After dropping out of college, Jasey Tragesser was still making $300 to 500 per week as a waitress.
She earns $135,000 per year as a marketing manager for a software-as-a-service company, and has no intentions of finishing her degree.
She told Insider that she was able to move up the income ladder without taking on student debt because of her hard work and luck.
Companies are realizing that not everyone can afford college. If a person requires a four-year degree, they could be missing out on a lot of talent.
A majority of Americans don't have a degree. Despite President Biden's August announcement on federal student debt cancellation, the cost of a college education remains as high as ever.
Many people are exploring alternative career paths due to this. A wide range of careers are becoming more accessible as companies ease their degree requirements in response to the labor shortage.
Tragesser decided to attend college part-time for a couple thousand dollars per semester. She dropped out after one year.
She said that when you're 18 years old and you move out, and you're in college, it's a lot of stress. We're forced into that. A lot of kids are not ready and I was one of them.
Her parents were upset. Tragesser needed to support herself by working as a waitress. She said this time in her life was very difficult.
She said that everybody expects you to finish high school and go to college. It wasn't the way I was going.
She got her big break last year. She was waiting on the president of a small investment firm who asked if she would be interested in an internship. She made a decision to leap.
She was still with the company a year later and felt like she had gotten everything she could out of the role. She applied for over 100 jobs and sat through dozens of interviews but didn't get a degree.
She said it was exciting because it seemed like there was a path for her without a college degree.
She was offered a job at a tech startup in March 2020, but the world shut down after the Pandemic hit. She was laid off by the investment firm after the company withdrew the offer.
The same tech startup renewed their offer after six months of unemployment. She was grateful for the job and learned a lot, but it only took a year for her to feel like she was reaching that ceiling of opportunity and growth in the role.
She submitted over 200 applications in just two weeks at the beginning of the year.
She attributes the relaxing of job requirements many companies have undertaken over the last few years to her lack of a college degree. She said it was the perfect time.
According to a document verified by Insider, she accepted one of the six-figure job offers she received. She says she is happy with her job and is finally in a position where she feels challenged.
Tragesser suggests four things to consider if you want to find success without a degree.
Work ethic is the first thing.
She said that you have to be willing to work hard. Don't give up on what's happening in your life. Don't be discouraged, come to work positive. You should go above and beyond.
Four years ago, Tragesser was offered a "big break" when she was waiting tables.
She supports the " quiet quitting" movement and thinks it's important for people to take a break when they're overwhelmed.
She believes that you can work hard but still have time for your family. It's a new name for the old phenomenon of creating boundaries to avoid burnout and it's what's at the center of quiet quitting.
She attributes her success to two online marketing programs she attended at Cornell and Yale.
She said she always tells people to consider a professional program if they can't afford college.
Know when to stop.
She says she cried to her boss after leaving her $80,000 tech startup job because she knew it was the best thing for her personal and professional development.
"If you're one of those people that wants more out of your job in your life, you have to be able to identify when your job doesn't serve you."
Goal setting is fourth She creates a list of goals at the end of the year to guide her life in the future. She takes stock of her progress every few months.
She doesn't want to take on the financial burden when she returns to school to get her degree.
She wouldn't want that bill.
She knows that her path is not for everyone and that some jobs require a college degree. She doesn't believe a degree is required for success.
She's grateful that she doesn't have to worry about where her next meal is coming from.
She thinks that everyone deserves that.
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