I have just pass the "IBM WebSphere Application Server V6.0 Network Deployment, Core Administration" exam. Thanks to Websphere User Group (WUG) Malaysia for providing free certification examination. So does this means I'm a certified WAS Administration. To be honest I won't dare to call myself that, at least for the moment until I have more hands-on experience. I do not have much experience on WAS. I use WAS before a few years back and that's just touching the surface. I have not don't real setup of the server, clustering, etc. I have just installed some J2EE application on the server. I just spend a few days going through some materials on WAS. Haven't that little experience helps a bit to understand the new WAS 6 easier. But being certified doesn't mean that I'm an experience guy. The certification does help me to understand the product much better (with or without experience). Anyway, I really appreciate WUG for giving free certification exam to the members. How about Lotus User Group (LUG), would they give free certification exams to the member?
I'm more experience in Lotus Domino/Notes. Does someone without certification means that he/she is not as good as someone with certification? I believe that I'm just as good as most certified Lotus person out there. Surely there are some really really expert in Lotus. Some are certified and some are not. In employment market, I think it does matters as someone with certification have some prove that he/she have the knowledge. But then again, by just reading and without experience, someone could pass the examination. It is not too difficult. So does certification really makes a different? And should I sit for Lotus examination just as a prove that I "know" Lotus?
4 comments:
I feel that certifications are only good for getting your foot in the door at a new job. I have never attempted to get one, so take this with a grain of salt. I'm not saying that I wouldn't try to get one in something I find interesting in the future, but I don't like the idea of studying really hard to get something that will only expire at some point. I spent all my time studying to attain a graduate academic (Comp Sci) degree that will be good forever. Academic degrees don't always help you with your job and like certs, they are mostly good for getting your foot in the door, but you will have them the rest of your life. 20 years from now (even 10 years from now), do you think you will still have the certs on your resume? Now that I think about it, I wouldn't mind some type of a Java cert since I'd like to move from Lotus Notes dev to Java dev.
I do not know, if a certificate helps to get employed. And you are absolutly right: It only proves, that a person had some (more or less theoretical) knowledge at some point in the past.
But I use certification exams as a kind of self-made pressure to get the (theoretical) knowledge of a new product or version. When I decide to make an exam, I set a date and thus I have to prepare to pass. This are the only means for me to do this. If there were no pressure, I would find some more important work, some more pressing problems etc. than to read about a new product/version.
Thomas
@Thomas. I agree that going for an exam provides the pressure to get to know the product much better. That's the reason I sat for it. At least now I understand WAS ND much better. Maybe I find a good way to put that knowledge to use next year :)
Yes, it's possible and even plausible to just read and pass any certification exam. I got one ex-colleague able to pass a Oracle certification.
As for Lotus certifications in this country, it is kind of needed now to have one to be certified if you are a vendor. It's more like a requirement. I sat through one but didn't pass it, but my ex-colleague who had very little experience in Domino passed. My ex-boss was so surprised. (Not to mention I used help this guy for just simple setting up Domino servers.) Yes, my ex-company was a vendor... Got one vendor asking us to enhance their Expenses system, but that was before the certification requirement thing.
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