I’m a technical instructor who teaches clients about technologies I hope they will use in their personal and working lives. I’ve earned degrees, certificates, and technical certifications to prepare for this job. I have years of experience working in various roles in the field. One of the common questions I’m asked is which is most important: the degree, the certification, or the experience.
From my perspective, experience reigns supreme. The hands-on work in the field truly educates us on how various technologies are utilized. However, it’s important to note that experience doesn’t always seamlessly transition between different organizations. For instance, if you’ve mastered a specific technology or product in one company and then moved to another, your previous experience might not be as advantageous if the new organization uses that technology or product differently.
Degree Programs
Degree programs play a significant role in preparing individuals for the workplace and fostering a culture of lifelong learning. My undergraduate degree, for instance, honed my reading, comprehension, writing, and social skills. While many topics I learned about have not applied to any job role, the program demonstrated my learning ability. My experience in the master’s degree program was different, with each topic focused on a single technology. Throughout, the emphasis on reading, writing, comprehension, and social skills remained crucial to my education.
Certificate Programs
Certificate programs differ from degree programs because they assume the person pursuing the certificate already has reading, writing, and comprehension skills. All the Information Technology (IT) related certificate programs I have participated in focus on specific technologies or products. Another key difference is that degrees and certificates are awarded at a specific date and do not expire, while many IT certifications have continuing education or renewal requirements.
Students often ask whether they should pursue a degree or a certification. I ask questions to determine how well their reading, writing, and comprehension skills have developed. I assume that they have some social skills. I suggest that most young people pursue an associate’s or two-year degree. These programs are often much lower cost and are ‘career’ (or technology or product) focused.
Certification Programs
I also often suggest pursuing certifications, but only after they have a plan about which certification they will pursue, how they will use that certification to find employment and gain experience, and how they will maintain that certification.
Certifications can be maintained in several ways depending on the program. Continually learning can maintain some certifications validated by acquiring Continuing Professional Education (CPE) credits. CPEs aren’t as easy as they sound. While there are many venues to acquire CPEs, they must be recorded often, meaning that the person must get a completion certificate or proof of attendance and then fill out some form and provide the certificate. CPEs are frequently audited, meaning someone checks to ensure the certificate is earned.
Other certifications can be maintained (or re-certified) by passing an exam or obtaining a higher-level certification. Again, this requires planning. If the maintenance is via an exam, it’s probably an updated version of an earlier exam and would need some studying to pass. Passing a higher-level certification is an excellent alternative, given that there is a plan to re-certify for the higher-level topic.