| Author |
Certifications that are currently being sought after by employers?
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| madraver 2002-03-29, 8:52 am |
| I am in the process of choosing which certifications that I am going to pursue. Looking through the exhaustive list of certifications (which can be discussed on my site in the Forums) I have begrudgingly come to the conclusion that I am in the dark of which area to focus on in my studies.
Anyone out there know which certs are being sought after by empoyers (in general)? RedHat 7.0, SCO, CCIE, MCSE (barely worth the paper it's written on these days) and MasterCNE are but some of the ones that I have begun studying for. I have been researching some of the other certs that are available, but to no avail. What are some of the certs that would be beneficial in the general IT market? I am looking for certs that could easily be transferable between jobs.
As the current ecconomical trend continues, it is not inconceivable that one would have a major job change (usually to a different employer) every 5 or so years. In acceptance of such a trend, I do not want to focus on the needs of any one single employer. I would like to generalize and broaden the scope of my knowledge and abilities to better market and realise my goals in todays employment marketplace. As always, you are your own product. You need to be able to market your skills and experience to benefit potential employers. In this day and age, dedicating your knowledge and skills to one employer's needs is not enough.
I thank everyone in advance for your input and suggestions. I hope others can benefit as well from this thread as I doubt that I am the only one in this situation. | |
| jombeewoof 2002-03-29, 9:32 am |
| it's always good to have a basic understanding of well the basics.
for me I got my A+ and Net+ working on CCNA then I think I'll try to get a degree in business admin. then go back to the tech studies
I think your right about mcse, but why not try linux or unix, and I think the cisco certs will never really go the way of mcse (especially now with the sim on the test, that ought to teach those dumpers) | |
| madraver 2002-03-29, 10:24 am |
| quote:
I think your right about mcse, but why not try linux or unix, and I think the cisco certs will never really go the way of mcse (especially now with the sim on the test, that ought to teach those dumpers)
I have basically been looking at going in the direction of CCIE, MasterCNE and some Unix (BSD?)Admin certs. I've also been looking into some of the RedHat (I hate Linux tho...) certs.
Linux seem to be a necessary evil, although FreeBSD is much more adaptable and robust. There has been too much media coverage on the RedHat strain to completely ignore it unfortunately. | |
| jombeewoof 2002-03-29, 12:52 pm |
| yeah linux sucks but what're ya gonna do? | |
| freak 2002-03-29, 12:56 pm |
| CISSP, CCNA, MCSE, CCNP and obviously CCIE... in another field, MCSD, MCDBA and Oracle certs are also pretty good to have after your name  | |
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| quote:
MCSE (barely worth the paper it's written on these days)
Have to disagree with you on this one mate I'm afraid...the GENUINE MCSE's are worth their weight in gold. | |
| wbafrank 2002-03-29, 5:18 pm |
| quote:
Originally posted by AndyC
Have to disagree with you on this one mate I'm afraid...the GENUINE MCSE's are worth their weight in gold.
Have to agree with AndyC on this. You should not tar all MCSEs with the same brush. | |
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| Hi Frank, how's it going mate? | |
| wbafrank 2002-03-29, 5:30 pm |
| quote:
Originally posted by AndyC
Hi Frank, how's it going mate?
Fine - I've sent you a PM ..... | |
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| Okey dokey mate...I've replied! | |
| onoski 2002-04-03, 4:24 am |
| [QUOTE][i]Originally posted by madraver
MCSE (barely worth the paper it's written on these days)
I strongly disagree with you on this one as there are genuine MCSE's out there who deserve it and not just paper MCSE's. These individuals study to know the product and work hard to attain the status. Please, be specific in this regards as there is no quick fix, take time to learn the product and work with it at all costs.
Cheerio | |
| madraver 2002-04-03, 6:36 am |
| quote:
I strongly disagree with you on this one as there are genuine MCSE's out there who deserve it and not just paper MCSE's.
I quite agree with you that the qualified, knowledgeable and experienced MCSE is "worth his/her weight in gold".
Due to the paper MCSE's out there that have saturated and jaded the employers to the MCSE Cert, life becomes much harder for the genuine article. Just about anyone can pass the MCSE by doing many practice tests and by memorizing answers. This is what I meant by: quote:
not worth the paper its written on
quote:
These individuals study to know the product and work hard to attain the status. Please, be specific in this regards as there is no quick fix, take time to learn the product and work with it at all costs.
Again, with jaded and skeptical employers, it becomes increasingly harder to find quality work as a truely qualified MCSE. | |
| onoski 2002-04-03, 6:45 am |
| So what exactly is your point? Are trying to say that MCSE is not worth the hassle? Don't be deceived as in any profession it comes a time when it reaches saturation point be it IT of doctors of whatever profession its your input and effort that counts at the end of the day.
Nuff said, am out. | |
| madraver 2002-04-03, 9:41 am |
| quote:
So what exactly is your point? Are trying to say that MCSE is not worth the hassle? Don't be deceived as in any profession it comes a time when it reaches saturation point be it IT of doctors of whatever profession its your input and effort that counts at the end of the day.
