MCPD Certification

[joy_Energiser]

Hi people, I wanted some advice and opinions about what the best step would be for me.

I am coming to the end of my contract with work in 4 months time and I wanted to get a qualification for C# programming.
I previously did a Java programming Diploma at Van Zyl And Pritchard 5 years ago, but I want to Move into the C# area of web development.

I had the MCPD for Web Development in mind http://www.microsoft.com/learning/en/us/certification/mcpd.aspx#vs2010
MCTS prerequisite: TS: Web Applications Development with Microsoft .NET Framework 4
Exam 70-515
MCTS prerequisite: TS: Windows Communication Foundation Development with Microsoft .NET Framework 4
Exam 70-513
MCTS prerequisite: TS: Accessing Data with Microsoft .NET Framework 4
Exam 70-516
MCPD requirement: PRO: Designing and Developing Web Applications Using Microsoft .NET Framework 4
Exam 70-519

I wanted to know of other people who have done these qualifications, is it worth it? Are the qualifications recognised by Employers in a serious way?

Is there a better way to become qualified in C# ?
and lastly how long would it take to get this if I studied fulltime?
Thanks for your time

 

[FarligOpptreden]

Not sure about how long it will take to STUDY it, but in theory you can write all the exams in one day and be certified immediately. I did my MCAD (with the aim of doing MCSD) that way a couple of years ago, but life kinda happened and study-time flew out the window. If you know your stuff, you should easily pass the MCAD exams (there were 3 of them last time I checked) and do another 2 to be MCSD certified. MCPD is another exam or two from there...

Mind you, all this might not even be applicable anymore. I haven't followed the Microsoft certifications for a while now. Might even be that my MCAD has expired already. I still get the MCP emails though...

 

[joy_Energiser]

I have played around creating Web Applications in Visual Studio and C# is very Similar to Java syntax wise, but I still need to do a boatload of studying before I even think about writing the exams.

My main concern is how seriously employers take these qualifications,I have a few years of VBA,SQL and Access development under my belt so far but I need to start moving in this direction,apart from actually teaching me how to program in C#(I could always just learn through trial and error while going ahead and developing in C# and learning as I go along)
is this qualification worth the time and effort?

 

[Nefertiti]

I have played around creating Web Applications in Visual Studio and C# is very Similar to Java syntax wise, but I still need to do a boatload of studying before I even think about writing the exams.

My main concern is how seriously employers take these qualifications,I have a few years of VBA,SQL and Access development under my belt so far but I need to start moving in this direction,apart from actually teaching me how to program in C#(I could always just learn through trial and error while going ahead and developing in C# and learning as I go along)
is this qualification worth the time and effort?

Companies are more interested in the what you can do as oppose to your qualification. The MCSD might get you an interview, but your work experience will get you the job. Where I work though they are pedantic about degrees, which I dont agree with but that is how they work. Not all places are like that though.

 

[HBee]

Due to the number of braindumps floating around out there, most companies do not take these certifications seriously. It only becomes advantageous when the company requires points to retain Gold partnership.
For the most your track record and experience counts a lot more.

 

[FarligOpptreden]

Due to the number of braindumps floating around out there, most companies do not take these certifications seriously. It only becomes advantageous when the company requires points to retain Gold partnership.
For the most your track record and experience counts a lot more.

+1

Also want to add formal qualifications, in terms of at least a 4 year degree in the relevant field. I know many people have differing views on this, but I've interviewed quite a couple of developers and for the most part the ones with 4-year (or honours) degrees are more diligent and self-disciplined. I believe doing a degree teaches you some form of responsibility and discipline that shorter courses and diplomas seldom do.

 

[froot]

A friend of mine is a developer at a top development firm (MS Gold partner so they like this ==>), with his MCPD. He's also a manager at his company so often he needs to do recruitment for projects blah blah blah.
One point that he often makes is that the MCPD (and related) are important as the company can be relatively assured that you know how to handle the language. It does not guarantee that your coding is properly structured in terms of certain design patterns etc etc, so it's not absolute. It's merely the environment.

