Anyone done "CompTIA A+"

[nazali]

I did a CCNA way back in the day, it expired in 2015, am in a senior IT role, was thinking of doing this, to get past the IT bot's on resumes, not sure if it is worth it. I do see on some job specs this is sometimes asked for ?

txs

[UncleWede]

I did A+ way back in 90's, maybe early 00's. It was a joke, at least then. Can you identify a hard drive in the picture? What is the DOS command to change to a different directory. It was that level. I'd be surprised if I could still claim that certification though.

That and Dell were the only certifications I ever attained, yet I am an IT Manager for a small city.

[nazali]

txs UW

[zx10guy]

It's not worth it. If you're in a senior role, a CompTIA+ won't add anything. It's viewed as a very basic level cert for entry level positions. If you want to put time into getting a cert, the CCNA is going to be worth a lot more than a CompTIA+. But this is all based on what area of IT you're looking to work in or focused on.

Frankly, putting your time and energy into any cert dealing with the cloud is going to yield a lot more than any of the certs we're talking about.

[nazali]

I've found in my roles, that CCNA hasn't helped me "greatly" as the roles don't need me to get onto routers etc, mainly sysadmin, and you need to be a sysadmin LOL
I was thinking of recertifying my CCNA though, I think I have to do the whole course again, as it has also changed, (was 640) now something different

[grocerylist]

CompTIA A+ might be good if you've never used a computer.

[vreihen16]

Originally Posted by nazali

I did a CCNA way back in the day, it expired in 2015, am in a senior IT role, was thinking of doing this, to get past the IT bot's on resumes, not sure if it is worth it. I do see on some job specs this is sometimes asked for ?

My employer sends all of our entry-level IT staff out to get their A+ within 6 months of hire...and pays for the testing. One of the big PC hardware manufacturers requires us to use people with A+ certifications to perform all warranty/repair work as a condition for our self-repair program with them. Having the entire front line certified has worked out.

I have zero certifications, and 36 years of experience inventing a lot of the stuff that's on those certification tests. I went out for a three-day CCNE prep class about 7 years ago. Half of the class was trying to sell obsolete Cisco routers, and the other half was IPv4 subnetting exercises. Not one mention of IPv6! Never went for the test, since it was pointless. One of my junior colleagues went to the same class/instructor, and passed the CCNE...on his third try.

If you're in a senior IT role, I'd go for something like Amazon AWS or cloud certifications, or maybe something in security. Does a "Must Click Start Engineer" (MCSE) count for anything these days?

The only certification that I would consider for myself right now is project management, like PMP. Something that I've been doing all of my adult life, but not likely to get me far without the certs on my resume.....

[AustinZ4]

MCSE has been broken down into specialized cert paths so is less and less relevant.

I agree with vreihen16. Am a senior sys admin now. Get an AWS, Google Cloud, or Azure cert. That's money in the bank, especially to stay remote in the future. AZ-900 is an easy way to go for Azure.

[nazali]

ok, was a service desk analyst. Now a senior Service desk analyst
I was think of service desk manager, next or team lead, technically in my last role I was promoted to a shift lead (senior analyst) so looking after a team of guy's on the weekend, late shift.

Trying to work out my career path also as now I'm a contractor (Incorporated)

Originally Posted by Onesie

This.



So when you say you're in a senior role, you mean a senior sysadmin? Or in a senior IT role? Entirely different career paths. A technical certification will help you in technical roles, not so much in senior managerial roles.

[UncleWede]

Until just over 2 years ago, I was IT. Then I got an assistant.

Senior IT for me now includes HR, budgeting, and PM. I am NOT liking getting out of the trenches, I'm a techy. Anyone remember the Peter principal? I don't want to be that guy.

PMBOK and VM training were included in this year's budget for me.

nazali, the other major area would be (cloud) security, if you are looking for more $$$

[eluded]

Cloud and security are the future. CISSP or any of the cloud certificates mentioned would be a big plus.

