Are IT companies looking for students with higher level degrees or more experience?

Hi Shelly. First off, welcome to the civilian world. I too am a military veteran and you've got a good start coming out of the service. Benjamin makes a good point about the online schooling, but you are not limited to that. If you are eligible for the G.I. Bill, you can go to school full time and collect B.A.H. Depending on your zip code, you may be able to focus on attending a school in a classroom setting and either work part-time or not a all. This will enable you to take more units and finish faster with some flexibility. I attended Keller Graduate School of Management and it was 4 hours of class time weekly that satisfied the full time requirement. Whether you attend an online class or in class, make sure you register for your benefits and check with each school of interest to maximize your benefits. Ultimately, degrees will get you the interview, but your experience lands the position, so put yourself in the best position to succeed by maximizing your options. Another option, as Benjamin mentioned, is certifications. Being in IT, you'll find that most of businesses now are steering on data and analytics, so take some time to read up on market trends in this field. Learn the terminology and how the database management systems are managed by IT. Hope this helps.

If your MOS was IT related, your work experience should help you to land at least a help desk job. However, the days of cruising through an IT career with an associates or just some certs are ending. The market is more competitive.

The first piece of advice I can offer is if you don't already have any, get some certs under your belt. Between that and military experience, you should be able to land a job.

Once you have that, consider what your goals are. If you are happy in IT and you want to make a career out of it, you're going to want to at least get a BS. I would recommend considering University of Phoenix. I was able to knock out a BS in IT in 2 1/2 years with only military training before that (they are very generous with giving credit for military training). Don't let the people who talk down on on-line schools fool you. My Phoenix degree got me accepted into Villanova and now I am working towards a PhD.

Shelly, thank you for your military service. The degree verses experience saga will depend on your expectations for employment. Take in consideration the type of IT job you wish to continue after your military career. There are technician roles and up and possibly including management, depending on your military rank on the military. Take advantage of what the military can offer prior to your transition - have the military pay for certifications, college courses that will increase your opportunities for employment in IT. Also, consider transitioning to the Reserves in order to continue training in the IT field and possibly maintain a Security Clearance that may be helpful to a future employer.