InsideTech

I currently am enrolled in a degree program with WGU Washington Govenors University, it is an assessment base program. It does included different certifications with the program. When I enrolled in the program this is one of the main reasons I decided to go to WGU, plus the fact that I could do all the work online and then test out at a local prometric center. I'm just wondering for those of you who have been in the industry for a long time if you have certifications or not, how your employer's feel about certifications and for those who do hire what is your opinion on the subject.

I think that for some of us out here trying to get work or our foot in the door this topic would be an insight. The people that are selling the Certification Materical tell you one thing and the people that are doing the hiring don't seem to care that much about it. Twelve years ago when I first started designing web-sites, most companines that were hiring wanted certifications. Now I'm just not that sure of where this whole thing is going. But regardless I have my CIW, Comptia A+, and Network+ and am working 7 other Certifications as part of my degree. Anyway wadda u think?

jamestwford says ...

As soon as I finished my A+ training, I started using that on my resume and I received a big response... I never did pay the 300 or so dollars for the actual CompTIA Test, but I could pass it no problem. My Current Company required an A+ Cert to get hired. They never asked for proof however. And With CompTIA's test now having to be renewed every year (as far as I know) it is not worht it to become certified again. Unless A company who paid extremely well absolutely required me to have it. My next step is MSCE Certs, as I am hoping to become a System Admin In a windows Environment. I feel I would be making a lot more (40K and up) than what I am currently making now. I think I will get my MSCE Certs!

 

That's great, My A+ did help me get my current job also but my network+ hasn't help much at all yet. I have my Comptia A+ and you don't have to take it every year.

I'm from Europe, certification aren't well seen at all since people with no high school degree can have access to them, but not to some school...

Schools are "free" but require grade examination, certification are client-based exam and only require a little bit of training and some money.

You can be hi-schol drop out and get your A+ and your MCP, but you will never be as educated as someone with 4 years of college. That's my point of view.

There is a lot of debate in the industry as to just how useful certs are.

As a general rule, they seem to hold less and less importance.

It seems to me that it can't hurt to have certs, but considering the expense in getting all the certs out there, and with ever faster changing demands in qualifications, that it would be impossible to keep up. I suggest using common sense. Don't risk bankrupting yourself just to attain certs. If you want them, get them. They still look good on a resume. But if you chase them just to try and keep up with everything new and shiny, you'll soon find yourself in the poor house, and with no life outside of your work and school.

I am fresh out of school and hace come across vary few job descriptions that "require" any cert... mostle they are in the "prefered" column... i do plain on getting my A+ since it is life time but i can't see spending $300+ every few years to heep a cert especialy since they seem, form all media accounts, to carry less and less weight. if the question ever comes up i just say that i am schedualed to take thr exam.

Hi Everyone,

Great thread to start.  I am transitioning in to IT myself.  I am currently attending school online with University of Phoenix, I am working on my degree in Information Security and I will be done in early march.  I am also studying for my A+ certification.  Honestly, I thought my degree would get me some response to my submitted resumes.  Boy I was wrong.  I think the reality is, if you are new into IT they want to see the documentation.  The documentation shows you have the ability to learn.  Now I know this isn't true in all cases.  For instance, it is easier to transfer to IT position if you are able to do it within your current company.

Cheers

I got my A+, CCNA, CCNP and CWNA (Wireless) certs when I worked for a large company.  They made a lot of noise about having employees get certified in various disciplines.  They paid for all of the classes and even the exam fees.  Then when those few of us that jumped on the bandwagon wanted something in return, i.e. money and or any form of recognition, they didn't care about the certs any longer.  We provided a value add to the company in that the sales team could tell potential clients that we had so many this or that certs and some clients liked to hear it so bought what was being sold.  The company benefited from the certs far more than the employees in real terms.  When it came time to renew, nobody bothered because it was apparent to the masses that the company didn't really value the effort that we put in.

After I retired and wanted to go back to work, I discovered that though I have a very full resume', suddenly the certs had value once again.  I think the primary reason that the certs got so valuable is the salary level that I was seeking.  Companies seem to use the certs as an initial springboard from which to weed out candidates for higher paying posts.  Lots of folks have a college BA and a beginner certification.  The higher the salary, the more value the certs seem to attain.  Many jobs have college, experience and certification requirements.  If you want to climb the ladder in your field, I recommend focusing on relevant certifications that showcase your skills and abilities above and beyond your current pay grade.  You may be required to job hop but if you stay ahead of the curve you'll always be worth more than the other person with whom you compete.

By the way; I now own my own firm and don't require myself to have any certifications at all!  hehehe...

I think that in general the certifications show the prospective employer that you are serious about your occupation. 

Well after all this feedback it would seem that certifications are definatly a positive no matter what the situation. Here's another link some for some of you who know your stuff, like myself, who always thought that experience was better than anything else, but found out that employers want that piece of paper.  www.wgu.edu  This is the online college that I'm enrolled in check it out if you decide you would like to try it let me know and I can get you $100.00 off the enrollment fee which pretty much is the enrollment fee.