If you're in a service desk role maybe something like a service now certification might help?

ServiceNow offers three certification paths for customers and partners who work with and use ServiceNow products or services.

[nazali]

my previous placed we used SNow, but new place uses some archaic crap
but that's a good idea

Originally Posted by eluded

Cloud and security are the future. CISSP or any of the cloud certificates mentioned would be a big plus.

If you're in a service desk role maybe something like a service now certification might help?

ServiceNow offers three certification paths for customers and partners who work with and use ServiceNow products or services.

[///d]

If you've been working in IT for a while A+ will be a laugh. You will likely not gain anything from it other than the certification.

Maybe it's just been my experience, but CompTIA seems to be more DoD focused. Any DoD agency or contractor that works with the DoD wants CompTIA certs, but I haven't seen much outside of the DoD care a lot about CompTIA.

I've been working IT administration for almost 10 years, and server admin and data center admin for the past 3 years, and right now I just have Security+. I'm currently going through Server+ simply for the certification on a resume because its a lifetime cert. I start CASP next week, and then after CASP if its still being offered here I'm shooting for CCNA. A+ is the bare minimum we require for entry level help desk administrative roles.

[nazali]

I've found on applying for jobs they do ask for certain things, and unless you have what they want you don't get past the bots, so yes just for the certification.

But yeah good point

Originally Posted by ///d

If you've been working in IT for a while A+ will be a laugh. You will likely not gain anything from it other than the certification.

Maybe it's just been my experience, but CompTIA seems to be more DoD focused. Any DoD agency or contractor that works with the DoD wants CompTIA certs, but I haven't seen much outside of the DoD care a lot about CompTIA.

I've been working IT administration for almost 10 years, and server admin and data center admin for the past 3 years, and right now I just have Security+. I'm currently going through Server+ simply for the certification on a resume because its a lifetime cert. I start CASP next week, and then after CASP if its still being offered here I'm shooting for CCNA. A+ is the bare minimum we require for entry level help desk administrative roles.

[zx10guy]

Originally Posted by nazali

I've found on applying for jobs they do ask for certain things, and unless you have what they want you don't get past the bots, so yes just for the certification.

But yeah good point

Not necessarily. It depends on the company and networking with other peers in your industry is critical. I've been in pretty senior positions for the past few years. Haven't carried a cert since my MCSE NT 4.0. My resume screams of tons of experience. Certifications help lower the barrier to getting that interview. But many places are starting to actually test their interviewees. You have to be able to think on your feet and apply your knowledge. Working with headhunters which the prospective employer pays their fee is a way to be more efficient in getting that interview/job.

For me, I've taken the additional steps with building my own home lab to practice and learn new technologies. This alone pushed me above other candidates with employers I've had interviews.

[///d]

Originally Posted by nazali

I've found on applying for jobs they do ask for certain things, and unless you have what they want you don't get past the bots, so yes just for the certification.

But yeah good point

If resumes are first scanned by bots you need keywords first and foremost on your cover page. The DoD is notorious for highly qualified people getting rejected simply because their cover page didnt state verbatim the job title and posting number in the first line. It's ridiculous.

[nazali]

I'll remember that , txs !

Originally Posted by ///d

If resumes are first scanned by bots you need keywords first and foremost on your cover page. The DoD is notorious for highly qualified people getting rejected simply because their cover page didnt state verbatim the job title and posting number in the first line. It's ridiculous.

[///d]

Thought I'd post this in here for anyone that might be thinking about what exams to take. This is for CompTIA certifications.

[nazali]

AWESOME !

[upstatedoc]

So my neighbors wife is posting that he passed of these CISSP exam? Stating only about 150,000 people have passed it worldwide. Is this a big deal in the IT world?

[zx10guy]

CISSP is a credible security cert. I don't know about the 150,000 people worldwide thing. I don't think it's as rare as he makes it out to be.