Certifications and their salary/advancement impact

I often wonder what impact certifications have on salary. I've heard some mention that soon after obtaining a cert or some certs, that they were awarded either a raise or raise and promotion. I've heard others say that they received no financial gains until moving to another position outside their original company.

I'm curious because I feel that I've gained a lot of knowledge over the last 2 1/2 years I've been in IT, and I can see the difference in what skills I offer my company. I feel I'm a bit underpaid in relation to the work I do compared to my co-workers with the same responsibilities. The big difference is not so much in knowledge (I am amongst the most advanced in regards to client/server OS knowledge/troubleshooting), but more in my lack of experience (only 2.5 years total in IT). I do desktop support, server administration level work. I'm curious as to what impact earning certs (and the knowledge gained from studying and labs) have had on your salaries. I'm not so rude as to look for numerical figures, but looking for a sense of what to expect. Thanks.

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undomiel

Well I'm not the best one to answer this currently but it has had 0 impact so far. I have had to hide from the company that I am pursuing certifications because I was specifically told not to pursue certification when I inquired about it after starting here. But once I have the MCSE then I will be job pursuing and that should give me a very nice salary increase if everything works out as planned.

cbigbrick

undomiel wrote:

I have had to hide from the company that I am pursuing certifications because I was specifically told not to pursue certification when I inquired about it after starting here.

You are kidding.........right??

zen master

It's funny, companies often don't realise when you progress as a result of doing a certification. I haven't seen any salary increase as a result of my certifications, but it damn sure has helped me in the job hunt, getting me quite a few interviews (made the cut to the last three, but lost out in one case due to not having my CCNA yet, and in the other due to the fact that I didn't want to cut my beard ... don't ask). Long story short, if a company doesn't realise how much your certifications have increased your value, look elsewhere for someone who will appreciate your worth.

jryantech

Certifications only get the ladies.

shednik

cbigbrick wrote:

undomiel wrote:

I have had to hide from the company that I am pursuing certifications because I was specifically told not to pursue certification when I inquired about it after starting here.

You are kidding.........right??

I would seriously leave if a company was against me trying to better myself.

undomiel

The leaving will happen, but on the other hand they were good for getting that initial boost of experience in Windows Server 2003 and it got me off the phones. As I said, as soon as I have that MCSE I am gone.

cbigbrick

I just find it hard to believe that someone would be that stupid enough to say something like that.....

ggggeeeeeeeeeezzz

Good luck in your job search!

snadam

cbigbrick wrote:

undomiel wrote:

I have had to hide from the company that I am pursuing certifications because I was specifically told not to pursue certification when I inquired about it after starting here.

You are kidding.........right??

believe me when I say he is not kidding. Pretty back-asswards if you ask me!

vsmith3rd

That's about what I've been hearing. Its almost as if company A has an employee, John, starting on the ground level at the same time that company B has an employee, Jane, starting at that level. Both employees get the same level of experience, have the same competency level, and the same certs. Jane leaves Company B for company A, and gets hired at a higher salary than that of John at company A (hope this makes sense), and John has to help train Jane. I'm not naive enough to believe in any true loyalty between company and employee in the current world in which we live, but shouldn't there be some pretense in loyalty. If I sound a little too interested in other's experiences, its because my situation is a little like John's. Does this mean one has to leave, to reap the benefit of their knowledge gained?

mengo17

Don't loose your time trying to understand the "Corporate" world....

JDMurray

How certifications are regarded is defendant on the organization, and specifically by the hiring managers and he HR department. There is no real standard. I've worked in shops that were heavily reliant on Microsoft technology, but care nothing for MS certs one way or the other. I've also worked at places where a particular cert was valued, but only because of rumor of its value and not from knowledge of the industry, or of informed opinion.

It's a crap shoot, but when looking for a job, you are usually better off with the certs on your resume than without.

UnixGuy

Well, it really depends on your boss.

