As a full time photographer for over 30 years, and as someone who tried to employ a photographer to help me out, QUALIFICATIONS ARE VALUELESS.
I was the chief photographer for a publishing company with 16 titles I was trying to work for every month. I would get back in to the office at 22.00 from possibly having started at 06.00, and there was always some arse of an editor with a studio job for me to do before I went home.... there was one 5 year spell where, in that 5 years I had 7 day I didn't work. I was self emloyed, but ran that department for them. It was a time of plenty. Anyway, it was obvious I couldn't keep that pace up for ever and I couldn't be in two places at once, although I did try a few times!
I advertised for a photographer, employed through the books, to run the studio and do the odd location shoot (there was no way I wanted to be tied to the studio). We had a deluge of responses, and we whittled it down for interview on the basis of qualifications, interests and arranged for portfolios to be brought in. I would not trust a digital portfolio with a bargepole.
The incumbents turned up with their books. We decided we give the girl from Bournemouth college with her BA in Photography a trial. She was despatched to cover the Press Day at the NEC International Bike Show. What this entailed was being at the NEC for about 07.45, get signed in and then go round and take unveiling pictures of the new models of bikes, publicity girlies in their undies, or lack of, any interesting punters, macro details that were interesting, new products..... she came back having shot 36 ROLLS of 35mm E6. Out of which there were possibly a handful of publishable pictures..... I had to go back the next day and do what I could to recover the situation - but of course we lost all the razamataz, that only happens once on each stand, plus the halls were now heaving with the public, so getting uncluttered shots of the new bikes was virtually impossible because they had all paid to come and see them....... she had a superb portfolio, but couldn't take a photograph of her own volition to save her life. We took on a chap with no qualifications, only a hobby interest in photography but a great zest for life, bikes and a colourful character. I coached him a bit in the studio for a week and he went on to establish his own commercial studio, with no qualifications whatsoever.
In photography you are judged by your results - and you are only as good as your last job. Nowadays some clever computer bods who can blanket publicise themselves get the limelight. If you are god at self publicising, you should be able to get plenty of work provided your work can stand out from the crowd, t is a very crowded marketplace and it is a bit like the bearpit in the stock exchange, those who can shout the loudest get heard. The days of personal relationships seem to have dwindled. Qualifications won't help you in that bunfight.