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When pursuing an IT career, is certification the best place to begin?

Ed Tittel EXPERT RESPONSE FROM: Ed Tittel

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QUESTION POSED ON: 04 October 2007
I have a PhD in math, but can't find a job in academia. I'm very interested in moving into computing. I need to start somewhere -- is certification a good idea? What cert would you recommend to start? I think my abilities are more in tune with programming than networking, though I honestly don't know. Any advice is appreciated.

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EXPERT RESPONSE
With a PhD in math, you should probably sit down with a search firm and discuss the possibilities for professional employment with a placement specialist. PhDs are always in high demand in research and development jobs.

I think you'd be wasting your time going after certification; rather, I think you should work with someone who knows the job market well, explain your interests to that person, then develop a plan of attack at the industries or companies you decide to target. Especially if you've done numerical or computational analysis, there are always oodles of opportunities in cryptography, encode/decode algorithm development, signal processing, and other intensely mathematical arms of the computing biz.

Good luck with your efforts, and don't sell yourself short.


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