CCNA

MCP Exam Voucher Winner John C.

John C, Virgina Beach, VA

1. What do you currently do for a living?

I am a Systems Engineer and work with databases – primarily SQL Server but some Oracle. I started on SQL Server version 6.5 and have tested on all versions since then. This has been my work for the last ten years. Prior to that I was a Network Administrator for three years and moved into SQL Server to gain a specialization. I have also taught Microsoft technical courses as an MCT on a freelance, part-time basis.

2. Please describe your educational background.

I graduated with a Bachelor of Business Administration from Ferris State College in Big Rapids, Michigan in 1982. I earned a Master of Information Technology degree from Virginia Tech in 2007.

3. What kinds of certifications do you currently hold, if any?

MCTS: SharePoint Services 3.0
MCITP: SQL Server 2008
MCITP: SQL Server 2005
MCDBA: SQL Server 2000
MCSE
MCP+I
MCT (former)
CTT+
A+
CCNA

4. How has earning a certification helped advance your career?

It gave me credibility when I was making a career change from Accounting  to Information Technology. I keep taking exams and gaining new certifications because in this industry, if you’re not advancing, you’re falling behind. I don’t want to become obsolete.

5. What exam do you plan to use the MCP voucher for?

SharePoint Server (MOSS) exam 70-630

6. What kind of advice do you have for your peers and colleagues about earning a certification?

Look at what’s in demand and what’s up and coming. Get involved with local user groups for networking purposes and to help keep your finger on the pulse of what’s going on in your community.

John C. is the next-to-last of the individuals I’ll be profiling for our recent contest. Our last winner, Flavio B from Brazil, will be featured in my next blog on Friday.

Comments Always Welcome! Choose Your Programs Wisely!!!

Recently, I received a comment from a reader on my August 18, 2008 blog entitled “Understanding What Drives IT Salaries,” from an astute young reader named Ronald Moore. He observed that it makes sense to choose an academic computer science or MIS program that prepares students for multiple certifications as a way of jump-starting one’s assault on the workplace with both degree and certifications in hand. He goes on to mention earning a CS degree that prepared him for a whole laundry list of certs, including A+ and CCNA plus various Microsoft and Oracle credentials as well. Very interesting!

For those considering such options, I’d urge you to factor the certs mentioned against their age and planned obsolescence. Ron’s not in bad shape, even if he does decide to go after an MCSD in .NET or an MCDBA credential. But with a new version of Windows Server now on the drawing board for 2011, certs based on Server 2003 (such as the MCDBA and the MCSD) are nearing their expiration dates. It doesn’t make sense to tout preparation for a cert that won’t be around for too much longer, but given the sometimes glacial speeds at which academic programs move along, that’s a possibility that prospective candidates must ponder when choosing any kind of training program that involves certification, academic  or otherwise.

I’d urge prospective students (and their parents) to quiz the admissions folks about how programs adapt and evolve to accommodate new certifications as old ones age out of the picture. I guess an outdated cert may be better than no cert, but isn’t worth anywhere near as much as a current one. If the idea is to help degree holders to get an edge into the job market, it’s best to make sure that the edge stays sharp and provides a way to cut through the red tape into the short list of “real job contenders” when the time comes to enter the workforce.

A Pattern Emerges from Recent CCNA “Specializations”

I’d been wondering recently why Cisco is expanding its ever-popular CCNA certification to include CCNA Security, CCNA Voice, and CCNA Wireless. Now I get it: Cisco also offers various professional credentials, including CCDP (Design), CCNP (Networking), CCSP (Security), and CCVP (Voice), as well as CCIE specializations (many of them in synch with the other areas already mentioned). In the near future, a plain-vanilla CCNA will no longer suffice to meet prequisite requirements for the CCSP and CCVP. You guessed it: the relevant specialist versions of the CCNA will be required to meet pre-requisites instead.

Given that coverage from one Cisco Professional cert to another varies pretty widely, I think this evolution in requirements makes sense, and also provides a way for entry-level professionals to start pursuing technical specialties closer to the beginning of their Cisco cert path. I’m a little concerned that fundamentals remain well-covered no matter what kind of CCNA one earns, but Cisco generally does a good job of ensuring its certified professionals have solid and comprehensive backgrounds in basic networking tools, terms, and concepts. Perhaps this means the company is simply adding a “merit badge” program, because individuals who seek the CCNA Voice, CCNA Security, or CCNA Wireless credentials must first earn the base CCNA credential, then take another exam in the area of specialization.

