Master degree or certifications?

Sup ppl, what do you think about a master degree in information technology or any area related to technology and a lot of certifications.

I think that combining both options is a good idea, what do you think about this?

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JDMurray

Education, certification, and experience are all three different things, and no one is a substitute for either or both of the other two.

kevozz

What is your career goal(s)?

Olajuwon

jdmurray wrote:

Education, certification, and experience are all three different things, and no one is a substitute for either or both of the other two.

Weel said, my friend. Best thing to do is to focus one thing at a time. Wether it be certification now and Master's later or Master's now and certs later.

x_Danny_x

i think it is best that after you get a college degree, to go work for a company and get experience! And while you are working go for certifications or a Masters.

jsobrinog

Im in my last 1 1/2 year of my master degree in information technology management. i started to like more certifications lol , i dont know what happend but since i passed n+ y felt with more security and while i study for a+ i like more more jaja, dont know exactly what happend :S

And as a comment, most of my teammates in the master, the focus a lot on "academic education" and they miss technical experience :S

zenboy

everytime I hear people undecided whether to get a college degree or a certification, the first thing I shout out to them is DEGREE! If you are able financially fit and have the time to get the degree, do that first. As one gets older, it is tough to go back to school. Certifications can come anytime. Remember, degree is valid for life, certification is only valid for the technology it support in.

JDMurray

zenboy wrote:

As one gets older, it is tough to go back to school. Certifications can come anytime.

Speaking as an older person who "went back to school" in his 40's, let me say that it isn't always tough to go back to school. I was much more ready for college-level studies at age 25 than I was at age 18. And at 40, I was more motivated, disciplined, and economically-able to tackle graduate-level studies than I was at age 25.

When two of my kids graduated high school and decided that they weren't ready for college, I had no problem with this. I knew from experience that a person will come to education when they are ready; not everyone is ready for college at age 18. Sometimes it takes a few semesters of college attendance to realize this, and sometimes not.

I suggest trying college first (as one of my kids eventually did) before deciding to put it off until you are older. And remember, traditional, 4-year colleges aren't the only type of education available. Explore the options.

12thlevelwarrior

You make some really good points, I am going to try and have that attitude when my children approach the end of highschool. It is interesting to ponder why certain people become interested in learning at certain times in their lives. My time came after having my first kid, I want to set an example for them, where before the internel motivation wasn't there, just a response to external pressures (parents, society, etc..).

It is simply amazing once you realize how powerful the human brain is, and how much knowledge it can absorb year after year.

supertechCETma

master's degree in information technology management.

a master's degree and entry-level certs?

You either need to look at academia or a management position or you will be considered over-qualified for any "hands-on" work.

If you want to do tech work, you are either selling yourself short and/or you wasted a lot of money on a master's degree.

Vicount

Good point made earlier that the Master's is one-time, certs need to be kept current. Not much point in getting certified now on Win 2003, then taking a few years for education. If you go the education route, take every advantage of opportunities to gain working experience (internships, part-time work, volunteer work). The Master's is only valuable if you want to take your career into management or education. If you want to be a system administrator or network engineer, go strait for the certs and work experience.

jsobrinog

Mhh i started my master 2 years ago. Cert stuff is just new for me, i already knew that certs where there, but just in january i decided to participate in a course and end it wit a certification test and obtain the cert.

I will continue studying my master and i will continue studygin for more certs. I dont think that im "over studying myself" , the fact is , that i find interesting and amazing studying for certs.

zenboy

jdmurray wrote:

Speaking as an older person who "went back to school" in his 40's, let me say that it isn't always tough to go back to school. I was much more ready for college-level studies at age 25 than I was at age 18. And at 40, I was more motivated, disciplined, and economically-able to tackle graduate-level studies than I was at age 25.

When two of my kids graduated high school and decided that they weren't ready for college, I had no problem with this. I knew from experience that a person will come to education when they are ready; not everyone is ready for college at age 18. Sometimes it takes a few semesters of college attendance to realize this, and sometimes not.

I suggest trying college first (as one of my kids eventually did) before deciding to put it off until you are older. And remember, traditional, 4-year colleges aren't the only type of education available. Explore the options.

Your points are well taken; however, I feel my point is better.

