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Original poster

Imposter syndrome is real

12 replies

Bellavida99 · 09/12/2022 04:52

I left a council job 5 years ago and joined a utility company and in that time my salary has gone from £30k to £65k. I started a new role at the same company in November and although work is going well and I’m enjoying it I really feel like an imposter. I am late 40s and don’t have a degree. Everyone else has a degree and mostly masters with a few phds. I just feel inferior underneath and like I’m going to be found out how unqualified I am even though I obviously haven’t lied on my cv or anything I feel the assumption would be I’m at least degree educated. Any tips how to get my head round this? Every time someone mentions uni I dread being asked what uni I went to or something.

OP posts:
allthegoodusernameshavegone · 09/12/2022 05:04

Congratulations op, you have achieved success through your own merits and not on passing a qualification, you should be proud of yourself.

SchrodingersKettle · 09/12/2022 06:23

Congrats on your job.

Don't be daft. You've worked your way up, no shame in that, and your employer sounds like a good one - able to recognise talent and not just recruit based on tickboxes and rigid views of what candidates should be like. Diverse workplaces want people from all sorts of backgrounds.

My dad got a job at Imperial College having spent first part of his career in industry. He got an OU in his spare time but had nothing like the academic credentials of his peers. He was absolutely gleeful that he could be recognised as worthy of a research position based on the strength of his skills and knowledge which he'd accumulated himself. Take a leaf from his book and own your career success with pride. You have literally earnes it.

Original poster
Bellavida99 · 09/12/2022 11:50

Thank you both. I’m wondering if I should “come clean”? For example someone has a weekend away with uni friends and I can say “that’s a set of friends I’m missing as I didn’t go to uni” or e like that. Or if it’s better to not mention it. It’s never worried me before this job for some reason.

OP posts:
whyarentiskinnyet · 09/12/2022 11:51

I didn't go to Uni, I am heading up a team and have worked my way up. I feel proud of the fact that i have achieved my career without going to Uni, it's nothing to be ashamed of and clearly you are doing well and progressing based on your experience.

Thehokeypokey · 09/12/2022 11:55

Why do you need to 'come clean'? It's not something to be ashamed of. You've got the job based on your performance, skills and experience. If they're all sitting around going on about their qualifications, then that smacks of insecurity on their part. I don't think I could tell you the education level of many of my colleagues, I judge them on how they do the job not what they studied 10 years ago.

Xanorra · 09/12/2022 13:08

You don’t have to « come clean », it’s not like you had a stint in prison instead of 3 years of uni!
most companies require a degree to promote to a certain level, and it’s much harder if you don’t have one, so you should be proud of your achievements.
In practice, what you learn at Uni has often little relevance to what you’re asked to do on the job, so doing well at uni doesn’t mean you’ll automatically do well at work. If anybody asks you what uni you went to, just tell the truth. Nowadays diversity in the workplace is a big thing, we don’t have to all have the same education background.

Original poster
Bellavida99 · 09/12/2022 14:19

It’s not that everyone talks about their degrees all the time, it’s that their email signatures tend to have all their qualifications on them in this team so I’m more aware of it. But you’ve all actually made me realise I need to turn my mindset around and see if as an achievement I’ve worked up to the level of these highly qualified people. I’ll work on it…

OP posts:
NoNoKimono · 31/01/2023 04:23

Yes you should feel proud. What kind of job is it - intrigued!

Original poster
Bellavida99 · 31/01/2023 07:59

@NoNoKimono it’s long term planning for solar and wind farms. I’m a programme manager hence most people I work with are engineers or other experts. I have a lot of technical input and have to question a lot of ideas which I’m happy with but obviously only learned on the job. Job title did have Engineer in it when advertised but I asked for that to be changed as felt fraudulent and they obliged which was hassle for hr and recruitment 😂

OP posts:
hellololabells2019 · 31/01/2023 11:35

@Bellavida99 I'm in same industry, same job- my team appreciate me for not being technical. It's only an email signature, you'll add a lot to your team. Having lots of qualifications doesn't mean you have common sense!

poetryandwine · 31/01/2023 12:02

No need to ‘come clean’ OP. You should be really proud of yourself! Ideally you will get to a headspace where you won’t have any hesitation in mentioning your lack of degree if there is a compelling reason to do so. But your example sounds like you are looking for an excuse to, as you put it, ‘come clean’ . That will only look weak

Why? You aren’t hiding anything. People should be judging you by your work. Don’t mislead them, but let (or make) them do that. (I don’t put my PhD in my email signature because I communicate almost exclusively with people who either assume it or do not care. I only add it when it might make a difference, mostly in letters for undergraduates.)

Yes, impostor syndrome is real!

DRS1970 · 31/01/2023 12:04

Do an Open University course and get a degree, or diploma, or even a certificate. Then you can say honestly and proudly that you went to a uni.

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