In this article we're going to focus on the downside of getting an MCSE certification as far as what it will mean to the lifetime of your career. Let's be honest, Microsoft is the king of computer everything, from software to networking. Once upon a time Novell was the only real networking super power. Now Microsoft dominates the industry, though it is debatable as to whether or not they actually have the better product. As a result, just about every company has a Microsoft network. Just the fact that this makes it easier to run your online applications, since most software is Windows based, makes it almost suicidal to go with anything else but Microsoft. Therefore, if you want to get a job at one of these companies, and believe me the competition is off the charts, you have to get MCSE certified. Therein lies the rub. See, the Microsoft network itself is far from stable. The truth is, every few years or so there are major changes in the operating system and everyone has to, literally, go back to school. Simply as a matter of being able to keep your network running, unless of course you stay with the old network, you have to get educated. If you choose not to, well, the problem you then face is that eventually the old network is no longer supported and you're out of luck should anything go wrong. So upgrading is almost a must. But what about the people who have to get certified? Most of them probably just did a few years back and some maybe even within the past few months. And now here they are with a brand new certification and suddenly it is going to be worthless in a very short time. So what happens is they have to go back to school again and get recertified. What about the ones who just say, "The heck with it. I know enough to do my job. I can learn the new changes on my own." Well, maybe they can. But what if they can't? If they can't and don't get recertified here comes the next problem. Many companies just look for excuses to lay people off. What better excuse to get rid of an older employee who is making more money than a new kid who just recently got certified? In most cases the company will fire the old guy, telling him simply that it is because he didn't get recertified, and hire this new kid right out of school, even though he may, in no way, be as capable of doing the job. The point of all this is simply that if you want to be an MCSE then be prepared to go to school every few years for the rest of your life. Otherwise, at the very first opportunity you may very well find yourself losing your job to some new kid right out of school. Its just something to consider before you trek off into that land of no return called MCSE certification. |
