SCJP exam: Student query.

[Kudzanai]

Good day,

My query is regarding the Sun Certified Programmer exam(SCJP).
Please could you help me by anwering the following questions for me.
1. Is it relevant in South Africa because all the research i have done on the internet points to India. In your views what are the advantages of having this certification.
2. For a student could this certification help me get a job as a java programmer or at least an internship.
3.After writing and passing the exam i intend to find a company somewhere where i can volunteer just to get experience. Any thoughts on my idea.

Any additional comments would be greatly appreciated

 

[Veroland]

Good day,

My query is regarding the Sun Certified Programmer exam(SCJP).
Please could you help me by anwering the following questions for me.
1. Is it relevant in South Africa because all the research i have done on the internet points to India. In your views what are the advantages of having this certification.
2. For a student could this certification help me get a job as a java programmer or at least an internship.
3.After writing and passing the exam i intend to find a company somewhere where i can volunteer just to get experience. Any thoughts on my idea.

Any additional comments would be greatly appreciated

1. Yes it is up to a point, it is no substitute for experiance but companies do look at it.
2. It will always help
3. That is a tough question, but once you passed pm me, I know a few companies who might be able to help.

 

[Sherbang]

When I first started programming 10 years ago, the only certification I had was the SCJP. I found it difficult to get a job because I had no experience and no degree. Every interview I got though was only because I was a Sun Certified Programmer. And when I did eventually get a job, I was told that although I don't have experience, the Sun certification is impressive, as it's not an easy exam. The company I currently work for adds an extra thousand rand to your salary if you get it and will pay for the textbooks and exam fees if a current employee wants to write the exam...

 

[Veroland]

The company I currently work for adds an extra thousand rand to your salary if you get it and will pay for the textbooks and exam fees if a current employee wants to write the exam...

Our company increases your hourly rate by R10 for each certification you get

 

[Kudzanai]

Thank you for the quick responses.
Another question. As a student what else can i do to increase my chances of landing a job as a programmer when i graduate. Thats why i intend to do the SCJP. Ive also read about open source projects but i really dont know how those work. I also intend to volunteer at a software company if i get lucky. Any other suggestions.

Thank you.

 

[Veroland]

Try and learn more advance technologies, if you are doing Java look at JEE (Java Enterprise Edition) and frameworks like JBoss SEAM

 

[Kudzanai]

Passed it today with 80%. Not as hard as i had anticipated.

 

[GeoffK]

Getting certified

I know this thread is old, but how does one go about taking this exam today? Where in Cape Town can i take the exam and do you have any recommendations on courses etc to take before the exam to prepare?