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In the rough and tumble, dog-eat-dog professional world everybody wants an instant advantage. Unfortunately, most advantages are achieved through hard work and experience. There are no magic doors or short cuts.
One historic advantage is education, which now conjures the image of barrels of money on fire and reality-free safe spaces. Higher education’s ROI has taken a beating, especially over the last couple of years, but it’s still a game changer. However, you don’t always need an advanced diploma to change the trajectory of your career path.
Degrees vs Certifications
There are many reasons to pursue a degree, especially if you’re right out of high school and have the time and resources. Or an advanced degree if you’re right out of college or in the infancy of your career. For example, if you work in Wall Street finance it’s common to work a couple of years between college and earning an MBA. If you have the time and resources for a diploma, go for it.
However, if you do not have the time or resources (or don’t want to go into student debt) a well-regarded professional certification may be the closest thing to short cut as it gets. While the cost of certification programs varies, it’s safe to say they are less expensive and take less time than any diploma program. For experienced workers, with limited time, and whose goals are more focused, a certification may be better for advancing career goals than a diploma.
Professional Certifications
Professional certifications have been around a long time and are an integral part of the Information Technology and Project Management world. Yet, two recent developments have elevated professional certifications from a perceived short cut to continuing education that is an advantage to job candidates in any field.
1. An explosion in professional course and certification programs available online through reputable colleges/universities, major companies, and professional trade organizations.
2. Recruiters and hiring managers view certifications more favorably, and, by extension, busy professionals who carve out time to learn new specialized skills. Certifications add to your expertise and demonstrate your commitment to it.
No matter your field, chances are there is a professional certification geared toward your specialty. If not, there are a multitude of certifications for specific skills that are transferrable to any position you may hold. For example, the Six Sigma certification is a process methodology that can be applied across many different types of businesses and endeavors. The Six Sigma training is a relatively inexpensive course, an industry leader, and the perfect example of a professional certification with real world benefits calculated in real world dollars and cents.
Below are some additional steps and examples to consider if you’re deciding whether or not a professional certification(s) is the right step.
1. Cost – Professional certifications are typically less expensive than getting a diploma, but that doesn’t mean they’re on the rack at Dollar General. Some certifications can be thousands of dollars, or multiple stages and thousands of dollars. Many require significant time commitments. If you want to get certified, prepare to work. Do an objective assessment of your free time and resources and develop a plan to earn your certification to match.
2. Accessibility – Professional certification programs are readily available to anyone with an internet connection. That doesn’t mean you can’t take advantage of programs that offer (or require!) in-person attendance, but, for many, the process is straight forward and anybody can do it: 1) sign up, 2) complete the course work, 3) get the certification.
3. Corporate Certifications – Corporate certifications are programs offered by leading companies to support their brands. Many of these are in Information Technology, so we’re going to highlight the most obvious ones: Apple, Microsoft, and Google. If you want to learn technical skills needed by any business or organization that uses Apple, Microsoft, or Google products, their various certification programs are affordable, flexible, and open to anyone.
4. Trade Association Certifications – Many professional certifications are administered by a single governing body or trade association. For example, the Project Management Institute (PMI) is a professional organization that anyone can join, and it also administered the courses and exam for the Project Management Professional Certification (PMP). Here’s another example. Wine. Who doesn’t like wine? In the wine world, there are multiple, equally reputable, organizations that certify wine professionals based on their focus. Wine educators are certified through the Society of Wine Educators. The Wine & Spirts Education Trust (WSET) has four levels of certifications that end with a diploma. The Court of Master Sommeliers also has multiple levels of certifications for wine professionals who want to work in, or start, high end restaurants with award winning wine programs.
5. Independent Certifications – Returning to the Six Sigma certification, the source of many certifications are not companies creating workers to support their products, or trade associations supporting their professional communities. Independent certifications are transferable and available to the public through multiple teaching bodies like LinkedIn Learning, Coursera, and an increasing number of high profile colleges and universities.
Philip Roufail contributed to this article.
Scott Singer is the President and Founder of Insider Career Strategies Resume Writing & Career Coaching, a firm dedicated to guiding job seekers and companies through the job search and hiring process. Insider Career Strategies provides resume writing, LinkedIn profile development, career coaching services, and outplacement services. You can email Scott Singer at scott.singer@insidercs.com, or via the website, www.insidercs.com.
