[Creecher]

I was wondering...

If I get a w3 certification in any area, will it actually help me? Would some one hire me with that over some one with an associates? Will I get paid more if I have one?


Thanks

[macosxnerd101]

Moved to the Corner Cubicle.

The W3Schools (I'm assuming those are the ones you are referring to) don't seem all that good to me. There are probably better certs out there (though I'm not up on the web development certs). Really though, a strong portfolio speaks more than certifications.

[xclite]

macosxnerd pretty much covered it - a good portfolio and good style will trump any certificates, especially those from w3schools (in my opinion [I am not an HR rep]).

[rgfirefly24]

In my opinion W3Schools certs are not worth the paper they are printed on. The only thing you need is some random person to sign off on it to say you didn't cheat, there is no real control. To get past the HR reps you just need some form of formal schooling most times, and for technical people just the ability to back up what you have on your resume, and what you say is what matters.

[Creecher]

rgfirefly24, on 15 March 2011 - 07:09 AM, said:

In my opinion W3Schools certs are not worth the paper they are printed on. The only thing you need is some random person to sign off on it to say you didn't cheat, there is no real control. To get past the HR reps you just need some form of formal schooling most times, and for technical people just the ability to back up what you have on your resume, and what you say is what matters.

Okay, say I was to put on my website that I was "w3 Certified" in PHP and HTML.

Would some one choose my programming/design services over some one elses?

[macosxnerd101]

Imo, a W3Schools certification would discourage me from using a developer unless the competitor was just absolutely terrible. A W3SChools certification doesn't say professional and knowledgeable to me. Imo, it seems like the person is trying to use the cert as a way to get a job, when they might not otherwise be qualified.

Being knowledgeable and having a strong portfolio speaks more, as you can show you're able to perform as you claim you're able to.

[lordofduct]

NeverPool, on 15 March 2011 - 10:57 AM, said:

rgfirefly24, on 15 March 2011 - 07:09 AM, said:

In my opinion W3Schools certs are not worth the paper they are printed on. The only thing you need is some random person to sign off on it to say you didn't cheat, there is no real control. To get past the HR reps you just need some form of formal schooling most times, and for technical people just the ability to back up what you have on your resume, and what you say is what matters.

Okay, say I was to put on my website that I was "w3 Certified" in PHP and HTML.

Would some one choose my programming/design services over some one elses?

Our opinions are subjective, just as yours is.

Do yourself a favour and ask yourself this:

"If I was looking to hire a programmer/designer, would I select someone with certs over someone with out"

That answer can easily turn either way depending the person. Does the cert wow you or your peers? What if the person has never heard of such certifications? If they never had, then it's just a big word to woo them, in which case is your target customers paranoid of or attracted to such fluff? Don't you think the portfolio is going to mean more?



You know what I say about certs...

they wow people who don't know any better anyways
and those who do know find broadcasting your certs as annoying and pompous

The only thing I do like about them. The practice tests are fun to test your knowledge if you're bored.

This post has been edited by lordofduct: 15 March 2011 - 11:43 AM

[Oler1s]

Quote

Okay, say I was to put on my website that I was "w3 Certified"

I wouldn't think highly of you. Given that W3 doesn't offer certifications.

[Creecher]

Oler1s, on 15 March 2011 - 04:46 PM, said:

Quote

Okay, say I was to put on my website that I was "w3 Certified"

I wouldn't think highly of you. Given that W3 doesn't offer certifications.

http://w3schools.com/cert/default.asp

[macosxnerd101]

I think the point is making is that the W3C isn't the organization backing those certs, and W3Schools is viewed as a cheap reference in the developer community.

[Oler1s]

I really do have to wonder how experienced developers confuse w3 with w3schools (there's no relationship between the two). That's because from experience, you would have been checking the w3 site, particularly the specs and validator. I imagine someone who has seen the W3 site doesn't confuse it with the W3Schools site.

I'm not saying this to disparage anyone who gets confused. I understand the room for confusion in beginners. I just don't see how anyone actually experienced should make the mistake. Hence my point, if someone talks about a W3 certification, that's huge red flag.

EDIT: I'm contributing to the problem. The standards body is called W3C, not W3. It's like the word micro. It's not the same as Microsoft. W3 is short for www. That's all.

This post has been edited by Oler1s: 17 March 2011 - 04:50 PM

[rgfirefly24]

NeverPool, on 15 March 2011 - 12:57 PM, said:

Okay, say I was to put on my website that I was "w3 Certified" in PHP and HTML.

Would some one choose my programming/design services over some one elses?

Like was said by other people, it's not about the amount of "schooling" you have it's about the size/quality of your portfolio. Personally when I go to a web design site I really don't care about your educational background, first thing I do is try and find a gallery/links page to see what you have done in the past. My advise is to keep your 75 dollars and use it pay for hosting and get a design website with actual work on it.

[kiasta]

rgfirefly24, on 17 March 2011 - 08:47 AM, said:

NeverPool, on 15 March 2011 - 12:57 PM, said:

Okay, say I was to put on my website that I was "w3 Certified" in PHP and HTML.

Would some one choose my programming/design services over some one elses?

Like was said by other people, it's not about the amount of "schooling" you have it's about the size/quality of your portfolio. Personally when I go to a web design site I really don't care about your educational background, first thing I do is try and find a gallery/links page to see what you have done in the past. My advise is to keep your 75 dollars and use it pay for hosting and get a design website with actual work on it.

I agree, another thing you should learn, though, is photoshop and dreamweaver (if you don't know how to use them already), I have talked to an owner of a graphic design/web design company and he told me that it was essential in the business to know photoshop and dreamweaver fluently (although I'm sure you can get by with a good knowledge, not fluency) as well as php/html/css and javascript. The guy didn't have a degree, actually when I talked to him about that he didn't care much about certification at all, he wanted to see a portfolio, he wanted to know exactly what you could do, how creative you are and if you are comptetant enough to work for him.

Basically, it's not school/certs that matter so much in web development (at least to smaller companies) it's what you are capable of, and a portfolio as has been stated already.

*EDIT*
I'm not sure which field you are wanting to get into but you were talking about web design, computer programming on the other hand is a bit different... a lot of companies want at least a 4-year degree or a 2-year degree with working experience (although I have only seen that requirement at a few companies).

I have a friend who has his bachelor's in computer science and he doesn't know much about programming, but a company offered him a job and told him they would train him in the language they needed him to work in, some auto company, that desperately needed a web designer. So, really, it all depends on who you are wanting to work for and who is hiring.
(for some reason the last half of what I said was cut off... I hate long edits)
*/EDIT*

This post has been edited by kiasta: 26 March 2011 - 01:28 PM