> >engineers' who don't understand what software engineering is about
> >produce execrable software.
>
> Here, Here
I couldn't agree more. Once in a previous life, I made a good living at a non-existent government agency re-writing (or re-inventing) software because the stuff the engineers/physicists wrote wouldn't fit in a computer we could fit into a satellite (well, maybe if we used a Saturn 5 it might fit) :-)
On the topic of academic credentials, I would say that some companies are starting to see the light. I have no degree, but I've taught part-time at two colleges/universities at the undergraduate and graduate level. They weren't that hung up on the paper. Neither is my current employer.