I'm replying at random, and not to any specific person. The CISSP carries a certain weight, unjust or not, in security circles. There are some contracts that require it. It certainly makes customers feel more comfortable. IFF you are a known person in the security arena (i.e. Steven Christey of Mitre is an example), then you don't need one.
Like many other certifications, it's a snapshot only. It shows that a person passed the test (and no, they do NOT grade on the curve), but it gives no evidence at all that the person has actually used or maintained those skills. Still, it's a benchmark. There were some excellent links posted that compared various certifications, and their worth (or lack thereof). Does the OP need a CISSP for advancement on the track he described? I'd be willing to state that a four year degree from an accredited university is more important. Please note that DeVry does not qualify in most circumstances, and I'm very ambivalent on whether University of Phoenix should either. There *are* good schools that have online programs. I noted that someone spoke disparagingly of community colleges (and I'm sure he regrets doing so). It's about cost and quality, if you're planning to go on to a four year degree. Unless you mean to study law, or some similar vocation, *where* you start is not nearly as important as *where* you finished, and *whether*. I've been out of the interviewing business for a couple of years now, but I can assure you that high marks on a philosophy degree would engage my attention more than a slightly above average GPA on a CS (or BusAd) degree. Certifications should have their own section if there is more than one. List the best ones first. Certifications such as MCSE should not be listed (there are others equally worthless). Do not list every class you ever took from Sun/Oracle/Red Hat/etc. List a two-year (Associate's) degree only if a four-year degree (BS/BA/BFA) was not achieved. Do NOT lie. Certifications come *after* the Education section, but may also be listed briefly in a Summary section at the top, if they are particularly desired or sought after (such as CISSP and the Cisco ones). Okay, back to canning tomatoes for me. -- It's bad civic hygiene to build technologies that could someday be used to facilitate a police state. No matter what the eavesdroppers and censors say, these systems put us all at greater risk. (Bruce Schneier) _______________________________________________ Discuss mailing list [email protected] http://lopsa.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/discuss This list provided by the League of Professional System Administrators http://lopsa.org/
