Python Certifications – Worth It Or A Waste Of Money?

Dan, I understand your perspective, though I have a different view on certifications. Certifications don't guarantee expertise, but they do indicate that someone has demonstrated basic knowledge and skills. Passing certification exams shows hiring managers that a candidate meets initial qualifications to be considered for a role. It's like trying out for a sports team - making the team doesn't make you a star player, but it means you've met the baseline requirements to join and be developed. Certifications qualify people for jobs in a similar way. Those with certifications aren't guaranteed to excel, but they have shown relevant aptitude to be trained and potentially thrive in a position. I hope this helps explain an alternative viewpoint on the value of certifications.

By the way, I love your books and website! 🙂

yea how we would we know what we doing if don't learn how to fucking do it?or we must have 100.000 thousand to go to college?and how we will have a portfolio with what we have done if they dont accept us as junior developers so we can actually to do something and learn??young sir in my opinion you Suck not the certifications.stop doing videos and go back to your computer to play.

what if you have no programming experience and you lack a degree in computer science? in this case perhaps a certification is worthwhile?

I think having a python cert is a good addition to a portfolio
The most important part is showing that you can actually code in some real world sense and the cert shows that you have some form of standardization and didn't just hobble together some education and that you probably know your stuff

You are completely wrong, please stop giving advise…

2 certifications got me my controls job making $90K a year😂😂😂😂

You are talking like the holly spirit. Certifications are fine and prove you are good at something specific. Google, Facebook Tech, and IT do not give a shit to diplomas but rather about what you can do. In college, we waste our life learning about stuff we do not need and forget! Certifications and boot camps are the future; they just need to make improvements.

we have to signal this video

Quite late here, but he was talking about Python certifications specifically, and I tend to lean his way on those, from what I've seen of them. They are not much in quality, but I'll probably get the PCAP anyway just as he states, as a "trophy" of sorts to verify that I at least know a little something, and it could help land a part time job teaching Python or what not. It is also not that expensive, so why not. There also might be value for these certifications for youngsters (like high school age) trying to compete to get in to a Computer Science major at a university. The competition can be stiff at good schools. In terms of certifications in general, I've worked in cybersecurity my entire career and I'm in my 50s. I see both sides to this. For one, it is a CASH COW for companies like SANS that offer very good but severely overpriced training and certifications. I have several SANS certs but if I had to pay on my own dime, I would have zero. There is no way I'm paying that kind of money. Then you have the ISC2 certs like CISSP, which are the gold standard and highly respected, but I know so many people that have those and verily know what TCP/IP is. A lot of the times, it is a matter of who is a good "test taker". You can have poor test takers, but they know a lot and can get things done, and you can have good test takers that know nothing and get nothing done. So bottom line for me, I'm still mixed on the certifcations. They have a role but I do feel there is an over-emphasis on them. And when you have the skills like the author of this video has, you DO NOT NEED a certification. His knowledge is far beyond that of what any Python certification can test on or offer. Like he says, a portfolio is the best thing. I also believe a Bach. or Masters in Computer Science is far beyond any silly certification, so I sort of agree wtih him, but at the same time recognize some value in certs.

I am planning to use my programming skills in solving real life problems specially about physics and mechanics. I have always had special interest in discovering the power of progamming in order to solve the most complex problems you can imagine. However, the reality is that at university the classical way of solving problems is so boring... Solving problems by hand is such a tedious, boring and useless task... I wish I could work on several projects, investigations and tasks by my own and make a portfolio of my work. But the university takes all the time and actually it seems that I am not learning anything 😔😔

In general certifications showcase theoretical knowledge, not the experience. When it comes to most tech fields, certifications are useful because they're pose a certain difficulty to obtain. Anyone can learn basic python and use a package to code something up to stick into their portfolio. Some can even plagarize, modify code and claim it as their own. A certification can allow interviewers to gauge you somewhere on a recognized scale compared to other applicants. Both are important, but don't underestimate a certification.

I personally feel if you're going to take the time to learn python you might as well get the certification, 2 birds with one stone. you get some guidance and you have another item to add to your resume, at the end of the day it will help seperate your resume out so you will be called on for an interview, the classes within certification will give you confidence to reach out and tackle more projects and will be able to talk about those projects in your interview. "No one gets a drivers license without looking at the drivers manual."

Certifications like degrees are used to get a potential hire into the door. Thats it. I'm currently taking a look at PCEP and PCAP. I already have a Computer Science Degree, however, due to degrees being viewed in the same vain as a High school Diploma. Pretty much they are completely useless. I'm simply adding these 2 certs on top of the degree to get passed the HR department so I can talk to CIO/CTO of a given company. I defiantly agree with you... The portfolio is actually the most important thing you'll need to impress your future boss.

Yeah, I was thinking about that. Really, certificates can't measure our knowledges.

Certs are always valuable in my opinion. Here's something to think about....Let's say Joe Blow got his degree back in 1996. Do you think the information that he was studying back then is valid today?? Certifications are updated based on new information which is why they expire. I'd rather have a guy with a current CCNA working on my network then a guy who had his degree since 2004.

I disagree. Obviously a degree will help but there’s no need to waste 100k on a degree for a job you can get with a certification and experience. The answer really is you need to either 1. Volunteer, 2 find side work, or 3. Contribute to something.

In my opinion, IT degrees are not that valuable. But you have to get them because HR people have no idea what they are looking for. University qualifications are losing value by the minute because technology is advancing at a rapid phase. By the time you graduate in 3 years time, whatever technology you learned is irrelevant. Certification is the best way to keep up with the market in a verifiable manner. PS: Universities are a pyramid scheme any way.

You're coming from the perspective of a developer, and this advice is valid for you. Certs aren't really a thing for programmers. Certifications are for sysadmin types, the people who actually have to make your programs work lol. A python certification is useful for someone who wants to show they are capable of automating IT tasks

A well established talent acquisitor told me that if I get Python and Java at an "upper-intermediate" she can hire me ASAP. Seriously. Of course if you get a bachelor background, it wouldn't hurt.

Dan is a bit off his patch with this one. His Python site and feeds are really, really good, and I'm sure he means well. But be warned - the video gives is one-sided and therefore harmful advice:

1) Certifications evidence a huge amount that experience alone does not: Attitude, humility, perseverance, situational knowledge, legitimacy, objective measures, confidence, a learning target, incentive to learn, a vocabulary, coverage and practice in the key skills, recognition, eligibility for vendor resources, discounts, professional membership, etc., etc., etc.
2) The bottom line is that nothing...nothing can predict how a candidate will get on and perform inside a given environment - your company. Not experience, coding tests, CVs, references, you name it, three-hour interviews, multi-round interviews, homespun proprietary trumped-up programming tests, nothing. We can't predict the future. Certifications are not meant to do that either, so why expect them to?
3) I've see droves of guys come out of new MCSE exams weeping because after years in the job, they had just learned that they did not know all the basics. The things they might at any time be asked for, but hadn't done yet. It works both ways.

If you reckon you have a skill, don't be a wimp - humbly go and get the "ticket" that says so. Why get all bitter and twisted over this?

I'm changing careers and not able to take out 4 years or pay for another Bachelor's degree so I'm going to call bullshit on this one so according to this guy I should just give up huh and not get certified so I can get a foot through the door.? I would counter with the fact that certs are extremely important in the job search phase or are we somehow expecting recruiters to go through your portfolio too??