Back to the employer thing, I had a great heart to heart with someone in our HR dept. and we were discussing the benefits of having a degree or not. My question to him was how important was having a degree to them when they basically trained all their employees for each position within the company other than management, and honestly not to my surprise his statement was, "We don't care if they have a degree in basket weaving, we are looking for the fact that they have committed the time to aquire that degree, that's the first step, and we know that they have the capacity to learn". Of course basket weaving won't get you all the jobs but for the entry level positions that our company has, your chance of advancement is greater with the degree, and in the IT department cert's are a prerequisite to even be considered. 

I certainly am happy to see the repsonse of this forum, Thanks Vic. And a special shout out to Phreadd for inviting all his friends.

I'm just now going back to finish my college degreeafter being out of school for 17 years.  I've been playing with computers since I was about 8, learning how to break and then fix them.  This is the basis of what I do now.  Schooling is helpful to a certain extent, but having the practical experience, and drive to learn, is probably more important than having paper on the wall.

That could just be my bias speaking, but that's my $0.02.

- Eric.

that is a good question- 

I often wonder if my network admin degree will hold the same wieght of a cert, or if I will be required to go get my certs after college.  I'm currently attending ITT Tech, for a Network Administration degree.  Something I've also noticed during my job searching is that no one is interested in me until I get 6 months away from graduating.  So I've been looking at help desk positions (call center work, yuck) to get me an income until I'm through with school.  I do have some real world experience doing tech support, and fixing personal computers.  I'd like more experience with a company tech dept, to give me a better working knowledge of the problems faced and all that. 

I do have one question along the same thought as the topic-

For those of you who have aquired an entry level position in a tech dept, How did you find the position and what was it's title?

The hot spot for IT jobs are in software development.  Having a programming language under your belt is a great first step. 

Education is never a waste and will win you positions and flexibility in your career.  Many people can not afford certification programs and I would not use my money to pay for them.  I used my employers money to pay for them.  SAP America put a good $50,000 into certification classes for me.  Those certification programs are not a waste.

This is what I would recommend to someone starting out.    Study all the IT buzz words and a bit about your future employers industry.  Get in the door.  Once in the door - read everything on the shared drive for your team.  Do not sit back and expect anything from your employer.  Employers are greedy.  You will need to fast trace yourself by swirching companies about every 18-24 months.  You will be assigned a mentor.  Make your mentor download everything in his database of tricks.  After about 3 years - the employers will start sending you for classes.  The small to middle ERP market is about ready to explode.  Companies will be begging for IT talent.  Don't worry.  You will find something

In my opinion, the importance of a ceritification is going to vary from company to company.  I have just come off of a two month long job search, and I've seen all kinds of job postings.  Some don't mention certifications, others mention a few they would like, and still others mention ones that are required.  To me, they show a company that, if you have a degree, you are willing to continue the learning process and further advance your knowledge.  If you do not have a degree, they show that you have some knowledge/training to go with any experience you might have.  I don't really see how they could be negative.  Sure, they might not land you that dream job making six figures, but I don't think an employer would look at your certifications and say, "Well we're not hiring this guy.  He's got certifications."

Now that I've got a job, I'm thinking about going for several certs (A+, Network+, Security+), but I am also considering taking some classes online to gain some programming skils.  I didn't have to take too much of it to get my degree, and it seems like programming jobs are everywhere, and pay well.  I have mutliple questions that I'd like people's opinions and responses on.  One, what other certs should I go for?  Should I even go for these three?  Two, what programming languages should I try to become proficient in?  I'm thinking of maybe taking some Cold Fusion, SQL, VB, some form of C, but are there others I should consider?  Three, is there anything else I should consider?  I really strive to be the best at what I do, but I definitely don't feel that way right now.  I want to have a great job and make great money, and I'd like your opinions on what can make this happen eventually, whether these certs might help, whether other certs might help, and whether any programming will help.

Finally, to checkel:  I found a job with a company through Careerbuilder.com.  My title is Helpdesk Representative.  It is an entry level position in a small to medium sized company in a small IT Department (hence my questions above).  All I've got on my resume right now is my degree, three years of experience (plus some work that was seasonal), and my references.  Work can be found without certs, but I won't lie to you, and say it was easy.  I was without work for two months, but I think that is mostly due to factors such as the economy, the tough job market, etc.

There are some who think that certificationsmean less knowledge tan a dree but this is not true in all cases, in fact in most cases people get certifications to meet desired job requirements. Whether or not they are a true measure of a persons knowledge or abilities is not really relevent since it is the perceptions of the potential employers that really matters...unfortunately these perceptions are in most cases caused by disinformation. So in answer to the above question I would say that they do help in aquiring a good position in the IT field.

I have my own business, and figured I would need certification to keep warranties intact.  I didn't get the certification, and it hasn't been an issue yet.