What about no certification, but learning more IT to…

Get a new job? I have been fortunate to get into IT back in 98. I got in with no certs; my (solo) web design portfolio got my foot in the door. While employed I learned quite a few things from the folks I worked with. Along with the hands on experience I decided to get some certs. A+, Network+, MCP- WINNT4/2000.

Now I know over the years certs were a big part of employment and then they sort of dipped and experience counted more. But lately I have been doing the “Jack of all” and master nothing IT things, and have to change this. I currently do Application testing and integration (I like it). Along with Intranet development and design (boring now—everyone is doing it).

The time has come for me to move on. I have hit the ceiling in my current place and really need a change. I know I need to focus but I like too many things about IT to make up my mind. I have been researching online and not sure I want to take anymore MS exams at this time without committing to a specialty.

So I ask here. What if I didn’t want to take / study for MS exams, but study / learn, IT in general? Subjects that would be benficial and help in finding a new job /career path. Become more knowledgeable about security, general IT, enterprise technology, etc. does anyone know any alternatives other than going back to school? Does this make sense?

I only need 2 more exams for MCSA but for some reason not motivated to take the 290/291. I enjoy working with SQL Server; I like security, networking. But not sure which will be a better option since I dont have the exposure in my current place.

Anyhow I’ve been browsing for quite some time and decided to post today to see if other’s have any suggestions. Thanks in advance for any replies.

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Comments

DeJay

IF job candidate A comes into my office with 10 certs, and job candidate B comes into my office with 0 certs, and a portfolio of 4-5 projects he/she did in his/her free time, I'm going to hire candidate B every time. Forget getting more certs, build up a portfolio of IT projects that interest you.

Olajuwon

DeJay wrote:

IF job candidate A comes into my office with 10 certs, and job candidate B comes into my office with 0 certs, and a portfolio of 4-5 projects he/she did in his/her free time, I'm going to hire candidate B every time. Forget getting more certs, build up a portfolio of IT projects that interest you.

That's why you have no certs. Not all portfolios are good. Those IT projects might be nothing to write home about.

Geekboy

DeJay wrote:

IF job candidate A comes into my office with 10 certs, and job candidate B comes into my office with 0 certs, and a portfolio of 4-5 projects he/she did in his/her free time, I'm going to hire candidate B every time. Forget getting more certs, build up a portfolio of IT projects that interest you.

I tend to agree as I have been on the tech interview side when we were looking for people. I noticed that my manager and director didn’t really care about the certifications but the previous experience of the candidate. The certs were a good thing for the candidates but ultimately we hired someone without any, but he had the experience and knowledge they wanted. This is what kind of got me thinking about he subject.

I know having the certs can boost your chances, that combined with experience is a good thing. I’m just in the middle about which I should pursue (along with general knowledge) to enhance my chances and possibly move into a different arena in IT. Motivation for MCSA is just not there. For me it might not be the best certification option at this time. I’ve been here 4 years and at the end of the road. No room for advancement, but the money is good.

Had I been a 55+ man I would say it’s a great job with great pay

But I’m still young, want to learn, and feel I can do better. I know I can’t jump the gun but maybe use my spare time wisely to learn more. I’m really leaning toward security. Guess I need to research more on the subject.

sprkymrk

DeJay wrote:

IF job candidate A comes into my office with 10 certs, and job candidate B comes into my office with 0 certs, and a portfolio of 4-5 projects he/she did in his/her free time, I'm going to hire candidate B every time. Forget getting more certs, build up a portfolio of IT projects that interest you.

Free time projects are usually exagerated tremendously. Stuff like "consulted with clients and implemented firewall and intranet solutions" can easily mean "I set up a linksys router and file server at my church". I am always wary of people claiming freelance experience and "ran my own IT business" fluff.

A guy with 10 certs will get my attention. I'll find out if he knows his stuff or not.

Kaminsky

What about getting your security and design sides up and advising on web security now that more and more businesses are coming online.

With your design background and getting upto ccsp/ccdp/mcse+ security you would have a lot of fun safe guarding web sites and making sure the infrastructure AND the web front ends are secure.