When a person is young (especially when he/she are still living at home with parent or isn't married) there isn't many financial committments to worry about. He/she has time and energy to focus mainly on schooling instead of juggling a full-time job, school, and/or times for his/her love one. I'm 34, newly wedded, working part-time (wish I could find a full-time), and doing full-time school workload, and juggling to find some private time for my wife (especially when she needs someone to listen to her problems at work). It is easy to say that I'm doing something to better our lives and that she should hang in there abit longer, but it's isn't that easy at all. There are times when I would get home at 11 at night and she has already gone to bed with a facing dilemma at work, but couldn't sit down and talk to me until several days later because of our schedule.
I'm not saying that it is impossible to accomplish a college degree at an older age; I'm saying that it is alot tougher.
Sure, not everyone are ready at an early age to meet the challenge of getting that college degree, but it is good to start off at that early age. It is hard to know when one is ready for any event in life; sometimes, one just have to take a chance at it.
Statistically, many people do get marry around 27-30 yrs old, and have children at an even later age (27-34yrs). By then, it would very tough to get your degree when you have to juggle work, school, and family (especially if you have kids).
Financially, it does impact his/her family income when he/she has school fee to pay. Economically, we all know that IT industry has upped the ante on job requirements (like a 4 year degree, several years of work experiences, and/or certifications in required fields). It wasn't like that 5-6 years ago before the economic recession that one doesn't need to get a degree to get an IT job (my first IT job was desktop support which was 8 years ago and I didn't have any experience nor degree at all. There were plenty of jobs willing to put me on board and give training even after seeing my dismal credential). Try getting an IT job now and see what what kind of credential they expect (only add more valid to my reason why it's pay to start off early, and why I'm going back to get the degree).
Jmurray, do you think it would be easier for you to go to college at the time when you were married and raising the young kids, plus working at the same time? It is easier now to go back to college since your kids are grown-up, your level of experiences in IT is well seasoned (thanks to the lack of requirement of job expectation 10-15 years ago,) and perhaps financially off since the economic was at an all time high back then. Let admit it, it was easy to get in IT field back then (it was for me) than it is now. Time as changed, and so do we. Only reason why I'm back in school again to do what was could have been easier at an early age.
This debate is about whether one should take the certification or get the MS degree; not about whether one is mentally able to go to college. Both options require extensive concentration of studying if one expects to pass.
The motivation and dedication for either choices are there; just not the consequence it may have later in life. My point is that a college degree has greater impact throughout one's career than a certification which requires updating every now and then.

JDMurray

zenboy wrote:

Jmurray, do you think it would be easier for you to go to college at the time when you were married and raising the young kids, plus working at the same time?

As I said, I am more motivated, disciplined, and economically-able to tackle graduate-level studies in my 40's that I was when I was married, with a small child, and working full-time back in my 20's. I did attend school at both times of my life because I needed to for both myself and my family.

zenboy wrote:

This debate is about whether one should take the certification or get the MS degree; not about whether one is mentally able to go to college. Both options require extensive concentration of studying if one expects to pass.

A much greater mental tenacity is required to complete a full semester's work load with all A's than it takes to prepare for any one certification exam. I believe if someone cannot yet mentally handle college, studying for certifications is a very good way to build his/her "mental muscles."

zenboy

jdmurray wrote:

As I said, I am more motivated, disciplined, and economically-able to tackle graduate-level studies in my 40's that I was when I was married, with a small child, and working full-time back in my 20's. I did attend school at both times of my life because I needed to for both myself and my family.

That is a great accomplishment. However, it is still harder to do than when one has less comittment in life at an earlier age.

A much greater mental tenacity is required to complete a full semester's work load with all A's than it takes to prepare for any one certification exam. I believe if someone cannot yet mentally handle college, studying for certifications is a very good way to build his/her "mental muscles."

It's hard to debate when you compare a full semester work load to one exam; however, there are those, who lack or do not have IT experience, find it's hard to pass one certification exam within the same time frame as a full semester work load. It seems that you are implying that obtaining one certification exam is easier and less intensive than a full term course. That depends on how much of experience one has in IT. Of those people who have passed the exam, how many would you say has gained a thorough knowledge in one ms product (xp, server, etc.)? Gaining a thorough knowledge require intensive studying, which is beyond "the merely passing of one exam". The same goes toward obtaining an "all A's in one full-term". How much of the knowledge you gain depends on the amount you put into it. Like I said, both require extensive study.

