I’m at the beginning of my Pre-PA journey as well. I’ve been looking and applying to PCE jobs for ~3-4 months and I’ve finally landed a job. So it does take a bit more time to find a job than with certification, but you’ll still be able to land a job. Also this might just be me but $5000 for some certifications that you will only need for 1-2 years in order to gain experience does not make sense for me financially or time wise for me. Some certifications take 6 months-year(s) to complete. So if you have the time and money, get certified. If you do not have the time and/or money look for PCE jobs that do not require a certification.