Homemaker to Study/Job

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Hello & Wishes to everyone,

I did my Bachelors in Computer Science 2 years back. Now I am a homemaker and a mother of a 1 year old. I wish to continue my studies in MSc, but circumstances does not allow to pursue it now. Consulted number of microsoft training institutes. I got different opinions . One said to start comptia a+, the other suggested MCP. I dont have any work experience, although my primary interest is in programming( C, C++, VF).

Would be great to share your advices & suggestions in this regard.

 

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I wouldnt bother with a A+, rather start with a mcp and work your way towards a Mcse.

 

Well it really depends what your goal is, as to what you should do.

If you just want to study, just buy books and study whatever interests you.

There are no certs relevant to C/C++ as far as I am aware, coding ability is all that matters.

VF ? Do you mean Visual Fortran ?

The A+ and MCSE certifications are primarily for IT support or administrator positions, it never hurts to be aware of how your programs will be deployed and supported, but in general these certs are not directly relevant to programmers.

You can still do an MSc with a university part time or with the OU, they tend to be a little pricey however compared to BSc's.

 

Hi there and welcome

 

Hi & welcome to CF

NB

 

Hi All,

Thanks for all the valued suggestions & welcome.

I had my own inhibitions for an MSc due to the time restrictions with baby. At the housechores, it was a moment of spurt of questions on C/C++ by my friend which triggered me to study..But my main intention to study is to get a job..So, I had second thoughts that if the job was the objective, then one should do a CompTia+/MCP, then get onto a job, and then work progressively towards another certification.

I have one doubt although. Does these certifications hold equal respect/reputation as compared to a MSc? The viable option for me to do an MSc would be by either doing part time/OU..Is the MSc done by OU reputable? (Would that help me in the job market?)..Could someone suggest some good OU/part time MSc in UK?

On Plan B, I wish to do a job right now (for which some certifications might be needed coz' of my expat BSc), earn some, do an MSc after two years (coz' an MSc for an expat may be around £10-15K).

Thanks for the patience.

P.S: Sorry for the VF - VisualFoxPro

 

Comptia qualifications are not as respected as M$ ones.Go look at the job market and you will see they never ask for a network+,a+...they ask for a MCP as min.

For a quick job in the IT sector a mcp is your first port of call I think.

Where u from originaly by the way?

 

I've never seen a requirement or FoxPro these days so I'd steer clear of that.

An MSc is indeed a very expensive proposition for an expat and may not pay off in the job market.

Programming ability is the number one requirement for a programming job, if you can program well from your BSc then you should just start applying now.

C# .Net seems to be the current in vouge language and MS offer the MCAD/MCSD/MCPD certs, however the the certs are are generally designed for someone with experience.

You can take the certs on managed C++ but they really test on .Net framework knowledge and not standard C++.

 

To be honest, an MSc is a different qualification to a specific cert (or set of certs) opening more doors for you career-wise.

I have a comp sci degree and no certs, have considered a Masters in maths, but realised that that would be more of an interest thing rather than being directly relevant to my career choice, so have abandoned that idea at least for now. You need to address the same questions in where you want to go and where your chosen qualifications are likely to take you. I have noticed the magic 'C/C++' phrase waved around a lot by newcomers to the forum. I'd imagine that the reason why there are no certs for the language is that it is way too in-depth in terms of its applicable uses, and the structure of the language itself is so varied that skill cannot be reliably assessed by exam alone; experience makes the grade for C/C++ programming.

Good luck with whatever you choose, but be careful not to make an expensive mistake in chosing the wrong quals to study.

 

Hai,
Was a bit busy with family. I have been thinking about my education with the opinion i received here, I have decided to do comptia+, just to keep in track and so that i dont loose my knowledge in this field. I want to persue my MSc in a good university in full time basis, which is not possible now and that brought me to this decision. Can someone suggest me with a good material since Iam planning to do it by myself. How is it that we do this without any help from any institute. Do we register for the exam first and then prepare for it, or prepare first and apply for the exam. Once registered how long does it take to have the exam. How long does it take to complete a course.

 

I am from kerala, India. what is the actual big difference in comptia+ and mcp

 

CompTIA's A+ is an entry level, vendor neutral certification, that covers computer *hardware* and a little bit about recent operating systems. The cert does not expire and is globally recognised.

MCP (Microsoft Certified Professional) is the designation that one receives after passing one of Microsoft's many exams on the Windows 2000 / XP Server 2003 track.. there are a few exceptions to this though, so you should research whatever exam you are considering to see if it leads to MCP status (if that is what you want). MCP therefore is not vendor neutral and the cert will naturally expire once the technology is no longer used. Of course Microsoft certs are globally recognised too. Microsoft certifications do not go into much detail about computer hardware, they cover *their products* and are harder to attain than the A+

 

Thankyou for the advice. After loads of surfing atlast confined to the Mike Meyer's comptia+ book. I have ordered one and waiting for it. Then lets see how it catches me.

 

Hi & welcome to CF