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Paul: Certification Track

 
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I am a recent college graduate with a Bachelor's Degree in Computer Science. I have been looking for my first professional job for several months now. I am having a difficult time finding jobs that will call me in for an interview. In your opinion, will certification help make my resume more attractive to potential employers? Even if it doesn't, I have a personal goal of passing the SCJP exam. Mostly I would like to know if it is worth my time and money to continue to pursue other Java Certification exams. I would appreciate any input and comments you have on this.

Thank you,

Layne
 
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hi layne, welcome to ranch. Personally i feel certification will definitely add credentials to your cv and will portray your interest in the field you are certified. Nice to hear that you have a personal goal of passing the SCJP exam. All the best for it.

You can find rich sources of info in SCJP forum. Happy ranching
 
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I definitely agree with Ganesh. In the IT industry, a person with a certification is always looked upon more favourably than a person without one. To start off with java certifications, SCJP is the first one. All the best
 
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Layne:
Although a Java certification (or any certification for that matter) does not guarantee a job offer, it certainly adds a very solid and visible value to your candidacy. It has three main advantages:
1) It proves to the employer that you have knowledge of the subject matter (the reality check).
2) It proves to the employer that you continue learning even after your college degree(s), and employers look at that quality very favorably.
3) There is an intrinsic value that a certification offers: passing an exam and obtaining the certification provides a big boost to your self esteem and confidence which is very helpful in this tough job market.

On the practical side I know a number of Java programmers (my ex-students) who were not getting any interviews, and after they obtained Java certifications and put them on their resumes, they started getting the interviews and eventually landed jobs.

Hope it helps.
Cheers.
Paul

Originally posted by Ganesh Venkatachalam:
hi layne, welcome to ranch. Personally i feel certification will definitely add credentials to your cv and will portray your interest in the field you are certified. Nice to hear that you have a personal goal of passing the SCJP exam. All the best for it.

You can find rich sources of info in SCJP forum. Happy ranching

 
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Hi Paul

If given a choice, which exam would you like to sit for, SCEA or SCBCD?

Thanks.

regards
Mala
 
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I am new in EJB. I am going to take SCJD, SCWCD and SCBCD. I only can spend one hour per day (more time at the weekend) for them. Is it possible complete them in 8 months? Which one should I take first?

I have read Habibi's SCJDE for SCJD and start reading HFSJ for SCWCD. After reading some post regarding the book "SCBCD Exam Study Kit" here, I will get this book and HF-EJB for SCBCD also.
 
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In the IT industry, a person with a certification is always looked upon more favourably than a person without one.


This might not true, however, I believe that person with cert. can increase the chances for having interviews.

Nick
 
Nicholas Cheung
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If given a choice, which exam would you like to sit for, SCEA or SCBCD?


It is the issue of chicken and egg. One might say SCEA is architecture wise while SCBCD is technology wise and an architect does not really need to know the technology detail.

But in fact, if you don't know much in the techology, how can you design the system using that technology?

Thus, I would recommend a step by step study.

Nick
 
Nicholas Cheung
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I am new in EJB. I am going to take SCJD, SCWCD and SCBCD. I only can spend one hour per day (more time at the weekend) for them. Is it possible complete them in 8 months?


Yes, if you are fully understand the content of objectives.

Which one should I take first?


It depends, but my sequence is SCWCD -> SCBCD -> SCJD

It is because SCWCD is easiler than SCBCD, while SCJD requires an assignment which is very time consuming.

Nick
 
Cai DongShan
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Nick,

Thanks for your advise. I will take SCWCD first. Since it is also job related. I am going to migrate one applet program to servlet/JSP program.
 
Nicholas Cheung
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I will take SCWCD first. Since it is also job related. I am going to migrate one applet program to servlet/JSP program.


That's true, learning with working experiences is more efficient than without experiences, as you might notice some "issues" during development, testing and debugging.

Best luck for SCWCD.

Nick
 
Paul Sanghera
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Originally posted by Mala Gupta:
Hi Paul

If given a choice, which exam would you like to sit for, SCEA or SCBCD?

Thanks.

regards
Mala


Mala and Dongshan:
I agree with Nick et. al. on the issue of whcih order to take these exams. I will only like you to consider another factor: your current work situation; where you are in your career right now, and where you are headed, and which certification makes sense today that will give you a boost on your career path. So, it mainly really depends upon your local conditions, in addition to other factors proposed my Nick et. al.
Cheers.
Paul
Book website:
http://www.manning.com/sanghera
 
Cai DongShan
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Thanks, Nick and Paul. I have my path now.
 
Mala Gupta
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Hi Nick & Paul

Many thanks for answering my query.

regards
Mala
 
Don't get me started about those stupid light bulbs.
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