Some companies require that you do your MCPD while you work for them, others take it as an advantage when you apply for a job, and some companies do not regard it at all. Either way depending, it might make a salary difference.

To answer the rest of your initial question, "how long" as mentioned, depends on how quickly you can work through the suggested workload and be sure that you can do everything they will ask in the exam. If you need to do some practise, a week or two per exam (depending on it's content) should be more than adequate. Later on as you know .NET better you can fly through it without much thought.
Since you know Java (assuming pretty well) you will be able to "convert" to C# pretty easily so the language isn't hard (doing these books assume you are familiar with C#/VB, but do note that jumping into C# .NET web dev is a slight jump into another direction.

There isn't really a "better way to get certified in C#"... all the colleges that do webdev/programming courses, for C# they do these courses, but have now only moved over to the .NET 3.5 courses and they span a year to two years. They also make you pay for all of that. What you can do if you are prepared to spend the money is to go to an exam centre (Torque IT as an example) and do the practical course they offer with the exam. It averages at about R4500exVAT per class, and then you need to pay for the exam iirc).

 

[joy_Energiser]

A friend of mine is a developer at a top development firm (MS Gold partner so they like this ==>), with his MCPD. He's also a manager at his company so often he needs to do recruitment for projects blah blah blah.
One point that he often makes is that the MCPD (and related) are important as the company can be relatively assured that you know how to handle the language. It does not guarantee that your coding is properly structured in terms of certain design patterns etc etc, so it's not absolute. It's merely the environment.

Some companies require that you do your MCPD while you work for them, others take it as an advantage when you apply for a job, and some companies do not regard it at all. Either way depending, it might make a salary difference.

To answer the rest of your initial question, "how long" as mentioned, depends on how quickly you can work through the suggested workload and be sure that you can do everything they will ask in the exam. If you need to do some practise, a week or two per exam (depending on it's content) should be more than adequate. Later on as you know .NET better you can fly through it without much thought.
Since you know Java (assuming pretty well) you will be able to "convert" to C# pretty easily so the language isn't hard (doing these books assume you are familiar with C#/VB, but do note that jumping into C# .NET web dev is a slight jump into another direction.

There isn't really a "better way to get certified in C#"... all the colleges that do webdev/programming courses, for C# they do these courses, but have now only moved over to the .NET 3.5 courses and they span a year to two years. They also make you pay for all of that. What you can do if you are prepared to spend the money is to go to an exam centre (Torque IT as an example) and do the practical course they offer with the exam. It averages at about R4500exVAT per class, and then you need to pay for the exam iirc).

Thank you very much for your reply, it was indeed helpful

Well I definitely think getting this qualification is a good move, apart from just being another qualification that appears on your CV(Which to be honest is always useful)I believe it will really help me learn C# the proper way and lay a good foundation for my future projects/Careers.Also it is pretty cheap too, at 125 $ per exam being the only barrier in cost, it just really seems worth the effort.

The only question for me now is whether to go the WEB or desktop route.I think WEB is the better choice since I have very little experience in making websites(Only desktop applications) and will be a good addition to my skillset.

 

[semaphore]

for the love of god please dont refer to it as making websites, when you write web based applications, its web application development. Websites are synonymous with static pages. As for the certification, i believe its worth it. a degree obviously teaches you the deeper side to computer science in general. As to what you should go for, it really depends on what path you want your career to take. I am moving to a new company end of this month they have a mixture of desktop apps and web-based. But when it comes to .net web/application are almost similar obviously with the exception of some of the aspects on the way things are done.

 

[Guest 20221009]

for the love of god please dont refer to it as making websites, when you write web based applications, its web application development. Websites are synonymous with static pages.

Amen to that!!

 

[joy_Energiser]

for the love of god please dont refer to it as making websites, when you write web based applications, its web application development. Websites are synonymous with static pages. As for the certification, i believe its worth it. a degree obviously teaches you the deeper side to computer science in general. As to what you should go for, it really depends on what path you want your career to take. I am moving to a new company end of this month they have a mixture of desktop apps and web-based. But when it comes to .net web/application are almost similar obviously with the exception of some of the aspects on the way things are done.

Lol , yea I hear ya.