If you look at the Cisco certifications, they lie in administration (ccnp/ccip/ccvp) , design (ccdp) and security (ccsp) for the most part which reflects the different branches in the networking field. You don't necesarily need to know the full ins and outs of routing, voice, etc to be good at designing or securing a network. To me, security will become ever more important to an organisation and have a price tag to match.

Sounds like a runner to me.

famosbrown

sprkymrk wrote:

DeJay wrote:

IF job candidate A comes into my office with 10 certs, and job candidate B comes into my office with 0 certs, and a portfolio of 4-5 projects he/she did in his/her free time, I'm going to hire candidate B every time. Forget getting more certs, build up a portfolio of IT projects that interest you.

Free time projects are usually exagerated tremendously. Stuff like "consulted with clients and implemented firewall and intranet solutions" can easily mean "I set up a linksys router and file server at my church". I am always wary of people claiming freelance experience and "ran my own IT business" fluff.

A guy with 10 certs will get my attention. I'll find out if he knows his stuff or not.

I TOTALLY agree with Mark. The certs will get the employer's attention although you lack the experience, so you may get that interview so the employer can test and and ask you questions to see if you really know what you are doing and if you will be able to contribute to the company. I've seen many people with years of experience and not even know how to add a printer properly. Those experience years were fluffed and exagerrated. On the same note, I've seen the most certified person who used **** to get them come in and not know ANYTHING about the cert that claim to have. If you have either the certs or the experience, it will get you the interview, but how you do in the interview, simulations, and answers to questions, will determine if you get the job.

Geekboy

Interesting comments all around. I appreciate the feedback and been making notes on my current interest and trying to narrow down my choices. Since I'm at a stand still in my current position it's just little tuff to get hands on, lets say with security. Servers, Workstations, network is not a problem and I'm sure I can get some assistance from the guys if need be.

I know I would really like to go back to school but it’s just not in the cards right now. Maybe reading more general tech, and doing completely a few more certs is the right answer. Have to get my head in the game and just do it I guess. Thanks again.

strauchr

Heres a good real life scenario for you.

In my current new job I work for a Microsoft Certified Partner. A guy with about the same level of experience and skills as me got hired for the same job title as me with no certs.

However, now that the projects are streaming in I am getting onto bigger and better projects simply because the clients demand certified people to do the work. There is also a pay difference of about 20k per year.

I finally am seeing definitive proof, first hand, that my certs were worth pursuing from a career perspective.

Now if thats not motivation then I don't know what is!

Geekboy

strauchr wrote:

However, now that the projects are streaming in I am getting onto bigger and better projects simply because the clients demand certified people to do the work. There is also a pay difference of about 20k per year.

I finally am seeing definitive proof, first hand, that my certs were worth pursuing from a career perspective.

Now if thats not motivation then I don't know what is!

Nice, very nice. I'm glad to read a positive post like this. As I mentioned, I'll continue with the last 2 test for MCSA. From there I'm not sure which way I'll go but I guess I need to put my mind to it and just do it.

garv221

sprkymrk wrote:

A guy with 10 certs will get my attention. I'll find out if he knows his stuff or not.

In the interview process, 10 certs will raise a flag for me. With some experience on the resume, it is a dead give away the person knows their stuff.

If you want more of broadened certification look into Comptia.

drakhan2002

Stick with vendor neutral certs to begin with: CompTIA, CISSP, ITIL, etc. Find a specialty area of IT you enjoy, e.g., Security. Next, focus like a lazer beam on getting certifications in that area. Get as many certifications in that specialized area as you can. It shows your dedication of become a Subject Matter Expert (SME). Getting certifications in many different areas will keep you a "master of none." After you've gotten all of the vendor-neutral type certs...think about getting vendor certs (but this could pigeon hole you...it is a risk to consider).

Think about going back to school for a degree - a degree will help you more than certification will (although in this forum I will probably get flamed). A degree holds a ton of weight as you work for larger and larger organizations or if you want to climb the corporate ladder.