Value of CCA compared to other Certification

Firstly I will like to clarify that I do not in any way want to demean the CCA Certification. A bit of background may help explaining my query. I have recently completed my MCSA and will be giving the Private Cloud in a few months. Currently I am taking a small break to clear my head before sitting down to study System Center 2012. I have worked on Citrix Presentation Server a long time back (as a user) and was always interested in knowing how it works and when a colleague shared some Video Trainings on Citrix Xenapp 6 and 6.5 I got hooked. To cut a long story short I went to the Citrix Site and started looking for how to book the certification and got the shock of my life! $300 for CCA 1Y0-A20.
I will be purchasing the MCSE Private Cloud Offer from MS for 2 exams which will be roughly 50% of this amount. My question is two fold
1. Is there a demand for Citrix Certified professionals in Enterprises
2. Am I better off putting my money into something different
As I said I will be pursuing the MCSE Private Cloud and Windows Server 2012 later in the year. I am interested in Virtualization but working in the Service Management side of IT as of now. Will Vmware be a better bang for the buck compared to Citrix considering the Price versus Value

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asurania

Hey;

if you have Citrix expereince with CCA and CCAA...

there is a masive demand....

Contract Rates : $45/hour for Junior to $75/hour for senior - In canada

so yea it is highly demanded, and there is a lack of skills in Citrix and Vmware

Of course expereince is more important then the certification, but teh certification is the icing on the cake (it seals the deal)...

I would put the Citrix Certifciation ROE definatly higher then any microsoft certification....

ben2112

asurania wrote: »

Hey;

if you have Citrix expereince with CCA and CCAA...

there is a masive demand....

Contract Rates : $45/hour for Junior to $75/hour for senior - In canada

so yea it is highly demanded, and there is a lack of skills in Citrix and Vmware

Of course expereince is more important then the certification, but teh certification is the icing on the cake (it seals the deal)...

I would put the Citrix Certifciation ROE definatly higher then any microsoft certification....

Couldn't agree more.. I have 7 years experience and never thought about getting certified until I got a job with my current company. While I was interviewing this other company, I answered all the technical questions with ease. They really liked me but told me that since I didn't have a Citrix Cert, they couldn't hire me on.

As for MS certs, I worked with a guy that was an MCSE. He didn't know crap. It was all paper but no substance. I am not MS certified and knew more then he did. After that, my view of MS Certs dropped. Citrix certs with the experience is in very high demand. Virtualization is the next big thing that all companies of all sizes are moving towards.

As for me, my company requires us to have at least one CCA because we are a Platinum Partner.. Just having one CCA will allow you to have access to Citrix Support if you need it. I work with several CCIAs so I usually go to them when I need help with an issue. My goal is to get my CCEE by the end of the year.

pumbaa_g

Thanks all, I dont have experience on Citrix but interested in getting into Virtualization sometime in the future. I am current working in IT Sector as a Crisis Manager for multiple customers which allows me to coordinate with Deep Troubleshooting Teams and get major incidents resolved.

What will you suggest VMware or Citrix?

MiikeB

ben2112 wrote: »

Couldn't agree more.. I have 7 years experience and never thought about getting certified until I got a job with my current company. While I was interviewing this other company, I answered all the technical questions with ease. They really liked me but told me that since I didn't have a Citrix Cert, they couldn't hire me on.

I don't get that. They looked at your resume and decided to interview you. They KNEW you did not have the cert. If it was absolutely required why would they even waste your time with the interview?

NetworkVeteran

MiikeB wrote: »

I don't get that. They looked at your resume and decided to interview you. They KNEW you did not have the cert. If it was absolutely required why would they even waste your time with the interview?

+1. Sounds like a blow-off with no substance. When I hire for positions that require a CS/EE degree, if you do not have one, you do not get an interview. Period. Why waste anyone's time?

ben2112

MiikeB wrote: »

I don't get that. They looked at your resume and decided to interview you. They KNEW you did not have the cert. If it was absolutely required why would they even waste your time with the interview?

Because it is a DOD contract and I have a clearance.

pumbaa_g

LOL in the intrest of everyone you may want to disclose that

having a clearance does ensure that in the niche market of Govt Contracters your name is on top.
I remember a post from a guy some time back who got a $250K offer from MS with 15 years of exchange experience. Turns out that he had security clearance.
Thanks everyone for providing your inputs, in the end it was finally about bang for the buck so I have booked VCP5 for November end. Trying to find the ICM training in my area in the comming months.