Hot answers tagged certification
37
No. Certs are not equivalent to a degree at all. They may almost be worth it for sysadmin, network engineer, or generalized IT work. But they subtract from a programmer's resume. (That's at least, you know, my view).
But you don't need a degree. Work on serious projects that are bound to impress other programmers and you will have clearly demonstrated your ...
31
Certifications will only look good on a resume if the person reading it would be predisposed to trusting the certification and the authorities that offer it.
The PHP community as a whole has not accepted certification as a sign of competence or knowledge... especially not the former.
Only Zend's certifications are worthwhile, and maybe not even then. Zend ...
19
As a 5 year MVP; I can share my experiences with you.
Most (including myself) MVPs are not MVPs by effort - we do what we do; and being an MVP was a nice benefit. It's more of a reward, than a goal. Now, that isn't to say that aiming to be an MVP is a bad idea. The problem with that approach is it seems more like "work".
If the idea of using your personal ...
17
Difference between MCPD, MCAD, MCA/MCM
MCPD is thing that you should go for being a .Net Developer
Path is: MCP > MCTS > MCPD
There is no specific certification for Silverlight. you need to do certifications for WPF + WCF instead.
MCTS: .NET Framework 3.5 Windows Communication Foundation Applications Exam 70-536 and Exam 70-503
MCTS: .NET Framework 3.5 ...
17
I took BrainBench tests for C# and Java some years ago and thought they were completely useless. I scored well, but the questions were largely about details of syntax and the class library. Incompetent programmers can memorize this information and pass these tests. Competent programmers learn the features of the language (e.g. C# has delegates, Java has ...
16
Transcender's Joshua Hester reported (about the beta version of this test):
71-515 (TS: Web Applications Development with .NET Framework 4): A warning for old-school Web developers — this is not your father’s ASP anymore, so forget what you learned from the 70-562 (TS: 3.5, ASP.NET Application Development). The 4.0 exam focuses heavily on ASP.NET MVC 2, ...
15
I'm going to address this from the perspective of a potential hiring manager. Note that I typically operate in and around organizations for whom certifications, and even college degrees, are not a priority -- if you can show me code, demonstrate good development practices, can adapt to different methodologies, and are generally a good, creative team member ...
15
Certification is not going to take you anywhere, except adding more lines on your resume. If you want to become software architect on java side, (which in my opinion is wrong goal, instead simply say software architect with strong programming skills or something like that), then you need sound experience in Java technology.
15
"Certification" programs are very different than more traditional forms of education, such as advance high school classes or college courses. They emphasize specific, narrow fields of study over broad, fundamental understanding, as well as favor rapidity over thoroughness. Such courses generally teach you one specific system in detail, such as a particular ...
12
I found the official SCJP study guide very helpful. (The exam has been rebranded since the guide was written)
http://www.amazon.com/SCJP-Certified-Programmer-Java-310-065/dp/0071591060
If you follow the instructions in the study guide and go through each section doing the exercises and do the practice exams, you are very likely to succeed.
It took me 3 ...
12
Spend the time getting work.
Apply for jobs. Spend the time to learn how to write notable cover letters and take the time learning how to interview well. You might get shut down a few times, you might land an awesome job the first time. With a bachelors and masters degree, you've done your share of study - it's time for you to apply it. However, if you feel ...
12
Based on available information, I believe that Software Engineering is already a formal profession. It may not be widely accepted as such, but it is meeting the generally accepted criteria for the characteristics of a profession.
From Wikipedia's article on Profession:
There is considerable agreement about defining the characteristic
features of a ...
10
The IEEE has been working on establishing a similar credential for software engineers, but I don't know that it is getting any traction.
Note that in the US at least, you can't get the PE certification simply by taking an exam. You have to have a degree in an engineering discipline from an accredited school. You can then take a written exam to become an ...
10
The irony of certifications in the Java space is that it is actually the lowest level ones which I think are the most useful.
I have the old Sun Certified Java Programmer for example (the lowest one you can have). While it doesn't really teach you anything that any decent programmer couldn't learn by doing Java tutorials for a few weeks, it does act as a ...
