Whelp, this should be my final semester before I graduate with a Master's in Computer Science. The course load doesn't seem too bad, and it's interesting and all, but that means I'm beginning to think about the next step - finding a job.
And, of course, I want to find a job before too much longer...but on the other hand I need to finish these classes in order to get the right certifications for the job(s?) I want.
And boy are there a lot of possible certifications!!!
I could spend $700 for a CISSP (we did cover most of the material in one of my classes, so if I study well I ought to pass). Not sure about some of the other certifications listed here, maybe I would need some of them as well? And yet that's another $700...
Then, well, this semester should be the final portion of study for the Cisco CCNA, which would be another $300. I could go for that if I wanted a career in networking, but if I go for the CISSP and focus on cybersecurity than I may not need it.
Another of my classes is focused on the CEH, but I'm not sure if that means I can take the exam at the end of the class (i.e. if the course is through an accredited partner, the cost may be bundled in with my tuition...but the course site said that the certification is separately purchased, so I'm thinking not. In which case, I would probably need to go for one of the other options, which would be problematic since they focus more on work experience - and have a $999 certification fee. If I went for that I'd run into the 'you need experience to get the certification, but you need the certification to get the experience' problem. Which means maybe I'd just have to pay for the training through an accredited partner, except that seems like a bit of a waste since I'll have covered pretty much all of it in this course anyway. Plus...how long would it take? I definitely don't want to waste too much time getting the certifications and finding a job.)
I ran into a tech person while playing Pokemon Go the other day and was talking about my possible interests...I also mentioned my interest in virtualizaton, and he responded by mentioning some MORE certifications. Because of course there are.
Which, well, now that I think about it is not too surprising...
So maybe I need to get the VMWare certification? Something like the VCP6-DCV? Or some of the other VMWare exams? Those would only be another $100-$250, right?
And that just made me think that I ought to check on the certifications for my other areas of interest. Sure enough, it looks like if I want to work more with EnCase and digital forensics I should see about getting a GCFE, GCFA, GNFA, or some other such thing. After all, what's another couple thousand dollars? Or are these the types of certifications you're expected to get after you're hired?
I think I have a solid foundation for just about any of those, what with the classes I've been taking. But I don't think I can afford to go for ALL of the certifications...
So I probably need to pick and choose which ones will actually lead to the job I want. It'd be easier if I already had a job lined up, since I could tailor my focus towards what I'd need for that job, but that's sort of a chicken and egg problem.
What a pain.
And, of course, I want to find a job before too much longer...but on the other hand I need to finish these classes in order to get the right certifications for the job(s?) I want.
And boy are there a lot of possible certifications!!!
I could spend $700 for a CISSP (we did cover most of the material in one of my classes, so if I study well I ought to pass). Not sure about some of the other certifications listed here, maybe I would need some of them as well? And yet that's another $700...
Then, well, this semester should be the final portion of study for the Cisco CCNA, which would be another $300. I could go for that if I wanted a career in networking, but if I go for the CISSP and focus on cybersecurity than I may not need it.
Another of my classes is focused on the CEH, but I'm not sure if that means I can take the exam at the end of the class (i.e. if the course is through an accredited partner, the cost may be bundled in with my tuition...but the course site said that the certification is separately purchased, so I'm thinking not. In which case, I would probably need to go for one of the other options, which would be problematic since they focus more on work experience - and have a $999 certification fee. If I went for that I'd run into the 'you need experience to get the certification, but you need the certification to get the experience' problem. Which means maybe I'd just have to pay for the training through an accredited partner, except that seems like a bit of a waste since I'll have covered pretty much all of it in this course anyway. Plus...how long would it take? I definitely don't want to waste too much time getting the certifications and finding a job.)
I ran into a tech person while playing Pokemon Go the other day and was talking about my possible interests...I also mentioned my interest in virtualizaton, and he responded by mentioning some MORE certifications. Because of course there are.
Which, well, now that I think about it is not too surprising...
So maybe I need to get the VMWare certification? Something like the VCP6-DCV? Or some of the other VMWare exams? Those would only be another $100-$250, right?
And that just made me think that I ought to check on the certifications for my other areas of interest. Sure enough, it looks like if I want to work more with EnCase and digital forensics I should see about getting a GCFE, GCFA, GNFA, or some other such thing. After all, what's another couple thousand dollars? Or are these the types of certifications you're expected to get after you're hired?
I think I have a solid foundation for just about any of those, what with the classes I've been taking. But I don't think I can afford to go for ALL of the certifications...
So I probably need to pick and choose which ones will actually lead to the job I want. It'd be easier if I already had a job lined up, since I could tailor my focus towards what I'd need for that job, but that's sort of a chicken and egg problem.
What a pain.
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