Finally, given the existence of a CCNA Wireless as well as a CCIE Wireless, does this mean that a CCWP might be in the offing? I can’t help but see this omission as a gap that Cisco will seek to fill, possibly even some day soon. For more information on various Cisco certifications visit www dot cisco dot com slash go slash <certname> where you replace the final <certname> with CCNA, CCNP, CCDP,…, CCIE to get to their home pages; or simply use certification instead of <certname> at the end of that string to get to the cert program home page.

Erik Eckel Opines on “10 Best IT Certifications”

In digging through some Microsoft PR materials recently, I came across mention of a Top 10 IT certification list that Erik Eckel put together for TechRepublic, later reprinted by big-time training company Global Knowledge. Though it’s dated December 12, 2008 it still provides some interesting information for consideration, and some fodder for ongoing debate. I’m not quite sure that I fully understand his selection criteria which he describes as follows “While this list may not include the 10 best accreditations for you, it does catalog 10 IT certifications that possess significant value for a wide range of technology professionals.”

Here’s his list as ranked at TechRepublic in straight numerical order:

1. MCITP (Microsoft Certified IT Professional), with specific mention of database developer, database administrator, enterprise messaging administrator, and server asministrator
2. MCTS (Microsoft Certified Technology Specialist), with specific mention of SQL Server business intelligence, database creation, or SQL server administration
3. CompTIA Security+, with an observation that “security continues to be a critical topic”
4. MCPD (Microsoft Certified Professional Developer) with specific mention of the Windows Developer 3.5, ASP.NET Developer 3.5, and Enterprise Applications Developer 3.5 tracks
5. CCNA (Cisco Certified Network Associate), with an emphasis on increasing dependence on remote access technologies, even at smaller companies
6. Comptia A+, iwth an emphasis on “proven support expertise” in the areas of desktop installation, problem diagnosis, preventive maintenance, and computer/network troubleshooting.
7. PMP (Project Management Professional) with an emphasis on “job skills and knowledge required to plan, execute, budget, and lead a technology project”
8. MCSE/MCSA (Microsoft Certified System Engineer/Administrator) represent Microsoft’s previous take on basic admin (MCTS) and professional (MCITP) certs, and enjoy amazing certficiation population numbers–as Eckel observes “…these certifications tend to indicate holders that have been working within the technology field for a long time.”
9. CISSP (Certified Information Systems Security Professional) receives mention for “…building a respected, vendor-neutral security certification,” that’s also accredited by ANSI.
10. CompTIA Linux+ get a nod because “…the open source alternative is an important platform…”

Given these choices, it’s no wonder that Microsoft is promoting this list: they’ve garnered 4 out of 10 (really 5 out of 11) choices therein. CompTIA might also take cheer as well from the inclusion of Network+, Security+, and A+ (of which Network+ and A+ are by far its most popular credentials). And certainly, all the other elements in the list–CCNA, PMP, and CISSP–are all immensely popular and highly sought-after credentials as well.

Though Eckel’s selection criteria and methods aren’t entirely clear, this blog makes me wish that CertCities.com would revive its Top 10 lists, which used to be an interesting marker between one year and the next for IT professionals. At  least their list came from a survey of thousands of active IT participants, an could in some sense be argued as representative of collective interests. Funny how those lists of yore don’t differ too much from Eckel’s list, either.

I wouldn’t have any arguments with this list, in fact, if it used the word “Popular” instead of “Best” to describe its constituents, because there’s almost no argument about any of these on a pure numbers basis. But the definition of best is one that’s fraught with peril, and certainly subject to lots of differing interpretations. While he does give the CCIE passing mention in his CCNA item, I’d be inclined to put it in any Top 10 Best I were to put together,  and I’d be more inclined to pick rather more senior-level credentials rather than entry-levels ones like the CompTIA items, MCTS, and CCNA. But that’s my “best” interpretation showing. What’s yours?

Is Now the Time to Buy a CertPack Deal?

In handling a series of reader questions recently here on the ITKE, somebody raised the question of whether or not it was worth spending $15,000 to sign up for a combination cert training package that would help him acquire A+, Network+, MCP, and MCSA certification. This is an interesting question for all kinds of reasons that I’d like to explore. But first the answer is: “It depends on who’s paying. If somebody else is footing the bill, it may be worthwhile. If you must pay for this out of your own pocket, or borrow money to cover those costs, perhaps not.”

