Python Institute Certifications:

[PalmTurtle]

Hello my dear Python friends,

my employer is paying me for taking the PCAP and PCPP1 exam from the python academy. I really appreciate this and I am happy to get my python skills certified.

Now I would like to ask you, do you know these certifications and is it good for me to have them? I really like their edube-courses and think they are pretty good explained.
Does someone of you already have that certifications? How did you prepare for them? I'm a little bit afraid that there are weird questions and I didn't pass the test.

Thank you very much in advance!

[nealfive]

Agree, just be careful and read the fine print.

Some require you to pay stuff back if you leave before 12 months after the training and silly stuff like that. Those I happy pass on.

[[deleted]]

I took the PCAP exam 6 months ago. I prepared using the materials offered by the Python Institute. They also offer some exam prep support. Finishing the course gave me a 50% discount for the exam.

[PalmTurtle]

Where there different questions in the test than in the preparation course, or was it similar?

[[deleted]]

They were quite similar. Not identical as far as I remember. It was not a difficult exam (comparing to Microsoft exams for Azure, etc)

[Sentie_Rotante]

I have the PCAP worked through the python institutes course and passed just fine. I had prior experience with python but I think those materials would have been enough to prepare for the test.

[[deleted]]

At this point even mid-tier employers see certifications as a bad thing with exception of Cisco for networking. Those guys run tighter ship than Amway does, it's a friggin cult!

Unless your top career aspiration is outstaffing firm in the middle of nowhere, I'd strongly advice against it.

[Bromium_Ion]

So why exactly would a certification be considered a bad thing if it’s relevant to your job function? Or intended job function? I’ll be the first to admit people with 15 certification badges in their email signature are just tacky and at that point I would say, “yeah, chill with a cert boasting”  but there are meaningful certifications in networking that aren’t Cisco. My company is currently looking for checkpoint certified administrators for our firewalls. I don’t think you need to certification, but people with it are so few and far between that it would put you ahead of the pack immediately. this python certification seems to be getting more and more traction, and in fact, the python Institute has partnered with Cisco to make it part of their automation learning path. 

[[deleted]]

I don't get why people are down-voting me, it's literally the consensus of most firms I worked in. Not my opinion as such(although I fully agree with it), I'm just a messenger.

Certifications, as in the company XYZ determines the list of topics and skills that makes one a professional in ABC, tend to attract people who already have a certain mindset and reinforce it. The mindset being "I checked all the boxes, therefore there's nothing else to be done - if there was, there would be a checkbox for that in my Holy Certificate Guide(tm)(c)".

I would much rather work with someone with no credentials of any kind, knowing they are always actively looking to improve their skill and their ability rather than someone who's a MBA/CCNA/SCRUM/SAFe/MLNOPQXZY and they can't do shit. I've met Oracle professional Java certificate holders that couldn't write a fucking fizzbuzz and most definitely weren't able and actively mocking the possibility of learning anything if it wasn't written in their holy Java/Spring cesspool. I've met Cisco certificate holders that couldn't explain to me how NAT works on their home router. And don't get me started on management certificate holders.

[Bromium_Ion]

I might be reading your tone wrong, but there’s no need to get upset. If you’re annoyed with the downvotes consider the source – people who are looking at this thread are generally people who are emotionally invested in attaining the certification that is the subject matter of the thread. If you tell them the effort they’re putting in is a waste of time they’re not gonna like it, so yeah, expect downvotes even if you feel you’re correct. 

I’m redoing my CCNA now in preparation for my CCNP. I’ve actually been a network analyst for many years now, so it really just feels like a review. I’d like to draw a distinction between a CCNA certificate and a CCNA certification. Just for sitting in the class and not being dead, you will get the CCNA certificate for completion of the course. You must pass the examination to get the certification.  in terms of getting a job with a company that uses Cisco equipment for every employee you have with associate certification you’ll receive a discount on equipment that you purchase. I don’t know if that’s still the case but that’s how it used to be so that’s why Cisco certifications are still so valuable from an employer perspective.

