Certs Are they worth It?

[Darkstar757]

Here is my problem folks


Im currently 23 almost 24 and I need to move to bigger and better things in IT.

Do you guys think that a MCSE or a CCNA is worth having?

 

[DurocShark]

Yes.

 

[Jzero]

Nah, Altoids are better.

 

[LemonHead]

LOL, I thought you were talking about the breath mint.


Yeah, I think certifications can help depending on where you go to find a job.

 

[Darkstar757]

Well what is the most important cert you can get and why. (Im not really interested in getting a CCIE)

 

[Jzero]

Originally posted by: Darkstar757
Well what is the most important cert you can get and why. (Im not really interested in getting a CCIE)

Honestly, I think degrees are worth more than certs. If you don't have a BS, get that. Otherwise, get MS or MBA.

 

[Ulfwald]

Certifications are good to have, and they help you get your foot in the door, about the same way as a degree. But it will be your real world experience and you ability to draw on that as well as your ability to think on your feet that will get you moved up.

 

[Darkstar757]

Originally posted by: Ulfwald
Certifications are good to have, and they help you get your foot in the door, about the same way as a degree. But it will be your real world experience and you ability to draw on that as well as your ability to think on your feet that will get you moved up.

I totally agree but my problem now is getting my foot in the door. I want a mcse but I dont have the money to spend like 3grand on a bootcamp to be able to pass these things.

 

[mrCide]

They help, depending on the company though they can mean a lot or nothing. They won't get you the job alone, however.

 

[mrCide]

Originally posted by: Darkstar757

Originally posted by: Ulfwald
Certifications are good to have, and they help you get your foot in the door, about the same way as a degree. But it will be your real world experience and you ability to draw on that as well as your ability to think on your feet that will get you moved up.

I totally agree but my problem now is getting my foot in the door. I want a mcse but I dont have the money to spend like 3grand on a bootcamp to be able to pass these things.

Don't waste money on classes.. get books and study yourself. Biggest waste of money ever was for me to take classes. 10k down the drain.

 

[Darkstar757]

well the books are so boring to me. Also I only own two pcs and it hard to test and learn this straight from a book.

 

[royaldank]

Certs are good if you can back it up. They might get you looked at twice and an interview. But, if you go in the interview and don't know anything, then they wont care what you have on your resume.

Books are good for training. Transcender (and other like those) courses can help you pass the test. Those bootcamps are expensive and probably wont give you the real world practice you need. If you get some books and a couple of computer, you can experiement and move at your own pace.

If you really just want to pass the tests, there's always the forbidden braindumps. Just don't say that word too loud.

 

[StageLeft]

I have some MS certs that I got from myself just by reading books/practice, and taking the exam.

Those four certs got me my current job and had a pivotal role in a job offer I received in August (a good job offer too, but I declined it anyway). So, my conclusion is that yes certs are worth it. Those who often say no are simply too lazy to get them.

 

[squirrel dog]

I was going to say Listerine pocket paks are over priced !

 

[FoBoT]

a job is better

 

[MuffD]

I would have said yes a few years ago. In San Diego now, you can probably get a help desk job if you've got your mcse certs and make less than 30k. I think it's way too flooded now.

 

[Descartes]

Originally posted by: Darkstar757
well the books are so boring to me. Also I only own two pcs and it hard to test and learn this straight from a book.

So you want to become certified in an area that you find so boring it requires an instructor to hammer the information into your head?

 

[Soybomb]

Don't expect a cert to be able to get you a job. I think a cert is helpful if you're working in that field, but if you have no experience its not going to be as useful.

What you want to do determines what certs to look at though. Whats your area of interest?

 

[Darkstar757]

Well I have a BS in computer science.
However After receiving that degree I did not get the high tech linux job I always wanted.

Well now Im doing VMS and UNIX work for a good company. However what bugs me is im not making the money I want now. I want to be able to qualify for a better position however it seems not having any certs is hurting me. I dont know what to do.

