Bolster Your Cloud Game at AWS re:Iinvent 2022
There are lots of different ways to build up your IT knowledge and skill set. Getting IT certifications is one method that we stand by around these parts. Another important element of adding to your toolkit, however, is by attending IT industry conferences and other events that bring together certified IT professionals. One such event, the re:Invent 2022 conference hosted by Amazon Web Services (AWS) is fast approaching: re:Invent 2022 will be held Nov. 28 through Dec. 2 in Las Vegas. A recent post the AWS Training and Certification Blog highlights some of the opportunities available to both certified professionals and those yet to become certified. As noted in the post, re:Invent 2022 will feature "everything from interactive labs and bootcamps in live AWS environments to small-group Q&A sessions and lecture-style breakouts." A limited number of sessions will be available virtually to the old timers who still remember a) when COVID was a thing, and b) when COVID vaccines were not yet a thing. (Remember when it seemed like in-person gathering might be about to become a thing of the past? Yeah, no one else does either.)
Interview with the Certification Holder
There are many different ways that IT certification can improve your career and help you ascend to even greater heights of IT competence and cromulence. Few people, however, probably understand this great truth better than actual certified IT professionals who are out in the world getting IT done. So it's always worthwhile when there's a chance for those with an interest in IT certification to gain some perspective from those who have already achieved IT certification. That's the case this week with a new post to the official blog of cybersecurity professional association (ISC)². The (ISC)² Blog squad regales readers with an interview with Matt Lee, a cybersecurity professional who serves as senior director of security and compliance at Pax8. Lee, who holds both the CISSP and CCSP certifications, has some great insights, like this response to why he hasn't pursued any vendor-specific cybersecurity credentials: "The vendor-specific certifications usually have the vendors' goals in mind. They usually align only with the vendors' view of something. I'm not saying that's necessarily negative. But, the vendor-specific path just didn't make sense in the global space for me and my needs. Some of those needs for me are still valid in legitimizing me as an educator." Good stuff!
Microsoft Learn Wants Cert Holders to Pub Up Their Accomplishments
One of the cool things about having an IT certification is letting other people know that you have an IT certification. One big benefit of tooting your own horn in this regarding is alerting potential employers to the breadth and depth of your IT knowledge and skills. With the right skills, and certifications to back them up, employers will come looking for you. A cool new feature available to Microsoft certification holders makes it easier to spread the word about your accomplishments and qualifications. A new post to the Microsoft Learn Blog explains how a new social sharing feature can help certification holders light up the web (just in time for Christmas). Check out the blog post for additional details.
Shining a Spotlight on IT Salary Inside the United States
Every year the team at Certification Magazine connects with a huge number of certified IT professionals to get information about their professional profiles. The 2023 Salary Sruvey, it so happens, is going on right now. Initial results of the survey are published in the January issue of Certification Magazine each year, but new data from the survey is unspooled on CertMag.com across the year, and there are exciting posts all year long. A good one just recently appeared, an annual post that sums up the average salary of survey respondents from different U.S. states. Somewhere between 50 and 60 percent of the certified IT professionals who participate in the survey each year live and work in the United States, so there's some interesting information that trickles over to this list. Not all states are represented equally, of course, but it's a convenient way to tell at a glance what the salary benchmark for certified IT professionals is in a given state.
That's all for this edition of Certification Watch. Please keep your certification news and tips coming to the GoCertify News Editor.