Now for some cost analysis, and then some explanations:

• As I explained waaaay back in 2002, an MCSA is going to cost you about $1,100 to acquire based on minimal and actual costs for self-study including the exams themselves ($125 x 4 = $500 ), Exam Crams ($30 x 4 = $120), full-length study guides ($50 x 4 = $200), and practice tests ($70 x 4 = $280). BTW, obtaining the MCSA gets you an MCP when you pass the first exam in the series, so mentioning the MCP is a little misleading: you must be an MCP to become an MCSA in any case.
• If you shop for exam vouchers carefully, you can find discounts on Network+ costs, with a low of about $215 (see ITExamVouchers.com for the latest deals). Add in the Exam Cram ($30), Study Guide ($50), and a practice exam ($70) for a total of $365 for self-study costs.
• Ditto above for A+, and you can find a low of about $300 for both of the A+ exams. Add two each Exam Crams ($60), Study Guides ($100), and practice exams ($140) for a total of $600 for self-study costs.
• Total self-study budget: $2,065 vs. package price of $15,000. Need I say any more?

Now some explanations, thoughts, and ideas:

• Why go after the MCSA when you should be thinking MCITP for the latest Windows client and server versions, plus platform technologies, services, and so forth, anyway. Chances are good the MCSA will disappear no later than 2012 anyway. Why spend that kind of cash on a soon-to-be-obsolete credential?
• Network+ and A+ are strictly entry level technician certs. They might get you into a support tech or help desk “starter job,” but they won’t get you much further than that. If you’re expecting a significant return on your training/cert investments, these are just the first elements in what should be a much longer sequence of increasingly serious (and higher-paying) credentials.
• If you really want to get a sequence going, you’d want to think about various MCITP credentials, and possibly also Cisco certifications in the CCENT, CCNA, and professional (CCNP, CCDP, CCVP, CCSP) families. Cisco exams cost $125 (two-step CCNA process) or $250 (one-step CCNA and most other non-CCIE exams) each, and you can take 1 (640-802) or 2 (640-822 which also gets you a CCENT, and 640-816) to earn the CCNA. Most of the Cisco professional certs require 4 exams at $250 each to earn, but are highly regarded in the marketplace.

My final take on this situation is that only those with money to burn, or other people’s money to spend, should be considering a “full boat classroom ride to certification.” For everybody else, the economics of self-study are still too compelling to overlook. Still the very best bang for your certification bucks around!

More on Entry-Level Certs from the Trenches

I play pool two nights a week on leagues that belong to the American Poolplayers Association (APA). My Thursday night 9-ball team is composed primarily of people who work in IT. Of the seven people on the team, one is a paralegal, another a hairdresser, and the other five work for Dell (1), IBM/Tivoli (1), NetQoS (1), Megapath (a network management subsidiary of T-Mobile), and me/himself (self-employed technology writer).

One of our number has recently earned his CCNA, by finally completing the second of the two exam sequence for that credential (640-822 ICND1 and 640-816 ICND2), about 9 months after completing the first exam. The second time around it took him three tries to pass, primarily because of the many draws on his time away from studying and toward other things in life: family, leisure, plus a baby on the way. He’s 32 and has worked for the same high-tech company for the past 5 years.

When I asked my friend–let’s call him Joe–whether or not his newly-earned credential would provide him a salary bump, he thought about it for a minute and then said “No. Probably not. I’ll see when my next annual review comes around.” When I asked him why he thought that was the case, he observed that his employer is notoriously attentive to the bottom line and that employees tend to come late into their calculations and distributions even when times are good, more so when times are not so good. Right now, 2% raises are about as much as anybody is getting, under any circumstances.

He’s getting ready to start on the CCNP for Routing and Switching next, with a goal of earning that credential by the end of 2009 or early in 2010. At that point, he plans to start down the CCIE path for both Routing and Switching and Security, and also plans to start looking around for another job. I’ve seen this young man grow significantly in skills, knowledge, professional stature, and maturity in obtaining his CCNA and expect him to continue further down that path in pursuing and obtaining his CCNP, and ultimately, his CCIE.

But this story is entirely typical for many early to mid-career IT professionals (Joe has 7 years of full-time IT experience now, and has worked his way up from help desk, to technical support, to infrastructure support along the way). He’s also got a bachelor’s in Computer Science from a middle tier Texas University and now, of course, the CCNA. When I ask him how he feels about his progress and prospects he’s brutally realistic about his situation: “I had hoped to be doing better by now, but with the economy so shaky, I could definitely be doing worse.” This only appears to strengthen his resolve to do better in the future, and to turn his advancing certifications into more earnings and improved job security.