My point being that I have spoken to employers that do not even bother with the MCSEs in Winnipeg. Their view on the matter is: "If you have it, good for you. It's not going to help you find a job here. Get some other certifications that are of use to us".
I'm not trying to say that MCSE's that actually earned their certification aren't worth it... just the certification itself. Like you said... "it reaches saturation point". | |
| wbafrank 2002-04-03, 9:46 am |
| quote:
Originally posted by madraver
My point being that I have spoken to employers that do not even bother with the MCSEs in Winnipeg.
 I gather from this Windows hasn't reached Winnipeg yet!! Or they are using unqualified personnel looking after their systems .... | |
| madraver 2002-04-03, 9:59 am |
| quote:
I gather from this Windows hasn't reached Winnipeg yet!! Or they are using unqualified personnel looking after their systems ....
The point I am trying to make is that employers here are not looking at the MCSE as part of the evaluation process. It is impossible to evaluate whether the applicant is merely a "paper MCSE" or a qualified individual. Instead of making the wrong decision based on the MCSE certification of a prospective employee, they prefer to hire individuals with other, less "popular" certifications that better classify the actual qualifications of the aplicant.
I'm not putting down qualified MCSE's, nor am I stating that it is a useless, non-essential certification. I myself am working on finishing my MCSE. | |
| wbafrank 2002-04-03, 10:11 am |
| a dig at your comments. It just seems strange that company's in your area will not look at MCSE's - they must have qualified personnel within their own setup to whittle out the "paper" from the genuine article.
Just to be nosey what certificates do they look for - especially if they only have a Windows domain? | |
| Crutch 2002-04-03, 10:15 am |
| Having the right certs for the job is tough since there are some many different companies with different needs. The only way to cover all the bases is to:
1. Get every cert in the field you are interested in. (i.e., Networking, Web, security)
2. More realistic- get a sum of a few. Get A+, N+, MCSA or MCSE, and CCNA. This would allow you to cover a broad spectrum of knowledge.
How many of us have certs we never use in our present jobs? I'd bet there are alot of people with certs they never use and thus will have to do some cramming to get current.
I don't even list my CNA 4.0 on my list of accomplishments anymore because I hardly run into Novell networks. When I do, I read up on what I need to know, but it's still so much of a crapshoot because I don't get to use those skills that often (about once every six months).
By and large, you need experience. Experience will do more for you than certs. But, you run into that age old question, "how do I get experience if no one will give me a job?" Get a BS degree. Take some classes at the local community college and network with other people in the field. Keep trying, you'll eventually get there.
Just my $0.02 worth | |
| madraver 2002-04-03, 10:29 am |
| quote:
Just to be nosey what certificates do they look for - especially if they only have a Windows domain?
The majority of employers that I have talked to are looking for MCNA, CCNA/CCIE, some sort of Unix Cert on top of a BS or MaS. Most of them are running Unix(BSD,HP, Solaris, or Linux) or Novell networks with Windows integration, not Windows domains. | |
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| with all the debate going around here...believe me with such a bad job market around here, certifications are things of a preference now. you need experience 1st in what ever u do.....i know people with more than 10 yrs of experience in the cisco field but didnt certify, and get jobs....certifications only make ur CV look good and serve as a backup if u dont have experience. every1 has got his own opinion, this was just mine. | |
| Crutch 2002-04-08, 9:57 am |
| The landscape is constantly changing in technology. One place not to be overlooked in finding a job are the smaller businesses. We have clients that are shoe stores, small grocery stores, autoparts stores, tax accountants, lawyer firms, food distributors, non-profit organizations, etc. Some are small and us our firm as their system admins, but the businesses with 20+ people need sys/net admins of their own.
So, don't count these places out in your job search. In fact, these kinds of places need your help more than you can imagine. | |
| iceman2001 2002-04-08, 2:54 pm |
| I have to add my thoughts to this.I'm still working on my MCSE and have spent months of hard study to get where I am,and by the end of it I will be a 'paper MCSE' --- so what!!
I also spent 4yrs in college and came out with a 'paper degree'---I learnt all my best computer skills in work learning from other people.
My point is if you don't want to get pieces of paper then just don't bother getting certs or degrees.
iceman | |
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| ervinl1 2002-04-09, 1:05 am |
| quote:
Originally posted by jombeewoof
it's always good to have a basic understanding of well the basics.
for me I got my A+ and Net+ working on CCNA then I think I'll try to get a degree in business admin.
I have my BSCS with certs, what position/salary level should I be looking at? | |
| ervinl1 2002-04-09, 1:18 am |
| quote:
Originally posted by Crutch
By and large, you need experience. Experience will do more for you than certs. But, you run into that age old question, "how do I get experience if no one will give me a job?" Get a BS degree. Take some classes at the local community college and network with other people in the field. Keep trying, you'll eventually get there.
I have a BS degree in CS and working in a grad program. My problem is that I'm being interviewed by one and two year tech school graduates that couldn't BUY a clue as to what it takes to get a REAL piece of paper. | |
| MistyRing 2002-04-09, 4:03 am |
| What, and you think being bitter will help? |
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