While the debate over the value of a college education goes on, a peculiar trend is picking up speed in the IT job market. Shortages of certain skills have become so severe that they’re making formal education irrelevant.

The latest case in point: A fast-growing discipline known as DevOps, aimed at coordinating all of a company’s IT operations in a single, nimble system that can streamline operations, speed up the development of new software, and incorporate data security at every step.

For people interested in DevOps, a degree in computer science or software engineering is nice to have, says Alan Shimel, editor-in-chief of DevOps.com, a career site devoted to the field. But it won’t get you hired. “Hands-on experience with actual tools and projects is really the only thing that matters.”

DevOps specialists with only a high school diploma, but with the right experience, now earn a median salary of…