So do we all, Joe; so do we all. As we make the transition from a crazy 2008 to an uncertain 2009, I hope all of us can appreciate what’s good about our current situations, and resolve to improve them as best we can in the times ahead. What else can we do? You tell me…

TechKnight Does It By the Numbers, Gets a Complete Answer

Looks like some people actually do their homework here. I got this comment posted to my “7 Questions” blog, wherein I laid out some queries to enable advice-seekers to get decent answers from me when asking for IT career and/or certification advice. Let’s start with TechKnight’s answers, which I repeat with the questions to put them into context:

1) What is your educational background?
I have a bachelors Degree in Applied Computing.
2) What is your prior work experience?
I am currently working in the automative industry the job profile includes General IT troubleshooting (Installation of software, Email configuration etc)
3) Where do you live? What is the job market like there?…
I live in UAE and there are opportunities here.
4) Are you interested in working in management, or would you prefer to stay on a technical track?
I prefer to stay in the technical track
5)What kinds of certifications interest you?
Relevant Certifications in networking.
6) Do your long-term career goals include staying in your current position (or in the same field as the next position you’re seeking, if applicable)?
I want to change my current job and become a full time IT professional.
7) What kind of job are you doing now? What kind of job would you like to be doing? How important is salary to you? How important is job satisfaction? If you could have any job at all, what would that be?
Currently i am working as an administrator. I am also currently doing a one month course in A+. I would like to be a full time IT professional. Salary as well as Job Satisfaction are important. I want to be in a job that i will enjoy doing. I enjoy working with technology.

Alas, I’d love to know what kind of administrator TK is: but I’m guessing it’s not an IT-related admin position based on his answer to question 6. That said, it sounds to me like TK is an entry-level kind of person who, even though he didn’t say how many years he has in the workforce, appears to have less than three years of post-graduate work experience. Based on those assumptions, I’d recommend the following:

• The A+ is fine to get started (but not terribly networking related), and should probably be followed in close succession with a Network+ and possibly also a Security+ certification, to create a good foundation for what is to follow.
• Next, it’s time to make some platform choices or considerations. If TK is interested in systems and network administration at a more or less local or enterprise level, to me that indicates choosing a Microsoft path (MCTS, MCITP, and so forth) or possibly some kind of Linux track (Red Hat or LPIC are probably the best choices). On the other hand, if he’s more interested in network infrastructure, the Cisco track (CCNA, CCNP, and so forth) is an excellent choice.
• After 3-5 years on the job as a network or systems professional, it’s probably time to think about specializing for those who want to stay technical but keep advancing in job responsibility and pay grades. These days that means information security, various application environments (ERP, especially SAP/R3 a leading choice, quite popular in the Persian Gulf), storage management (SAN, NAS, and so forth, with SNIC and platform specific certifications quite popular), or various kinds of architect positions and related certifications of potential interest.

At least that’s how I see it from my end. Perhaps TK may want to post some follow-up questions after he’s had time to research and digest what I suggest here?

HTH and thanks for posting,
–Ed–

7 Questions for Highly Effective Career or Certification Advice

When people ask me for career advice, especially as it touches on IT certification, their questions often cut straight to the subject of interest as in “If I earn a A+, Network+, and a CCNA can I get a good job?” Alas, I really can’t provide meaningful answers to such questions without a fair amount of additional information to consider. Here is a sample list of questions, to which I will add over time, that advice-seekers would be well-advised to answer before raising such questions, whether they want answers from me or from somebody else:

1. What is your educational background? High school diploma? Associate’s degree? Bachelor’s degree? Graduate degree(s)? Please also briefly describe any incomplete progress on any of these items (for example “two years of computer science grad courses, 2/3 of MS completed”).

2. What is your prior work experience? How many years of work, and what kind of work have you done? Any volunteer work? Part-time work in school or elsewhere? (You’d be surprised how much value employers give to those who show evidence of being able to hold a job, and how much credit they give to people willing to work for nothing as volunteers or part-time to get experience in their chosen fields.)

3. Where do you live? What is the job market like there? How much opportunity for entry-level people? mid-career people? senior people?

4. Are you interested in working in management, or would you prefer to stay on a technical track? Have you ever done any project management (and again, school, part-time, and volunteer experience all help)?

5. What kinds of certifications interest you? Please describe any certification held, currency status (if applicable), and when earned.

6. Do your long-term career goals include staying in your current position (or in the same field as the next position you’re seeking, if applicable)?

7. What kind of job are you doing now? What kind of job would you like to be doing? How important is salary to you? How important is job satisfaction? If you could have any job at all, what would that be?

