Certification Magazine Kicks Off Annual Salary Survey
The National Football League is almost ready to kick off its annual march to the Super Bowl. Over at Certification Magazine, the survey team has already kicked off its annual march to another Salary Survey 75 list – and all of the other great content that the survey produces. That's right certified IT professionals, you have been given the green light to take the Salary Survey. The CertMag team needs thousands of responses every year to keep the survey on track. That's a win for anyone who has a current IT certification (you must have at least one to participate), because the 2020 Salary Survey has some excellent participation incentives. Anyone who completes the survey can request (and receive) a free one-year subscription to the digital edition of Certification Magazine. That's four issues in your inbox every year. (The magazine is published quarterly in January, April, July, and October.) Survey participants can also get a 40 percent discount on a regular print subscription. And anyone who completes the survey can also enter their name in a random drawing to receive one of 15 Amazon gift cards worth $50 each. That's a lot of bang for 15-ish minutes of your time.
Get Into Cybersecurity, Young Man
So maybe 19th-century New York newspaper editor Horace Greeley told someone – a young man, by most accounts – somewhere, sometime to go west, as in go seek your fortune in the (then-booming) western reaches of the United States. Or maybe it was someone else who said the now-famous words. The point is that the prevailing wisdom, then and now, holds that it's generally best to seek out one's prosperous future somewhere that opportunity abounds. That's the message of a recent post to the ISACA Now Blog of cybersecurity and governance association ISACA. Guest blogger Fabiola Amedo of Ghana recommends to all young IT professionals that they seek out a career in information security. Amedo cites the oft repeated statistic that there will be close to 2 million unfilled cybersecurity jobs roles just by 2022. She also digs into some of the root causes of this notable hiring gap, however, and mentions some of the various enticements available to IT-minded young people who are willing to make cybersecurity their full-time career ambition. Cybersecurity challenges will continue to drive hiring interest, so there's still plenty of time to board this train at the station.
Oracle Offers Free Certification Exams at Test Fest
If you're going to get a certification anyway, meaning that you've already invested the requisite study and preparation time, then there's often no cheaper means of actually taking the corresponding exam than by heading to an IT conference or convention. Database giant Oracle, which has a thriving certification program, is a consistently fine example of this phenomenon. During the upcoming Oracle OpenWorld convention that kicks off later this month in San Francisco, you can take one of a number of different exams free of charge. Well, OK, not entirely free of charge: You have to register to attend Oracle OpenWorld. Once you're in the door, however, you can head to Test Fest and take a free exam. Other certification programs connected to large tech companies often have similar programs available, so remember that it's always good to look around a bit before you just cough up the full-price fee for a certification exam.
Get Certified, Then Get a Promotion
The benefits of getting an IT certification are many and varied. First and foremost, of course, is that you typically gain new knowledge and skills in the process of preparing for and completing the exam. That alone can be a consistent and powerful means of advancing your IT career. Another key benefit, as outlined in a recent post to the IT Career News blog of tech industry association CompTIA, is that a certification can set you up for a promotion from your employer. Blogger Matthew Stern cites research indicating that incoming IT professionals who are certified are more likely to be promoted than peers without certs, and that those promotions are likely to happen sooner. Certified IT professionals also tend be more confident and comfortable with their job responsibilities, which can be an excellent way to stand out when your manager is looking for someone to move up the ranks. Every workplace is different, of course, and certification will be less esteemed by some managers than by others. And it never hurts, of course, to have a professional organization or corporation vouch for your expertise and knowledge. If you're already intending to seek certification for other reasons, well here's one more argument in favor of doing so.
That's all for this edition of Certification Watch. Please keep your certification news and tips coming to the GoCertify News Editor.