I also have both the knowledge AND skills of "seniors", but my problem is that I don't have "years" of experience (some of my colleagues have 7 years field experience but they're still afraid of taking challenging stuff, anyway..).

If you learn something new while pursuing a certificate (and you should), then you can negotiate with your boss to increase your responsibilities, and hence your salary should increase later.

If you work with partners (MS partners, cisco partners, sun partners,..), then your certifications are very important to them, and I've seen many partners seriously taking certifications into consideration when doing annual evaluations. But to be honest, I've never seen immediate increase in salaries unless you apply for new job and resign, then your company might reconsider your contract immediately.

RickQ

I have had similar experiences to what most people have posted here.

I have just recently attained my first couple of certifications. I think not having any certifications did hinder me in rising through the ranks at my previous employer, even though I had a proven track record and the company (and IT department specifically) did not seem to push certification much. I applied and was interviewed for a desktop support position twice but I did not get it either time. The reasons they gave were not related to my credentials, but I thought they were bogus reasons at the time.

At my present employer, they are very high on certifications and while it is not a requirement they would like everyone to be working on something. We do not get rewarded immediately when we pass a certification but it will be taken in to consideration when we have our annual reviews. I think the fact that I have been working on certifications since I started at the company helped me vault over someone, who started a few months before me, for a more senior position.

It shows some dedication to improving yourself and being willing to invest in yourself as an asset to the company so I personally would never say working on certifications is a bad thing.

Hada944

http://career-resources.dice.com/technical-resume/certifications_lose_their_punch_in_compensation.shtml

This article shows that pay for certification has declined for seven periods during 2008.

Hard to tell, really. Sure seems like there are a lot of entry level jobs out there that require MCSE, BA/BS, and years of experience to work on help desk and then pay $10 an hour.

Cory

blargoe

vsmith3rd wrote:

I often wonder what impact certifications have on salary. I've heard some mention that soon after obtaining a cert or some certs, that they were awarded either a raise or raise and promotion. I've heard others say that they received no financial gains until moving to another position outside their original company.

I'm curious because I feel that I've gained a lot of knowledge over the last 2 1/2 years I've been in IT, and I can see the difference in what skills I offer my company. I feel I'm a bit underpaid in relation to the work I do compared to my co-workers with the same responsibilities. The big difference is not so much in knowledge (I am amongst the most advanced in regards to client/server OS knowledge/troubleshooting), but more in my lack of experience (only 2.5 years total in IT). I do desktop support, server administration level work. I'm curious as to what impact earning certs (and the knowledge gained from studying and labs) have had on your salaries. I'm not so rude as to look for numerical figures, but looking for a sense of what to expect. Thanks.

You're going to get the nice salary increase when you take the next job. It might be some kind of promotion at your current company, but probably not. That's just pretty much how it works. The cert will help with that part of it. I haven't heard a cert giving you a raise "just because" unless it was some kind of established goal that was agreed upon.

barry3652

vsmith3rd wrote:

That's about what I've been hearing. Its almost as if company A has an employee, John, starting on the ground level at the same time that company B has an employee, Jane, starting at that level. Both employees get the same level of experience, have the same competency level, and the same certs. Jane leaves Company B for company A, and gets hired at a higher salary than that of John at company A (hope this makes sense), and John has to help train Jane. I'm not naive enough to believe in any true loyalty between company and employee in the current world in which we live, but shouldn't there be some pretense in loyalty. If I sound a little too interested in other's experiences, its because my situation is a little like John's. Does this mean one has to leave, to reap the benefit of their knowledge gained?

Are you they to teach?. If that's not your role then do as I did go in and ak for a pay rise, Give your boss the reason your aking tell them that what student earns more than the teacher?. I was asked to train a guy who was on nearly double my wage, But it worked out alright as I got the same money after sitting down with the boss and explaining how I felt about it.

scheistermeister

My certs have gotten me a whole bunch of nothing... Two degrees (with 3 majors), two certs and half to the third with 5 years in the field IT work and the best I get job wise is a contract here and there that last for two days installing new point of sale systems or offers for $10\hr helpdesk jobs... But that isn't stopping me from getting more certs. I am doing it now because I enjoy it and it is addicting.