With answers to these questions, I get to know something about the person as well as the various options they may be pondering. This helps me to provide answers that have a better chance of helping both in the short and long terms, and that can be tailored to their specific location, circumstances, needs, and goals.

I hope this makes sense, and that future advice seekers will understand why it’s very helpful to me, and ultimately to them, to provide this kind of data.

–Ed–

Despite the cautions, and the evidence, hopes remain unfounded and unbounded

This morning I found a message in my inbox from one of the readers of these blogs. I will paraphrase its contents as follows: “I am interested in a career in networking. I am taking A+ classes, after which I plan to earn Network+ and then the CCNA. Please tell me I am on the right track: although I have no university degree, I would like to believe I have some chances of landing a good job and of developing a good career. What do you think?”

Let me start off with the answer I sent in response to this inquiry: “Although obtaining the A+, Network+, then CCNA will get you off to a good start, these are all entry-level IT certifications. At best, they will qualify you for an entry-level position. Your prospects will vary to a large extent upon where in the world you are located, and what your local job market is like. Here in the United States, for example, the certs you are pursuing might be helpful, and they might not be helpful, because the entry-level job market is *very* competitive. On the other hand, a college degree here is probably even more useful than those credentials, because of its higher cost, longer time commitment, and broader range of required subject matter. If you’d care to tell me more about your work background, your location, and your actual job aspirations, I can probably respond in kind.”

Entering the IT job market is tough all over, and the degree to which certification helps is probably related to several factors:
1. how unique their possession is among the application population
2. how much real-world experience goes along with the certs
3. how much real-world experience those certs represent to the hiring manager, HR professionals, and others involved in the hiring decision
4. how many other candidates do have college degrees and/or real-world experience to offer instead of IT certifications

I have to believe that certification can do some good, and that an applicant with these certifications plus no degree and no real-world experience is preferable to a candidate with “none of the above,” so to speak. But then, the real question still remains: “Where does this profile position the candidate amidst the pool of applicants?” If it positions him or her in the top echelons, then earning those certifications is probably beneficial. If it does not, then their benefit becomes more questionable.

That’s why I believe it’s important to work through the ROI calculations I describe in my recent blog on that subject, and why one of my recent blogs is entitled “Why Entry-Level Certs Aren’t Enough to Get You a Job.”

Nevertheless, hope springs eternal in the human breast, even among aspiring IT professionals. Likewise, the continuing marketing efforts and advertisements from certification sponsors continue to amplify that all-too-human tendency to hope for the very best from one’s outlays of time, effort, and money in developing a career. But one must be tough and hard-boiled in calculating whether or not the risks and costs will be offset by at least equivalent rewards, if not something better than that!

In my next post, I’m going to provide a list of questions that individuals should answer if they want to ask me or other career experts for help in deciding their futures and their fates. As I get these e-mails, and read these postings, I keep thinking “Need More Information” as I figure out how to respond to those queries. To that end, I’m going to provide a template that should help interested individuals not only ask for, but get, at least some of the help they seek.

–Ed–

Understanding what drives IT salaries

On the IT Knowledge Exchange, I recently fielded the following question “What is the basic salary given to a starting network employee with CCNA and MCSE certifications?”

There are lots of factors that go into answering salary questions with any degree of specificity, which explains why my answer was pretty vague, and why the range of numbers provided ($35K-85K per year) was also pretty large. Just to give you an idea of what kind of information is needed to produce a more precise and meaningful answer, here’s a list of things this person might have told me to get a narrower and more relevant number range in reply:

1. Location: local cost of living has a profound impact on pay.
2. Education: number and type of degrees has a significant impact on pay.
3. Certifications: number and type of certs can have some impact on pay, depending on which ones and how current they are.
4. Experience: number of years of work experience, and type of work experience, even if irrelevant to the job at hand (as you might expect for an entry-level IT job) can still have an impact on salary offers. Same thing applies to prior military or long-term volunteer experience, such as Job Corps, Peace Corps, and so forth.
5. Technical Skills and Knowledge: If a job calls for or might benefit from specific skills or knowledge, a candidate who possesses such skills or knowledge can’t help but be perceived and valued more highly than one who does not.

If you look at good IT salary surveys, such as the annual reports from Certification Magazine or CertCities.com, you’ll see that they take most, if not all, of these factors into account when they report on the “salary value” of various IT certifications. Likewise, if you read reports from companies that specialize in compensation information, such as Foote Partners, you’ll see they dig even more deeply into these kinds of relevant details.

It’s just another illustration of the old principle “The more you put in, the more you get back out.” This applies to researching salaries for IT positions, just as it does for many other things in life.

–Ed–