which comes first SCJA or SCJP?

[Ravia Chand]

i have to start taking up certification exams. is SCJA the first one to clear or is it SCJP? i am new to this group . so please excuse me if i have put up this post in the wrong section.
[ July 10, 2007: Message edited by: Ravia Chand ]

[Ulf Dittmer]

The SCJA covers less than the SCJP, but it is not a prerequisite for the SCJP. If you are (or expect yourself to be) in a development position, then it is probably the SCJP you should go for. Some basic information about both can be found at the SCJA FAQ and the SCJP FAQ.

[Ravia Chand]

actually a friend of mine told me that as per the new rules, SCJA is compulsary to clear before giving SCJP. Can anyone please throw some light on this one.

[Ulf Dittmer]

I think your friend had better check his information. The Sun SCJP objectives page -which is linked in the SCJP FAQ- shows that there are no prerequisites for the SCJP.

[marc weber]

Originally posted by Ravia Chand:
actually a friend of mine told me that as per the new rules, SCJA is compulsary to clear before giving SCJP...

Absolutely not. As Ulf said, check Sun's Java Certification page. You will see that the SCJP exams (1.4 and 5.0), have no other exams as prerequisites.

[Cameron McKenzie]

I'd actually say that the SCJA covers far more than the SCJP exam. The SCJP exam is all sytax focussed, but it does indeed go more in depth on the syntax than SCJA.

SCJA is wide, but not very deep. SCJP is deep, but not very wide.

-Cameron McKenzie

[Peter Rooke]

Yeah - do both. I like the SCJA exam as an introduction to the world of Java technologies. Of course the programmer exam is more prestigious and rightfully so. It is very focused in a small subject area. The associate exam focuses on a wide range of subjects, but not in too much depth. They complement each other well.

I found the subject matter for the associate certification revolved around what the technologies do and why and when you would use them. The programmer exam requires knowledge of how the core java language syntax is applied, and your ability to understand it.

[Gisele Tavares]

=)

Yes Peter, i think the same. You write a great explanation about it, because a lot of ppl dont think that scja is important. Im a java programmer has more 2 years =P and i don't make any certificate yet. So, now im estabilish in one project and i will make scja, before scjp... i will start a revision with scja.

I hope JavaRanch will help me so much.
Sorry for my english. ^^

[Cameron Wallace McKenzie]

Indeed.

After being in a project that hits all the major J2EE technologies, you really get an appreciation for the importance of the SCJA Certification.

Looking back, there's alot of project managers and junior programmers that I wish had the well rounded knowledge of Java and J2EE, and even J2ME, that the Sun Certified Java Associate Exam gives you.

-Cameron McKenzie