This is exactly why I got my Cisco CCNA qualification, not because I
wanted to work with Cisco Routing equipment (because quite frankly I
can't think of a duller subject) but because I could show potential
employers/clients a well rounded skill set. This means I can appreciate
implications broader than just my specialisation, and see the bigger
picture, and also if pushed and there was no network engineer around I
can get a router up and working again in an emergency situation (doesn't
mean it'd be secure, just that it would route packets in the right
general direction)
Many people quoted the CCIE as the ultimate in qualifications. Cisco
touted the CCIE course/exam as the best on the market, their claim was
that there was no way to gain the qualification without real world
experience and without knowing the subject in reality (i.e. you can't
learn this just by absorbing a book) and had a big practicle exam you
had to travel to Cisco for to complete the final stages, where they
would lock you in a room with a bunch of kit and tell you to design and
trouble shoot various networks. I don't know many CCIEs but at least 3
that I know all got their CCIE without ever laying hands on much more
than a 4ft high stack of Sybex exam guides.
I'm with Joshua on this one.
I have been a consultant with Microsoft Operating Systems for sometime
now, but never sat any of their exams, because my experience with
Network Operating Systems speaks for itself. I've never had my
abilities questioned by an employer (only by employment agency staff
that don't know their subject and insist that no one can be put forward
for this contract without at least an MCP????) not even by Microsoft
when I did work for them.
0.02 cents
T.
Joshua D. Drake wrote:
>I think what a lot of people forget is that certifications are meant
>to be a baseline. They are meant to allow an employer to say,
>"Hey this person at least has some idea of what they are doing."
>
>
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