BKCERTIF.RVW   980515

"Get Certified and Get Ahead", Anne Martinez, 1998, 0-07-041127-1,
U$24.95
%A   Anne Martinez
%C   300 Water Street, Whitby, Ontario   L1N 9B6
%D   1998
%G   0-07-041127-1
%I   McGraw-Hill Ryerson/Osborne
%O   U$24.95 800-565-5758 fax: 905-430-5020 louisea@McGrawHill.ca
%P   545 p.
%T   "Get Certified and Get Ahead"

I would agree with the title statement.  "Getting ahead," in our
society, refers to the gaining of some kind of competitive advantage
in business, with no unnecessary freighting of the situation with
concepts such as fairness or benefit, other than to one's own the
fiscal bottom line.  So, yes, getting certified will likely get you
ahead.

My former teaching colleagues may regard this sentiment with some
surprise.  After all, standardized testing is a known and valuable
tool, and in both the public system and post-secondary education much
of the objective is some kind of certification, be it graduation,
diploma, or degree.

The general education system, however, is huge, interconnected,
constantly under scrutiny, and has sometimes centuries of history
behind it.  And even then there is disagreement about the value and
accuracy of certificates and testing instruments.  So what chance does
a low budget, propriety, private, short term program have?  Admittedly
there are some certification systems that are backed up by specialist
groups, but even the best of these are relatively small scale amateur
efforts with questionable outcomes.  I applaud the attempts to provide
businesses and the general public with standards that can be used to
assess the competence of workers and consultants, but all too often I
have to shudder at the results.

In any case, this book is not concerned with the public.  The
introduction doesn't actually say who it is for, but the emphasis is
on the axiom that certification will get the person certified more job
mobility, higher salaries, and the perks that the vendors promoting
the certification promise to offer.  Evidence of increased
understanding or productivity is noticeably absent.

Part one promotes the idea of getting certified.  Chapter one is
twenty questions on certification.  One very telling item is the
admission that certification programs do not help the inexperienced:
most contain very little training.  There is a brief review of some
historical certificate programs in chapter two.  A number of benefits
of certification are presented in chapter three--but without much
backup.  Chapter four "interviews" three certified workers.

Part two looks at the nuts and bolts of getting a certificate.  (Note,
however, that few details of actual certificate programs are given in
the following material.)  Chapter five discusses the costs of programs
and ways to handle financing.  There are vendor-specific and non-so-
vendor-specific certificates, says chapter six.  Of the potential
pitfalls of certification mentioned in chapter seven, probably the
most important is failing to determine the practical application.  The
self-analysis suggested in chapter eight may bring you some
interesting self-enlightenment, but it is not likely to help determine
what certificate you should pursue.  Chapter nine looks at different
course and self-study options.  Chapter ten basically tells you to
make a plan.  (If you've never done any serious studying before, this
is more useful than it sounds.  And for those, chapter eleven's
suggested study habits are pretty good, too.)

Part three suggests ways to get the most mileage out of your
certificate.  Chapter twelve recommends advertising, mostly on the
net.  The company politics advised in chapter thirteen have little to
do with certification.  It is slightly more relevant to the job-
hunting counsel in chapter fourteen.  I like chapter fifteen, because
I give unqualified approval to continuing education.  Vendor perks
programs are promoted in chapter sixteen.  Chapter seventeen looks at
getting additional certification.

Part four lists a number of certificates that are available.  There is
contact information for the sponsor, general description, cost, and
related resources.  Also included are general resources applicable to
a variety of certification programs.

Most of the material that is of value in this book, aside from the
list of certifications, is available in a number of training and study
guides for the programs.

copyright Robert M. Slade, 1998   BKCERTIF.RVW   980515