9
Jump all over the paid for 5 day class, but review the book first so you can ask questions to get explanations of concepts you may not fully grasp. Take advantage of this.
You'll need to study the book and "DO ALL THE EXERCISES" especially if they are not part of your job. I develop on SQL Server a lot, but do little DBA work. I'm more fluent in writing ...
9
I have been developing in .NET for over 6 years and for many of those years I have done as some here have suggested, which is to "learn what you need to get the job done". This has been a necessity for much of the time, however, I find this approach sorely lacking when one wants to grow and become a "good" developer".
I agree with you this lack of ...
9
I think BB certs make good sense as part of a hiring process - provided you can guarantee that the guy passing these is indeed the one you're interviewing (at BB it is easy to screw up identity and make someone pass the test for you).
My first encounter with BB was at interview when they gave me OO concepts test. Since it was at their office, and since the ...
8
Mitigated As measurement tool
I always look with a grain of salt when someone lists a whole bunch of certifications in his resume. From experience they tend to be used as space filler when experience is lacking. They are not useless but when there are too many of them I tend to raise an eyebrow and wonder if all that time and money getting certifications ...
8
I would recommend reading Steve McConnell's Professional Software Development. It has a section on professionalism in the industry, which includes a chapter on certifying and licensing software engineers. The book also discusses other topics, such as individual and organizational professionalism. It's a pretty good read, and exerpts are available online, ...
8
Honestly, from the few people I've interviewed with Brainbench "qualifications", I would say that the 20-minute multiple-choice test that I built myself, on eSkills, was a more effective filter. And that wasn't much of a filter at all, it just saved me phone-interviewing people who were going to embarrass themselves.
The only way that I use Brainbench as a ...
8
Yes, absolutely yes.
Now if you have a lot of experience in the industry and come to me, we'll talk about what you did. If you don't have experience... then you've got little to prove to me how good you are, or even if you're capable at all. If you can point to some existing OSS code, then we can talk as if you have industry experience and I will ask you ...
7
MVPs should have deep technical knowledge, and should share that knowledge. 20 years ago I was very active on Usenet, even writing a book about it, and wrote a newsreader as a sample app in another book. Yet by the time this century dawned I had nothing to do with Usenet any more. I was awarded MVP because of my books, blogging, public speaking, founding ...
7
Obviously certs in and of themselves are not very good for becoming a good developer. However, they can help you get a job and earn a bit more. Considering two people with the same number of years of expereince and both interview well. more times than not, the guy that has the cert will win out.
Anyways, what you want is to get the MCPD (Microsoft Certified ...
7
I currently hold the IEEE Certified Software Development Associate (CSDA) certificate, and I'll be sitting for the CSDP exam when I'm eligible (I still need ~2-3 years of experience).
Like any certificate, it's only proof that you know certain topics, by the book form. They don't really say much about how you'll perform on-the-job. Your past work history ...
7
The University of Washington's Extension Program has a 3-class, 9-month certification curriculum in iOS and Mac Application Development. I think the coursework is in-class only, but there might be an online option as well. UW is a very well respected university.
7
Your certification is definitely too old in my opinion. You yourself say that you are lost in new stuff. It might not be necessary for you to get an upgrade though.
Not everyone recognizes value provided by SCJP and other Oracle(Sun) Java certifications. (Usually only those people who never took the time and effort to study details of the language in order ...
7
I'm not a big fan of these tests because they more of a trivia contest than an actual test of programming ability. Some people simply don't perform well on these tests for various reasons not related to their programming ability. I tend to have trouble with them myself due to my vision problems and my typical programming thinking process.
I also think ...
7
No.
There is no substitute for the degree requirement, and in general certifications are viewed poorly (or negatively!) by most employers I've seen.
That said, job postings are usually a 'we would really like you to have all of these'. In the end, the company needs someone to make their software. A college degree is the traditional metric to see if you can ...
Only top voted, non community-wiki answers of a minimum length are eligible
