Walt@Walt-n-Ingrid.Com wrote:
> I agree; the tech schools pumped out way too many paper MCSEs over the last few
> years. In addition to the fact that many were not properly trained for they
> were taught how to take the certification test and not the material covered by
> the tests. Because many of the “schools” are private training facilities, they
> don’t have to meet up to the same standards as accredited learning intuitions.
> I have a very good friend who went to a very well known tech school in this
> area to get his MCSE. He was given a booklet with about 400-600 questions and
> answers in it; spent a few weeks memorizing them then took his tests. He told
> me that every question on the tests were in his booklet and now he’s certified
> after spending $10k and memorizing a bunch of questions. Doesn’t know a damn
> thing and I end up explaining things to him quite frequently. I get 4-5 AIM
> messages from him a day asking how to do something. Meanwhile, my crappy little
> project that I took out of desperation ends tomorrow and I’ll be back on the
> street looking for another before the bills get too deep. I have worked with
> quite a few people, who had the same certifications as I, if not more, and many
> of them really didn’t deserve the certifications they had, IMHO. Now these
> individuals also have a negative effect on the industry for it’s difficult for
> them in many cases to maintain positions for long term. They get dumped back
> out onto the job market and as time progresses desperation lowers their
> standards. They take positions at a lower than normal rate to pay their bills.
> That drives the average salaries for those positions down which in turn has an
> effect on employees who have the skills. They get “Downsized” in “Cost-cutting
> Measures” because there are a ton of “Certified” people out there who are
> willing to do the same job for less money. And then the cycle repeats. It’s
> one of the reason the industry is so Contractor/Consultant based. Having a
> department of disposable employees helps with the bottom line when they are
> cutting costs.
Well Walt, you pretty much hit the nail right on the head. When I see
someone with a list of various certifications, it is absolutely
meaningless to me. I wait and judge their skills based on what they are
actually able to apply.
Unfortunately, I think this was bound to happen in the tech field.
There are a lot of people wanting into various aspects of IT and there
simply aren't enough jobs for everyone. Certs were a good idea, but
naturally there are always going to be places that teach you how to take
the test rather than how to apply knowledge to real situations. In a
sense, that's what's happening in a lot of our public schools.
I hope that you are able to find a suitable position because it
definitely seems like you know what's going on.
The plus that's come out of all of this for me is that I have been able
to pick up several extra consulting jobs on the side for people who hire
me based on my experience (I have a lot) and recommendations and not
just paper credentials (I have none). And I can't even recall how many
times I've had to clean up the mess that an MCSE/A+/etc. certified
person has made. It's a lot like the high school diploma. Once they
start actively forcing people to graduate and get their diplomas, having
one doesn't mean much anymore.
-Bill
This archive was generated by hypermail 2b29 : Sat Jan 01 2005 - 11:48:08 EST