JDMurray

zenboy wrote:

It seems that you are implying that obtaining one certification exam is easier and less intensive than a full term course. That depends on how much of experience one has in IT. Of those people who have passed the exam, how many would you say has gained a thorough knowledge in one ms product (xp, server, etc.)? Gaining a thorough knowledge require intensive studying, which is beyond "the merely passing of one exam". The same goes toward obtaining an "all A's in one full-term". How much of the knowledge you gain depends on the amount you put into it. Like I said, both require extensive study.

You are now "reasoning in circles." This convolution of thought is very un-Zen-like, zenboy.

zenboy

jdmurray wrote:

You are now "reasoning in circles." This convolution of thought is very un-Zen-like, zenboy.

like wise. Don't get me started on zen. I don't even know what it is..hehe

Trailerisf

I found University trained me little in the way of practical experience. The theory taught me how to think. But other than that, studying the past really doesn't give you a grasp on the cutting edge technology.

If you want management jobs, go with a degree. Always.
If you want to enjoy hands-on, go with certs.

There is such a thing as being over qualified. Employers get scared thinking that you will get bored with your job or expect more compensation.

JDMurray

Trailerisf wrote:

studying the past really doesn't give you a grasp on the cutting edge technology.

Well, let me take a shot at explaining why every technologist should study the past.

Innovations come from knowing how things were done in the past. You might pick up from ideas from how Edison invented the light bulb; how firearms were developed over the past 300 years; or from understanding the series of events that led Gutenberg to inventing the printing press. Knowledge of the technology created by the ancient Greeks, Romans, and Egyptians still influences how modern technology is developed today.

Foreseeing how things might fail comes from knowing how things were done in the past. Why does the American public prefer to buy one type of car over another? Why was the Vietnam War such a failure in accomplishing its original goals? Why was there such a massive loss of life from the Galveston hurricane of 1900? Unforeseen failures and disasters often result in sweeping innovations that improve systems to prevent the same consequences from occurring again. This is the result of studying the past.

Understanding motivation and progress through competition and business relationships comes from knowing how things were done in the past. The business competition between Edison and Westinghouse over AC and DC electricity; how competition and cost drove Henry Ford to create the assembly line; and how competition between the Americans and the Soviets pushed technology from transcontinental railroads to moon landings in only 100 years. How people throughout history have taken negative forces and perception and turned them around to create positive and constructive energy is an inspiration for us in the present to do the same.

Exploring how things are perceived by humans comes from knowing how things were done in the past. How ancient peoples were driven to invent new technology from their perceived need to worship gods; why Samuel Morse was named the inventor of radio communications instead of its true inventor, Nikola Tesla; why experimentation on animals and genetic research is opposed by people for both moral and ethical reasons. Understanding what does and does not historically motivate people allows planning for direction and expectation of consequences.

I have never found a single, good, convincing explanation of why someone should study the past. Most do it because they find it interesting, or because they are required to for passing a class. At some point, you'll pick up enough wisdom (it comes with age) to realize for yourself how valuable a thorough understanding of the past is.

jsobrinog

Wow, what a great reaction to the topic. Thanks to jdmurray for your valuable comments. apreciated them

Well, let me tell you something about me. Im 25 years old i finished my carreer 3 years ago and i have studying the master since 2004.

Someone wrote that for management work use the degree, for hand job certs. Well i think that this is true; but i have a different point of view.

Im preparing myself to become a good admin in information technology i think that combining both certs and master give the right tools to have knowledge and confidence to keep on working and stay up to date with new an raising technologies.

My situation is very diferent, im single ( but have girlfriend ) i pay my own bills and have no kids ( not married ) , but ; i think that keeping this line of professional study will give me more tools and knowledge for my future. I would like to become a boss that has both technical and management knowledge , to make the correct decisions butt most important based on experience.

Greets

Trailerisf

jdmurray wrote:

Why was there such a massive loss of life from the Galveston hurricane of 1900? Unforeseen failures and disasters often result in sweeping innovations that improve systems to prevent the same consequences from occurring again

Didnt do a hell of alot for New Orleans???

Would you rather have a person with a degree in theory on how a capacitor was invented or someone who has 9 years experience in a shop fixing your computer???