Getting Qualifications 4

[cian]

Hi guys,

not sure if this is the right place to ask this, anyway...

On the issue of getting a qualification in web design or related business, can you offer any advice on the best way to get some credible credentials?
Let's say we rule out going back to university, and night classes are very difficult to get, how do you view online degrees or, for example, the certificates offered by sites such as W3Schools?

Do you think these type of qualifications are a waste of money?
Do you know of any other options one might have to get some papers to back up experience?






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http://www.ssi-developer.net/elgoog/

 

[benlinkknilneb]

There used to be a *very* long post about online degrees and their "validity" in the eyes of IT workers... must've become a flame-fest because I can't seem to find it now. You're going to get opinions ranging from "They're a waste of money, they're crap, they're horrible" all the way to "I got my degree from one of those and I'm making $x more now". Personally I'm not sure what to think... a course without human interaction (face-to-face) seems like it would be lacking in a lot of the things that you learn along the way, such as how to speak clearly to an audience and basic "playing well with others". I wouldn't do it myself. However, that's just me. If you feel you can get what you're looking for from a course like that, go for it. After all, even a "low-quality" degree is more than nothing, and if you're just looking for supplemental training, it might fulfill the requirements.

Ben

"If thine enemy offend thee, give his child a drum." - Anonymous

 

[GlenJohnson]

The main problem I see right now is not if you're qualified and have a degree. The most qualified people in the bus are not getting jobs because of the economy. Training now might be a good thing, because by the time you're done, the economy may be turned around and people are hiring again. I've used both online training, and schools. The online was good because it was self-paced, so if you have the gumption, it might be worth while. On the other hand, I had a class at a place here, and the W2K pro and W2K server classes I took were taught by a man that was on the MS team who created W2K. Obviously, we in the class got lucky, because he knew things regular teachers wouldn't. Good luck.

Glen A. Johnson
Johnson Computer Consulting

http://www.johnsoncomputers.us

"I only know that I know nothing."
Socrates (47-399 BC); Greek philosopher

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[cian]

Thanks for your opinions guys, it helps!

Apart from the actual training it's the qualification I am interested in. I am self-though it the basics and am learning other areas such as PHP etc but unfortunatly in some countries all the experience or knowledge in the world is worthless if you don't have paper to back it up.
So I need paper

I'm wondering if I presented some "qualification" I got over the internet would I be laughed out of an interview?





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http://www.ssi-developer.net/elgoog/

 

[dwarfthrower]

>> I'm wondering if I presented some "qualification" I got over the internet would I be laughed out of an interview?

It depends on who's giving the interview I suppose. Personally, If I was doing the interview - If you presented your cert from w3schools I'd take it on board as I know w3schools and respect the way they present their material. However, it wouldn't neccessarily land you the job over anyone else. Present the same cert to some cretin in upper-middle-middle-management and who knows - they'd either be so impressed as to hire you on the spot, or not.

If it's a web-based career you're after, why not build an online portfolio showcasing what you can do. Hosting is cheap(ish) - probably cheaper than most online certs. And you can really strut your stuff.

I've been interviewing candidates for a junior web-dev position here for the past two weeks - if one came in with something like that I'd be very impressed.

[sub]Never be afraid to share your dreams with the world.
There's nothing the world loves more than the taste of really sweet dreams.[/sub]

 

[cian]

dwarfthrower thanks, that's good advice and one I will follow.
However as I said, some places value papers so without them I would have little or no chance, even with an online portfolio.

Do you think W3 Schools would be widely enough known that their certificates could be considered "credible"?

Does anyone know of any other organisations who offer opportunities for qualifications.

HWG do I think...
W3C should, that'd be nice.




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http://www.ssi-developer.net/elgoog/

 

[TashaGoddard]

Where are you based? I'm doing a Postgraduate Diploma in Software Development with the Open University (a British institution - but one that offers many of it's courses internationally). They also do undergraduate degrees in computing. It's quite expensive though, and will take a long time to get a full degree. I think it's mostly of benefit to people who are working full-time (or bringing up a family) and need/want to study part-time to increase their skills (or just for the heck of it). I do know that there are some people who have got a degree/postgraduate degree more quickly with the OU, though, by studying full-time with them (just from home). You'd need a lot of money and time to do that, though.

There are plenty of other opportunities out there, I think. But you do need to look into the credibility of the institution offering the courses - there are some dishonest people out there! In Britain there is a lot of new distance learning courses being made available through government initiatives. Many further education colleges are now offering distance learning opportunities. For example, the college in the city near me offers short on-line courses in A+, C series, CGI/Perl, CISCO, DHTML, MCSE/MCP, GUI design, HTML, Oracle8, SQL Server 6.5/7, TCP/IP, Visual Basic, Visual Interdev, XML and others too. Some of these just teach the material and others provide certification too.

Good luck!

 

[dwarfthrower]

>> Do you think W3 Schools would be widely enough known that their certificates could be considered "credible"?

Again, it comes down to who is doing the interviewing. If you happen to be being interviewed by the technical director of a web development company - I'd certainly hope so. On the other hand, if you're being interviewed by some HR dweeb, chances are they wouldn't know w3schools from a hole in the ground.

I'd list it on your resume. If it comes up in the interview - then expand on it. But I wouldn't use it as your main attraction. Interviews are mainly a matter of knowing which card to play and when. And like any card game, the only way to get good at them is to practise.

[sub]Never be afraid to share your dreams with the world.
There's nothing the world loves more than the taste of really sweet dreams.[/sub]

 

[cian]

TashaGoddard
Finland, that's why I need papers, they generally require that kind of thing.
The OU should interesting, might be a bit expensive but i'll check it anyway, thanks for the suggestion.

dwarfthrower
Thanks again!




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http://www.ssi-developer.net/elgoog/

 

[chucknln]

With regard to credibility as a web designer, many websites allow the designer to place a comment on the home page, "this website created by _______", and they allow a link to your home page.

Secondly, many websites would love for you to put a link to their website on your personal site. "To see examples of my work click on the below links".

Good Luck.