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Why Get a Microsoft MCSE Certification? |
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In the years of the dot com boom and bust, the Microsoft
MCSE Certification has gotten its eye blackened over an over.
Paper Microsoft MCSE's who were excellent at finding brain
dumps and passing exams gave the Microsoft MCSE Certification
a bad name. What used to be a guarantee of a nice salary is
now ridiculed in some ignorant circles. After working in the
Information Technology field for twelve years I still believe
the Microsoft MCSE Certification is worth every dollar you
spend and every hour spent in study and practice. I'll share
my history with the Microsoft MCSE Certification and why I
still believe it’s a valuable certification credential.
My History: Pre Microsoft MCSE
When I started out as a PC LAN Analyst I wanted to someday
run my own shop. The best way I felt to get there was to study
for the much sought after Novell CNE and Microsoft MCSE Certification.
Because I worked in a Novell environment and had no opportunity
to work with Windows NT I started on my Novell CNE Certification.
I went book by book purchasing them on eBay and reading while
I worked a second job. The CNE was also an easier certification
to get as the answers to the exam came direct from the books.
Microsoft's MCSE Certification exams tend to generalize on
the concepts from the books rather than the text verbatim.
Once complete with the CNE I had a full understanding of Novell's
File Server and their weak attempt at a firewall/web server.
I understood archaic technologies like IPX and Token Ring
as well as networking technologies used today such as Ethernet,
and TCP/IP I at least had enough knowledge to perform well
at my job and work as an IT Consultant where I formed my own
business Gall Consulting which runs today as a successful
income.
After getting my CNE Certification I finally got a job running
my own show. I had one Novell 3.12 server which ran the entire
company. Within a year we began to work with Microsoft Windows
NT 3.51 and NT 4.0 was just on the scene. I began the lengthy
study of the seven Microsoft MCSE exams. When I had completed
the Microsoft MCSE certification a year later I was like Yoda
around the job. I had a complete set of knowledge about Windows
Networking and Windows Applications. Because I completed the
entire set of Microsoft MCSE exams and coursework I knew the
technology and the theory behind the technology. This led
to high performance as a Senior LAN Administrator. Rather
than a swiss cheese education I had a thorough understanding
of Microsoft Windows technology and could adapt to new situations
easily.
NT 4.0 to Windows 2000 MCSE
When Windows 2000 Server and Active Directory was released
we faced a problem. My small Novell to small Microsoft NT
Domain, had grown to a world wide enterprise with five domains
including various trusts going everywhere. DNS was handled
by our UNIX group and we had to find a way to learn a new
technology, create a single corporate Active Directory Domain
and use Dynamic DNS on our Windows Active Directory domain
controllers yet co-exist with our UNIX administrators who
were none to happy to have to share DNS. Faced with this challenge
I returned to what worked in the past. I studied for the Windows
2000 MCSE Certification
As I did before I started at the beginning and worked my
way through each course and exam until I had completed my
Windows 2000 MCSE Certification. By now I had a great career
as an IT Operations Manager and no one was going to hire or
pay me extra just for getting my Microsoft MCSE Certification.
This is the true value of the certification. It started as
my drive to obtain career credentials and became a vehicle
to ensure I had an entire breadth of knowledge that would
let me take on monumental tasks. Needless to say, today we
have a single corporate Active Directory domain with a few
sub domains necessary for DMZ areas.
Our DNS works so well the UNIX group asked us to take over
and we're able to build on Active Directory as a source of
valuable corporate data. My point in this article is to look
at the Microsoft MCSE Certification as a way to ensure you
have all the knowledge rather than just what's necessary in
the short term. Knowing why something works is much more powerful
than knowing just enough to build it in the first place the
coursework involved in the Microsoft MCSE Certification provides
this. I can say without fail, EVERY Information Technology
professional I've worked with that had a Microsoft MCSE Certification
performed at a MUCH higher level than those who only had on
the job experience or had only studied what they needed to
complete their daily tasks.
About the Author:
John Gall is a full time IT Manager and IT Consultant in
Minnesota. He runs several websites as a hobby featuring content
similar to that in this article.
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