Java certification - is it still necessary to land a job?
 

Lisa Horton wrote:
Java certification - is it still necessary to land a job? ... or, is
it just a money-maker? Is it worth spending the money on the books and
the exam?


I think it really depends on the employer, and, possibly, the
region/country.

My company will hire any good Java programmer, but only if we really
have the feeling that he/she is *good*, probably by word of mouth.

Certification does not matter.

In this country, most people between 20 and 35 don't even know how to
spell right, so having a certificate that one passed 70% of something is
not really helpful. As it is not helpful to know that someone holds a
drivers license, if you do not also know that the license is 1 week old.

My brother, on the other hand, is currently struggling with a series of
MS ccertifications. He works for the local government.

As you see, YMMV.

I apologize for any spelling mistakes grin /. English is not my first
language.

English is my 3rd language so definitely ring my neck if you find English
grammar and/or spelling mistakes. :)

About Java Certification.

I am an employer in Toronto Canada with about 20 Java developers. All is
Sun Certified in Java. An American client recently recruited about 5 of
our developers from our Toronto office and placed them in their Washington
office.

Couple of things:
1 - Java certification is it still necessary to land a job?
A - No, it is not necessary to land a job, but definitely increases your
odds of getting one. Specially in the Java sector. There is no question
about it!

2 - Is it a money-maker?
A - Probably. But the reality is that the exam is $150, and considering a
Sun Certified developer starts at $60K US, the $150 is definitely the best
bang for your return on investment, if you can sell yourself to an employer
and get into a java development work house.

3 - Is it worth spending the money on the books and the exam?
A - Absolutely. There is no substitute to knowledge and if you are in the
development field, there WILL come a day when you will use the concepts that
you have learnt from the Java books and Exam crams. No doubt.


What did we do to hire Java developers?
A - Very simple - Over a course of 1 week of our adds posting, we hired
ONLY the people who were Sun Certified versus the people who showed off 5+
and 10+ years of work experience. We hired Sun Certified Java developers
who had less than 2 years experience and were certified within the last 12
months - mainly because we felt their knowledge was fresh.

In a sector where we develop apps for the financial district, not only
theoretical knowledge is critical, but having the theoretical knowledge
geared with some practical knowledge, reduces the margin of errors for these
mission critical apps.

The Java Certification clearly illustrates to an employer that you
understand the basic concepts well, can take direction, and follow
instructions, once again important in a team environment.

Hope this helps.
Best regards.



"anonymous" wrote in message
...
Lisa Horton wrote:
Java certification - is it still necessary to land a job? ... or, is
it just a money-maker? Is it worth spending the money on the books and
the exam?


I think it really depends on the employer, and, possibly, the
region/country.

My company will hire any good Java programmer, but only if we really
have the feeling that he/she is *good*, probably by word of mouth.

Certification does not matter.

In this country, most people between 20 and 35 don't even know how to
spell right, so having a certificate that one passed 70% of something is
not really helpful. As it is not helpful to know that someone holds a
drivers license, if you do not also know that the license is 1 week old.

My brother, on the other hand, is currently struggling with a series of
MS ccertifications. He works for the local government.

As you see, YMMV.

I apologize for any spelling mistakes grin /. English is not my first
language.

On 4 Feb 2005 01:37:35 -0800, Lisa Horton
wrote:

Java certification - is it still necessary to land a job? ... or, is
it just a money-maker? Is it worth spending the money on the books and
the exam?


Compared to the cost of a single semester programming class, I would
say it is still a good deal. Whether a potential employer cares is up
to them.

Bill

Razer wrote:
English is my 3rd language so definitely ring my neck if you find English
grammar and/or spelling mistakes. :)

Grammar is not a reason to wring anyone's neck. Replying to troll
threads is another issue.


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