Edit: I am assuming because IT isn't big in my area, health care is though, too bad I am not a Dr. or a nurse.

dynamik

scheistermeister wrote:

Edit: I am assuming because IT isn't big in my area, health care is though, too bad I am not a Dr. or a nurse.

Have you tried looking at hospitals, etc.? They obviously need IT personnel.

Have you thought about getting HIPAA certified (which I hear is much more difficult than most IT exams)?

Ahriakin

Yes and no on salary boosting. I know my first few certs definitely helped get my current job but I was able to negotiate a 25% raise after my first year not so much by the new certifications themselves but with proof of how I'd applied the knowledge the courses gave. Simply saying I'd gotten the MCSE/CCSP wouldn't have meant much without showing how it had improved the company. So dont' expect the get a boost just because you passed an exam, show your management how it has/will save them money and headaches.

scheistermeister

dynamik wrote:

scheistermeister wrote:

Edit: I am assuming because IT isn't big in my area, health care is though, too bad I am not a Dr. or a nurse.

Have you tried looking at hospitals, etc.? They obviously need IT personnel.

Have you thought about getting HIPAA certified (which I hear is much more difficult than most IT exams)?

Yeah, I have applied to hospitals and have done contract for for one. For that contract I did have to read through the Hipaa literature and I had to sign quite a few NDAs to keep all information confidential, but they did not require me to get hipaa certified.

mike3

undomiel wrote:

Well I'm not the best one to answer this currently but it has had 0 impact so far. I have had to hide from the company that I am pursuing certifications because I was specifically told not to pursue certification when I inquired about it after starting here. But once I have the MCSE then I will be job pursuing and that should give me a very nice salary increase if everything works out as planned.

That is some bullshit.

IT_Admin

In my old job when I started getting my certs, they did not get me a raise or any real recognition amongst my bosses. My co-workers thought that certs were a "waste of time" I thought for sure once I obtained my MCSE 2k3, it would have to mean something. I scheduled a 1-1 meeting with my boss to discuss the certs I obtained and how they would help me do my job better and handle more responsibilities, but they still refused to bulge. I walked shortly after that.

My certs did in fact help me land my new position. My boss did mention that the company would cover any expenses for exams that I take, as long as they are directly related to my position. So I'll wait and see if they $$$ comes after I get my MCSE 2k3 Security.

Aldur

I agree with alot of people here that certs may not get you a raise in your current position, but somebody WILL give you a raise for your certs, meaning that there is alot better chance of you getting a much higher paying job with those certs. Currently I do get raises for certs, for getting my JNCIP-M I received a 10% raise which brought me into the 20$/hr.... woop de doo da!

I consider certs to be a investment in my future that doesn't have a real immediate return.

LarryDaMan

vsmith3rd wrote:

That's about what I've been hearing. Its almost as if company A has an employee, John, starting on the ground level at the same time that company B has an employee, Jane, starting at that level. Both employees get the same level of experience, have the same competency level, and the same certs. Jane leaves Company B for company A, and gets hired at a higher salary than that of John at company A (hope this makes sense), and John has to help train Jane. I'm not naive enough to believe in any true loyalty between company and employee in the current world in which we live, but shouldn't there be some pretense in loyalty. If I sound a little too interested in other's experiences, its because my situation is a little like John's. Does this mean one has to leave, to reap the benefit of their knowledge gained?

This is very common in the D.C area, and the short answer is that if money is the most important factor... you have to leave.

It's a two-way dynamic, you can bet if there are enough budget cuts, you could very well be fired.

If your budget/wallet needs a boost, you should have no qualms about leaving. The days of getting up and going to the same job for 40 years are pretty much gone. Loyalty is overrated, just don't burn any bridges.

dynamik

It seems like the best way to see the most financial gain from your certs is to switch jobs. Like others have stated, are you doing your current job any differently than before you obtained your cert? If it's not a significant difference, why would you expect to be paid differently? There's a few exceptions, like obtaining a high-level cert for a vendor partner, but your best bet is usually to move on.