 

[notfred]

Originally posted by: Darkstar757
Well I have a BS in computer science.
However After receiving that degree I did not get the high tech linux job I always wanted.

Well now Im doing VMS and UNIX work for a good company. However what bugs me is im not making the money I want now. I want to be able to qualify for a better position however it seems not having any certs is hurting me. I dont know what to do.

I really think that if you have a BC in Comp. Sci. that certs aren't going to help you with anything. What exactly do you mean by "VMS and UNIX work"? Are you just a system admin? What is the "high tech linux job" that you always wanted? Do you really think an MS cert is going to help you get a linux job?

I don't see lots of MCSE people making lots of money. I see lots of them doing help desk work for $30k/year. That really doesn't sound to me like where you want to go.

 

[Darkstar757]

Originally posted by: notfred

Originally posted by: Darkstar757
Well I have a BS in computer science.
However After receiving that degree I did not get the high tech linux job I always wanted.

Well now Im doing VMS and UNIX work for a good company. However what bugs me is im not making the money I want now. I want to be able to qualify for a better position however it seems not having any certs is hurting me. I dont know what to do.

I really think that if you have a BC in Comp. Sci. that certs aren't going to help you with anything. What exactly do you mean by "VMS and UNIX work"? Are you just a system admin? What is the "high tech linux job" that you always wanted? Do you really think an MS cert is going to help you get a linux job?

I don't see lots of MCSE people making lots of money. I see lots of them doing help desk work for $30k/year. That really doesn't sound to me like where you want to go.

Fred you know you are really right.
Yes Im a JR Unix and VMS sys admin.

However I really want to be in charge of some high level linux or Unix project. I mean all the avenues I see do lead to this road of Help Desk work. I do some help desk work currently and I hate it, I mean I love to help people but I have such stronger feelings for IT that Help Desk work. I dont think my coding skills or my nerves would let me be a coder. Im kind of stuck now on where to go from here and what to do. Fred do you have some insight?

 

[MaxDepth]

Certs are good if you are switiching careers between fields. Having a BA in English, with certs in IT will definitely get you looked at as a senior programmer as opposed to a writer saying he has years of programming experience.

But most often, it is who you know and what connections you have, to getting the job you want. If someone can vouch for your skills, then certs are not really needed.

 

[Descartes]

Originally posted by: MaxDepth
Certs are good if you are switiching careers between fields. Having a BA in English, with certs in IT will definitely get you looked at as a senior programmer as opposed to a writer saying he has years of programming experience.

But most often, it is who you know and what connections you have, to getting the job you want. If someone can vouch for your skills, then certs are not really needed.

Umm, that's entirely backwards. Someone with a BA in English and certs will get a senior position?? No way. Senior positions come to those with experience only. Also, if the writer has verifiable experience and the BA in English guy has certs, the writer will get the job, absolutely. Experience counts A LOT more than certs, especially in software development. Certs in software development are to a large extent worthless once you have appreciable experience.

 

[Looney]

Originally posted by: mrCide

Originally posted by: Darkstar757

Originally posted by: Ulfwald
Certifications are good to have, and they help you get your foot in the door, about the same way as a degree. But it will be your real world experience and you ability to draw on that as well as your ability to think on your feet that will get you moved up.

I totally agree but my problem now is getting my foot in the door. I want a mcse but I dont have the money to spend like 3grand on a bootcamp to be able to pass these things.

Don't waste money on classes.. get books and study yourself. Biggest waste of money ever was for me to take classes. 10k down the drain.

Personally, i think certs are pretty much useless. But certs you acquire on your own are even more worthless. If you get certification, go to a school, if you don't people will just think you used braindumps to get your way through them. And if you do go to a school, pay a little more and find a decent school that offers help in employment placement. I doubt they can guarantee a placement, but it might help in getting one.

 

[Looney]

Originally posted by: MaxDepth
Certs are good if you are switiching careers between fields. Having a BA in English, with certs in IT will definitely get you looked at as a senior programmer as opposed to a writer saying he has years of programming experience.

That's COMPLETELY opposite. Experience is much more important than certification.