Hi, Jim. It used to be this way at the company I am presently employed, but they have pretty much phased out internal traning, and have found that without the credibility of a Java certification for the senior developers, much of the more senior work was being handled by the much more expensive contractors that were hired to fill in the gaps. (Much of the time, these contractors did not carry the required skills themselves, and were being paid 25-40% more than the full timers!) This is all very recent -- a transition over the past 3 or 4 years, really. Much of it is related to the need for the large corporation to get the most bang out of its employee buck, if we are to believe the powers that be. I think it also provides a baseline in terms of skillset so they are able to offload the cost of technical folks taking time away from project work to do interviews and evaluate job candidates for senior positions more generally. After all, one can fake up a resume and professional references with some degree of confidence as the looming overhead cost in time (and therefore money) can be substantial if there is some doubt in the prospective employer's mind, but one cannot fake up the Sun certification as easily: it is either on record with Sun or it is not.
- Jeff----- Original Message ----- From: "Corbett, James" <James.Corbett@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
To: <program-java@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> Sent: Monday, August 23, 2010 4:33 PM Subject: [program-java] Re: Java certification Hi:It seems as though I live in a parallel universe as it relates to the job environment.
Where I work, the emphasis is on experience and the core skill sets that we attain during the years of service. Its expected that a given level you must meet the core levels but as to the specifics of whether you are a JCL / HTML / COBOL / Java developer those unique skill sets are part of the day to day job and are offered to us through our education plan.
Jim -----Original Message-----From: program-java-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:program-java-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of Jeffrey Fidler
Sent: August 23, 2010 16:27 To: program-java@xxxxxxxxxxxxx Subject: [program-java] Re: Java certificationHello, Susie. In the corporation at which I am presently employed, it is required for senior Java developers and junior architects to have their SCJP certification. (I am currently studying for the SCJP myself, and also am quite curious to learn what it may entail for a blind applicant as my promotion to senior developer technical lead is contingent upon it!) Also, those with these certifications generally receive about a + $10K salary offer when compared against those having equal work experience but without the official Sun certifications in the local market. The same holds true for .NET developers in the western Pennsylvania area, too. Those with the official Microsoft certifications are being offered significantly higher salaries when compared to those with equivalent experience but no certification in the majority of cases. I think the important thing to discover is which certifications are meaningful and which are not. I think those offered by Sun, Oracle, and Microsoft, to name a few of the big ones, carry some substantial weight.
I'll certainly share what I learn regarding the SCJP certification process. Kind regards, Jeff ----- Original Message ----- From: "Corbett, James" <James.Corbett@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> To: <program-java@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> Sent: Monday, August 23, 2010 4:11 PM Subject: [program-java] Re: Java certification
Ok, still not worth anything. Try looking at the SUN site for these certification courses.... All they really are is a piece of paper that can be hung on the wall. If you must have the wall furniture to get ahead we can actually look at a particular course together. I have certification in Basic Java, Intermediate Java, Struts 1.3 and J2E 3.0. J. -----Original Message----- From: program-java-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:program-java-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of Stanzel, Susan - Kansas City, MO Sent: August 23, 2010 15:47 To: program-java@xxxxxxxxxxxxx Subject: [program-java] Re: Java certification I asked a friend what he has and he has a "Sun Certified Java Programmer" certification. Susie From: program-java-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:program-java-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of Stanzel, Susan - Kansas City, MO Sent: Monday, August 23, 2010 2:42 PM To: program-java@xxxxxxxxxxxxx Subject: [program-java] Java certification We seem to have two threads going. To get back to my question. I am looking into certification. I will be working in the persistence area with validation and using Struts. Susie Stanzel