HeroPsycho

Going to echo what's been said here.

A. You get your money coming in the door, not staying where you are. Take my current employer as an example. In the time I've been here, I've gotten raises of 5.6% and 0%. Compare that to coming aboard the company, which effectively was >25% from my previous position.

B. How much have certifications helped me get raises? Last year, I gained MCSE 2000/2003: Messaging specializations, MCTS in ISA 2006, and VCP, and an overall very positive performance review. I promptly received no salary increase because of "the softening market". My professionally presented protests to that had absolutely no effect.

If that were true as to why, even when the economy was doing well the year before, I received a 5.6% raise after upgrading my MCSE 2000 to 2003, and passing ISA 2004 exam. I don't think the certifications were really why.

With that said, certifications were identified as either requirements for each job I've had so far in my career, or were reasons for me getting each one, and each job change resulted in significant salary increases (last two in order: 18%, 27%).

Rationally speaking, this all makes sense in most cases. If you think about it, unless your company substantially grows, they are probably not making significantly more profit, so they're not gonna pay you more for your current work unless you get promoted and therefore doing more valuable work. Also, certs generally speaking only prove you can do the work you're hired to do, so why would your employer care if you get certified further? They'd know if you could do more advanced work by your performance; a cert would be unnecessary. The exception is in the case of a promotion, which is why it's important to find out what higher positions you can get within a company before you take the job if substantial salary increases are important to you.

In my experience though at least in IT, don't count on promotions as the vehicle for significant career advancement. You probably will have to change companies instead.

Aldur

HeroPsycho wrote:

In my experience though at least in IT, don't count on promotions as the vehicle for significant career advancement. You probably will have to change companies instead.

+1 on that!

Your biggest raises will be walking in the door.

vsmith3rd

Thank you all for your responses offering insight into your experiences. Its helped me gain some new perspectives.

I posed the question because I know that I've gained a lot of knowledge as I intensely poured over study material for certs. In addition, I've applied that knowledge in both lab and live environments, and I know its greatly improved my troubleshooting and ability to get to timely resolutions. I'm still new to administration (< 1 yr), but I feel that in that time, I've equalled and/or passed some guys that I couldn't approach a year ago. These guys make lots more, but aren't more productive (often less productive), haven't really demonstrated any higher level abilities, and are starting to get that glassed over look when I discuss some higher level tech stuff. I certainly don't expect any compensation from passing a few exams, but I guess I do expect it from demonstrating a higher level of knowledge, competency, efficiency, commitment and results.

I haven't even had my first annual evaluation yet, so maybe I should just sit tight, relax a little and see what happens. Besides, no matter what I've covered in my 2+ yrs in IT, I'm still a noob and have years to grow, and a ton to learn as I have barely scratched the surface. I'll file this post as another anxiety attack on my part. Sorry guys.

HeroPsycho

3 very simple question you need to answer:

Are you growing in your current position?

Are you happy in your current position? (This includes your salary relative to your skill level.)

If yes to both, stay put. If no to one, start looking around and see if you might find something better. If no to both, start hunting seriously now.

NetAdmin2436

HeroPsycho wrote:

3 very simple question you need to answer:

Are you growing in your current position?

Are you happy in your current position? (This includes your salary relative to your skill level.)

If yes to both, stay put. If no to one, start looking around and see if you might find something better. If no to both, start hunting seriously now.

And by 3 simple questions, you mean 2.

But seriously, I agree with HeroPsycho in that you normally only ever get increases is when you switch companies or show a vast improvement as with a promotion. I think it's true in a lot of other fields as well. I worked retail for a big orange box company for 8 years while going through college and it would always irritate me when they'd hire someone new and pay him/her more than what i was making even though I'd been there for years....and to make it worse I'd have to train that person in.