I'm a little puzzled by all this. Certifications are fine, but they
are a beginning, not an end.
Now, I freely admit I'm in an odd position. As far as I am
concerned, I met the equivalent difficulty of CCIE in the pre-1975
CCSI program, which was radically different. I can't see my career
advancement being improved in the slightest by having a CCIE, because
I have credentials that are worth more to me. Now that Cisco is so
aggressive against study sites, I've made a conscious decision not to
get a CCIE so I can't be accused of NDA violations.
Yet I think my record is sufficient to demonstrate I believe in
helping people getting CCIE and lesser certificates. But I do
believe that at some point, certification is enough. Even in
medicine, you go through National Boards, then usually the boards for
family practice or a primary specialty, maybe a specialty like
cardiology or infectious disease that does have a certification, but
even fellowship training beyond that doesn't have "certification"
requirements. There may be a need to take a certain amount of
continuing education courses.
But the real credentials come with doing, and that can be in an
assortment of areas. I've designed some big and complex networks,
but now work more on protocol performance and product design (and no,
I can't get into what I'm working on). But one indication might be my
most active IETF activity on BGP router convergence, the new edition
of which will be coauthored by Nortel, Cisco, Nexthop, and Juniper.
Participating in professional societies is a real thing you can do,
and don't tell me it's too difficult. Local groups of IEEE, ACM,
etc., meet locally, as do many user groups. Most of the IETF and
NANOG work is done on open mailing lists, although it does help to go
to meetings.
Presenting your more interesting designs and troubleshooting can fall
into professional activities, mentoring programs, etc. Trade and
professional journals always are looking for contributors. You think
having three or four or five pages of publications and presentations
doesn't help your resume? Guess again.
When it comes to passing exams, there is a point at which I remember
the technical term used for the dumbest medical student that passes
through school:
doctor.
Make the CCIE lab more difficult? With more unrealistic rules like
don't use static routes when they are appropriate design? Keep
trying to show complex phenomena with six routers that really might
not show up before sixty?
Message Posted at:
http://www.groupstudy.com/form/read.php?f=7&i=6901&t=6735
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