.
Sequence Matters More Than Volume
Marlowe is quick to correct a common assumption that more certifications are always better. The key is sequence, not quantity: stack them with purpose. Most people build a broad foundation before specializing, moving from A+ to Network+ to Security+, or from AWS Cloud Practitioner to Solutions Architect. The market rewards certifications as focused career currency rather than a long list of disconnected ones.
The Misconceptions That Trip People Up
Ask Marlowe what people get wrong about certifications, and she has a ready list. The first misconception is that the cert gets you hired. It gets you into the conversation; experience and the interview are still crucial. The second is that certification exams are pure memorization. Exams keep shifting toward hands-on, performance-based questions, and flashcard-only studiers get caught off guard. That is why every question in the app explains why the right answer is right, and the wrong ones are wrong. The third is treating certification as a one-time event. Most certs expire, she notes, so recertification and continuing education are part of the deal.
What the Pass Data Actually Shows
Pocket Prep’s internal study data reveals a clear pattern in who passes. The biggest predictor of passing isn’t hours logged; it’s consistency. Users scoring 70 to 89% on practice questions while studying for 8 to 30 days tend to cluster in the 70 to 90% pass-rate range, whereas those scoring 90% or higher tend to pass regardless of study duration. Short study windows of one to seven days correlate with lower pass rates across nearly every score bucket. Marlowe also flags one habit that consistently separates passers from those who struggle: taking at least one full-length mock exam, which builds the stamina a multi-hour test demands.
Where Learners Get Stuck
The biggest early mistake, according to Marlowe, is choosing the wrong certification or the wrong order. People also tend to underestimate specific high-difficulty domains rather than studying evenly across domains. On the Security+ exam, she says candidates consistently report Security Operations, worth 28% of the exam, and Security Architecture, worth 18%, as the hardest sections, and people without operational experience struggle most with them. That difficulty shows up in the passing bar, too: Security+ requires roughly 83% correct, meaning candidates can miss only about 15 of 90 questions. From there, the challenge rises sharply:
Network+ pass rates run 75 to 80%, CySA+ falls to 60 to 70%, and CISSP first-attempt pass rates drop to just 20 to 30%. Performance-based questions are the single biggest stumbling block, Marlowe says, because they can’t be memorized, and Pocket Prep built full-length mock exams specifically to simulate that pressure before test day.
Degree, Certification, or Both
Marlowe’s advice starts with the end goal. For anyone aiming to work in cloud, networking, support, or security within months, certifications are the faster, cheaper, higher-ROI path, and they let you earn while you learn. For fields or companies where a degree is a hard gate, or for anyone eyeing management, the degree still carries weight. Her best advice splits the difference: do both. Lead with certs to get hired and start earning; add the degree later if your career goals require it.
Looking ahead, Marlowe expects verifiable digital credentials to become standard within the next couple of years, closing the gap between employers who say they hire on skills and those who actually do. She expects exams to keep moving toward hands-on, performance-based formats, certifications to stack into recognized career pathways rather than stand alone, and recertification to become a constant as the shelf life of technical skills keeps diminishing. In turn, the employers who come out ahead, she says, will be the ones who rebuild hiring around skills instead of simply rewriting their job postings.
