Perl Cert?

Daniel333

So I have started using Perl a bit at work. So I snagged a couple books and am starting to get it down. I was never much of a programmer. But I am having fun. I noticed that CIW has a Perl specialist cert. I quick hop over dice and it's clear there is NO respect for CIW. Nevertheless, I enjoy having certs at the end of the rainbow as a nice milestone.

So wondering if anyone has a cert from them? This one specifically and their thoughts? I am debating if it's worth the $150 for recognition from a company I had never heard of until a few months ago.

Also, if you saw CIW Perl Specialist on a resume, what would your thoughts be? Are there any other programming certs out there I should be looking at?

Darril

I have some CIW certs from many years ago and have taught some CIW courses, also many years ago. In my opinion, they never really got their footing and as you noticed, they don't generate much respect from hiring managers. I remember the knowledge taught in these certifications didn't easily translate into usable experience. They seem to have tried to change things up about a year ago, but I haven't spent any time trying to see if they've really improved. That said, I don't have a CIW Perl cert, but there was some JavaScript in the involved.

In general, hiring managers don't seem to value programming certifications as much as other types of certifications like networking certifications. More, they care about what you did and it's much easier for a job candidate to point to a website or application and say "I did that." That isn't so easy with networking results.

Still, I found pursuing programming certifications helped me learn more details about different languages than just self-study. When programming or writing scripts for any task, I focus on the task and often have a narrow view. Studying the cert helps ensure I learn more to master the language rather than just how to modify a few lines of a script.

HTH,

Darril Gibson
Security Blog

RobertKaucher

There is no widely acknowledged nor recognozed Perl certification. Most people who are hard-core Perl hackers openly scoff at the idea that there could ever be anything more than an exceptionally fundamental certification for Perl. The reason being, if you take one single, seemingly straight forward requirement and you put 50 different Perl hackers on the task and they will come up with more than 50 ways to accomplish the task.

How do you write a certification for a language that is so fluid and flexible? Couple that with the attitude of the hard-core Perl developer base who would rather slit their own wrists than ever admit that a test could actually tell anyone anything about their abilities as coders and you can see why there will never-ever be a real Perl cert.

Having said that, I think the venerable Mr. Gibson expressed a valid point regarding studying for programming certifications. And just because you use the certification requirements for your studies does not mean you actually have to take the exam. Studying the requirements can help you stay focused and track your progress. But I think holding the actual cert might be pointless.