how many IT guys Certify?

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Out of every 10 people working in IT how many of them will certify in there career?

 

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Surely that depends on their committment to their career? I for one am all for certification (after all I am booked on my MCITP:EA course in 3 weeks time) but thats because I am dedicated to my (current) career.

 

At a wild guess I'd say 4 to 5 people out of every 10, but it depends on each individual and what they want to put into their career like SimonD says.

I know some lads at my last place that took the A+ but failed both exams (not for the want of trying to prepare for it though). They were never that bothered about taking it, just that it was offered to them in the training budget to pay for the exams. They have no intention of moving out of 1st/2nd line desktop support work (as they were employed outside of IT in other parts of the business), and have been there over a decade, yet not always in the IT dept. I thnk they're satisfied with their level that they're at and more power to them as they're sound guys.

If it pays the bills and all that...........

I caught the bug after I passed my A+, and try to use certifications to compliment what I already know and use day to day rather than use it to get another job without prior commercial experience. I'll definitely learn the content for specific certifications, but I'm not interested in taking exams until I have commercial experience in that field of work. Just my opinion though.

D

 

i certify cause i want to make money

i think it depends id say 7/10 maybe certified at one point in their career

but id say maybe as little as 2/10 certify as an ongoing pursuit

 

Then your doing it wrong....

To the OP, I'd say it really does vary plenty of IT pros never certify because the role they are in doesn't seem to demand it or just because they don't see any benefit.

 

Actually I disagree with you, certifying should be viewed as a way of improving your employability and as such your earning capacity. It's now one of the reasons why I certify, obviously it's not the only one but it is a major one.

 

Although i see what your saying, there are financial benefits in being certified, even if it's just getting you a job.

I've seen posts on here from people whose bonuses were linked to getting certified, and from my perspective, my wage will rise from being certified, my employer has made quite clear then benefits to them by having certified staff.

 

such is life my friend

 

I think about half the people may certify and it is maybe the newer guys or guys that have started their careers in IT that want to do it.

I am looking to certify to gain new skills that i can then use to try and get a better job.

 

I don't deny that getting certified can increase your earning power, employability etc BUT if your primary objective is to make money then your are likely to find yourself disappointed. Largely because if your focus is making money the likelihood is your going for certs based on job adverts or based on what the TP you've just handed your life savings to tell you. Which means they likely won't be related to your current role, won't be backed by experience and could damage rather than enhance your employability.

Guess what ladies and gents, certification isn't the golden bullet. It'll help but without real world experience, dedication and pure hard graft its actually pretty worthless.

Combine that with the fact that if your aim whatever your job/career is purely making money your very likely to end up miserable and......



....your likely already an arsehole.

 

4.2

 

your a nice guy mate

 

Now, now, you two.

Before this goes any further and gets out of hand, can I just point out that 'you are' is shortened to 'you're' and not 'your'.

Right, carry on.

 

in fairness im not the only one who agreed on the financial point

maybe it was intended for me fair enough

 

So I am an arsehole, I have been called worse things in my life.

I just want to say that my primary objective is just that, to make money, hell anyone who doesn't have the same objective is either a priest or mad, we all want to improve our standing in life, whether thats by increasing the money we earn or the clothes we wear the only honest way of doing that is by improving yourself, hence certifying.

I knew some very clever Technical Design Authority guys who a few years ago didn't have any certs to their names, they designed a lot of very technical solutions for a solutions provider (as contractors) but once they left the company were basically told that without certifications they could forget the big bucks they were used to. Their solution? they took a week off and passed all the required certs (MCSE NT4 and MCSE 2003), all in that week. Were they arseholes for doing that?

This however is where I am lucky because I do have the real world experience, dedication and pure hard graft, I have been doing this for a long time, know how the game is played and realise what will benefit me and what won't.

Please don't think that just because some people are actually honest about their reasons for getting certified that they are arseholes (whilst I can quite possibly be described as one, others may not appreciate it).

 

I'd say 4 out of 10.

I pursue certification so I can put another abbreviation in my forum signature. Nothing more.

 

Certifying can make you money but if your doing it just for more money then you are indeed doing it wrong.

Certs are to show your experience level which should enhance your career and pay packet but getting a bunch of certs without the experience will have a negative effect on your career and the same goes for the wages too.

 

I'd rather be happy than rich.

I could probably make more money doing something else... but with the increased money would also likely come an increase in hours and/or time away from the family. No thanks - I enjoy doing what I do.

 

Indeed.
As I've mentioned before, a company I once worked for brought in a team of consultants to look at how the business worked (i.e. with too many people in it).

I was on the panel of employees that got to spend a few days with these bell-ends.

One of the first questions they asked was 'why do you come to work each day?'
Everyone's top answer was 'for the money.'

They said 'really?'
After a long discussion (or brainstorm, or thoughtfart, I forget which) it became clear that although the accumulation of wealth is indeed a motivating factor, it's not the primary reason for doing what you do.

I didn't get any of my certs to get promoted or an increase in salary.
I got them to proove that I could, and to show people what I'm capable of.