Re: The Great Certification Debate

[Esther Filderman <ecf@psc.edu>]

   You started in the right direction but I feel you hit the wrong conclusion. 
   A degree or certification is an "indicator" that one CAN learn and be taught

Tripe and double tripe.  

A degree, or proof of taking a collection of "classes", is merely
showing that you have the ability to tell the teacher what s/he wants
to hear.

THe vast majority of classes I've taken through the years has been
gross regurgitation.  Not necessarily just of facts, but of "ideas"
the way the teacher wanted them to be.

For example, I once took a children's literature class where the
teacher made it clear that certain Authors were Bad Writers and the
use of any of their books in class would guarantee failure of the
class.  Mind you, this wasn't said directly; it would be highly
inappropriate for a Professor to influence your decisions.
Nevertheless, it was made _very_ clear.  This is just one example of
many.

Degrees and certifications may show that you have been exposed to
certain kinds of knowledge, but they can not show that you are a
dedicated employee, that you are capable of thinking quickly in an
emergency and, _MOST_ important to a systems administrator, that you
have common sense.

Only practical experience (and, thus, speaking with former employers)
can relay such information.

  .  The thing that college (MIS Major) taught me was "critical thinking" skill
  s.  Example: my Sys Design and Analysis, database design classes, etc were de
  signed for s/w development methodologies but I learned a lot about analytical
   thinking and project mgt.  My data comm class spent one chapter on networkin
  g (what I do for a living) and the rest on Big Iron comm.  So...I had one cha
  pter in 4.5 years related to what I do.

I hear this argument a lot.  Frankly, I think "critical thinking"
skills are like common sense: if you can't develop them all the
classes in the world will not help you.
   

[...]

  
   Companies are looking for people who can learn, think, and solve problems...
  degrees and certifications give the company something to work with.  Otherwis
  e they have no clue as to who or what you are.

Nonsense.  There are many other accomplishments out there than certificates
and degrees.  

   
   Certifications are also good for one's own ego/self-esteem.  They are a visi
  ble acknowledgement of one's abilities.  I am very proud of my accomplishment
  s because I am not a great "academic" so every cert process is a challenge fo
  r me.  I actually hate the testing process but it's a necessary evil.
   
Sorry, again, but I feel this is an ineffectual argument. If you
require a piece of paper to improve your ego, this to me suggests a
bigger problem than systems administration can help.

I am proudest of what I have _done_, my real life experiences.  Pieces
of paper that claim I have sat in a class or regurgitated information
so I could pass a test or give a teacher what they want to hear does
not prove any intelligence or ability past that of a robot.


   I continue to work on certifications for several reasons.  They give me an e
  dge over non-certified people in opening doors, they are important to my boss
   since he "sells" my skills to customers, with experience they also mean bett
  er $$.  Actually my degree means more $$ than my certs do.  I've worked along
  side fellows with comparable skills sets but minus the degree and I blew them
   away with regards to $$.  I know this isn't always the case but the odds are
   in your favor.  
   
It sounds to me that the "doors" you are opening are not ones I would
ever want opened for me.  I steadfastly maintain that a company that
requires pieces of paper to prove "worth" is less interested in
quality candidates and instead is looking for an easy way to handle
personnel work.  It's easy to hire someone who has a pretty resume
with lots of degrees and certifications.  But I can tell you horror
story after horror story of people hired who had resume's listing all
their pieces of paper -- and just how incompetent these people turned
out to be.

When job hunting I demand as much money as degreed and/or certified
people and those companies that demand to know about pretty pieces of
paper are outright rejected.  No job is worth that putting up with
that "corporate demeanor" that goes with places that demand degrees or
certificates.  Hiring people based on their actual skill sets instead
of relying on degrees & certificates takes energy.  Big companies
rarely want to bother spending their time expending actual energy.

Their loss.

   Learn, get certified, get the job, and then...re-learn it!
   
Sorry, I get the job and learn more as I go.  Saves time, eh?