Sysadmin/RHCE

notsoevil · 08-07-2001, 10:55 PM

SAIR is definitely a good choice, as is LPI. In fact, due to their low cost, I suggest both. Regardless of whether they put a HEAVY influence on your resume, it still looks nice. Plus, more than likely, you'll learn alot just preparing for the exams.

Also, CompTIA (who give the A+ and Network+ certifications) will be releasing Linux+ programs this fall. They are certainly a recognized name and would be another nice certification to have.

I am being certified by Carnegie Mellon University (now THAT is a real name to have behind you) as a Software Systems Developer, and actually will then become an Adjunct Professor for said classes soon. As soon as I finish (this fall) I am going to take the SAIR and LPI exams, as well as the Linux+ certification if it is available by then. Since I do mostly work with RedHat, I am considering the RHCE too -- you can skip the classes and just take the exam ($300) if you wish. Limited testing centers seems to be the real trouble with RHCE right now.

As far as job-seeking goes, if you and another SysAdmin are up for the same job, and have the same exact amount of experience (roughly) .. I am certain certification will matter. Especially since, with RHCE and SAIR (and probably the others), employers can verify your certification and get an evaluation of not whether you just passed, but how WELL you passed (I believe). That is certainly a plus above someone without any certification at all (unless they have years of experience beyond you).

Hell, even a cheap old Brainbench certification in Linux is better than none at all (with adequate experience, again I'll mention)

rog · 08-08-2001, 01:27 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by trickykid
Not to dish anyone out or anything, I truly think the MCSE's are a joke for a certification. There really isn't much money out there either for them. I see less and less jobs requiring them cause the market is swamped with MCSE's now. And as far as I know, I knew someone, older guy who knows everything there is about computers, self taught, he was a manager for a grocery store, but no experience, so he went out and spent 10 grand at a university to attain all of his MCSE cause he thought it would get him a job. That was wrong of him to think, he spent 6 months looking for a job, and to this day, I don't even have any certs and I am making more money than him and he has had his MCSE's for 2 years. I was gonna go for mine a few years ago... to add to my Resume... but I see no point now in it.. Just a waste of money.

I went to my local university and found that they only have courses for the microsoft family of programs, and a prep course for MSCE.. the only programming availible was visual basic and perl. however, the web courses had up to date G4 macs and lots of support for internet programming.
I had asked the professor why not any unix/linux and or network classes offered? his anwser was that people take these courses as a primer, and pursue private and or are self tought in the art of unix. (he said for real..the "art of unix")

so answer me this then.. must i attend a major university when i will have to pursue unix admin in my free time?
i would hate to waste time and money but isnt the process and networking worth something? did your grocery manager not do something right or pursued the right avenues after school to land a decent job?