Congrats on the new job, I’ve read the blog and it is truly well deseeved.

Regarding on the difficulties of the italian market, I’d like to dissent though.

Fact is, in Italy is waaaaay more simple to cheat your way to the top instead of having to go through the pains of getting a proper degree.

I know because I did it and went from a non graduated outbound call center operator to dirigential positions in highly respected fashionable industries in less than 10 years.

Point is, and with the exception of research roles o and a fistful of high consultancies, who enforce the control on graduation, most likely than not you will not be asked for proof of your studies if your jobtitle carries enough weight and if your accomplishments a friendship with the right people weights enough.

Trick is to change joq with the right frequency in the first years, participate to associations and try to be in the board, blog a lot in the right environments (and specifically there), make a lot of acquaintances and help them solve tricky situations for free, and generally speaking be as visible as possible as a tech savyy and strategist.

At the right moment, the reputation you will have accrued will be enough to receive accreditations beyond the first line of HR, and id your sponsor is notable enough no one will ask for your degree.

Once you have done that the first time, is the weight of your jobtitle and your name that propels you forward, no one willing to question your perceived authority.

Than rinse and repeat until the weight of jobtitle and name combined is unquestionable.

If you know how to behave, you will rise fast.

And good luck to trying that abroad. On a sidenote, once you earned the jobtitle this way in italy, it is easier (but still tricky) to get it abroad as well.

Once I tried to go abroad sometimes I got asked credentials (and subsequently bombed) and sometimes not, wich guaranteed me jobs in Switzerland and France.

Steer away from anglosaxon jobs though, they do enforce the control and most likely they’ll carch your bluff.

last suggestion: shoot for the highest possible pay and change job often enough to beat inflation several times over in 5 years. Above 150k/years almost no one will ask you for degrees. Only your pay and jobtitle and experience will count.

Good luck!