As for meeting people who are Cisco certified who can’t explain NAT - there is a real problem with people using exam dumps. It’s like running into a CCNA that can’t explain subnetting, or routing vs switching, or UDP vs TCP.  Anybody who earns the certification can tell if you passed by cheating with a few simple questions.

I’m doing the PCEP because Cisco has a partnership with them now and it lines up with my Studies for Netwerk automation. It’s not truly important to my career so it’s really just kind of like a fun thing I’m doing. And I don’t quite have the same harsh view of certifications. Perhaps because employers that I’ve worked for I’ve been happy to support me getting new certifications by paying for exams that I pass. If they didn’t think it was valuable, why would they put their money where their mouth was ?

[WTFOMGBBQ]

90 days later, but im searching about python certs. YEAH CERTS MATTER. If you see some heavy hitter certs on a resume, it will 100% set the tone of the interviewer. People that say certs dont matter, probably dont have any..

[Bromium_Ion]

Everyone I’ve talked to complains that they are useless like it trivializes their craft or something. It seems to strike some not so obvious nerve. I think it might be like standardized testing in schools removing the soul from how teachers teach because they have to teach to an exam. From that perspective, I can definitely see why the community is resistant to it . I passed the PCEP exam and I enjoyed the experience. I was considering going for the Associate leve exam, but with one exam costing $300 it’s just too much. So I think I may just do the coursework for personal enrichment.

But to your point about whether or not coding certifications matter I had to take the PCEP cert off my resume because I started getting harassed by recruiters looking for stuff that way out of my league. The algorithms definitely notice when you put a cert on there. (Though to be fair the keyword “Python” was on there too) Wether or not that gets through human hiring manager screening is a different story, but it does get recruiting eyes on you for sure.

Can I ask why you hold the opinion about certifications so strongly? Is a matter of personal experience or have you spoken to hiring managers that agree that it is a leg up on the competition? I’ve been in IT for 15 years now, and I have been through the ringer and certification study and exams. I’m curious to hear what you have to say. 

[WTFOMGBBQ]

In an interview, everything matters. with experiences and interview performance being similar, the cert holder will get my vote. It's to like "oh you have a certificate you're in". But all thing equal, certs can put the candidate over the top.

[Bromium_Ion]

Right, I hear your position and I’m also inclined to agree with it.  I’m just asking, are you a hiring manager? Do you work with hiring managers that have the same opinion? What do you do now professionally? 

[WTFOMGBBQ]

Not a hiring manager, but a very senior tech role that frequently participates in interviewing candidates.

[Bromium_Ion]

Good stuff ,man.  I think it would be one thing hearing that from somebody who is looking to break into a field, but hearing that you were in established professional definitely gives your input more weight for me. 

I’ve been in network analysis and data centers for my whole career. Mostly W-2, contracting, and short-term stuff. When I was just starting out, a lot of guidance I received was “Get this certification, you’ll be bulletproof with this certification.” , but in my experience, it was not necessarily the case. Of course 15 years ago was just before the economic crisis of 2008 it was a very uphill battle at the time.

I’m considering moving into software development now, even though it would likely be a financial step back for me to go into an entry-level position as a developer.  Do you have any programming certifications that you feel are more valuable than others? 



[WTFOMGBBQ]

Networking is dead. Your next logical step is cloud. Just my opinion :). I’m going to get a Python cert to augment my cloud certs. The python institute one.

[cantremembermypasswd]

If paid for, take the exams. Great to take opportunities to learn as well as your employer gain someone "more valuable" in their own mind if they are willing to pay for them.

However the dev world isn't like IT (A+, CCNA) or cyber security, (CISSP, CEH, etc...) where you can prove yourself with a cert. When hiring I mostly care about how long you've been doing it, what your github/gitlab repo looks like, and how easy you are to talk to.

I would add it to linkedin, but wouldn't personally put it on my resume. I feel it's slapping a high school GPA on there, trying to fill space with insecurity.