Comments on: A Dissenting Opinion On Testing’s “To Cert Or Not To Cert” Debate http://blog.utest.com/a-dissenting-opinion-on-the-to-cert-or-not-to-cert-debate/2010/01/ Software Testing Community Wed, 08 Sep 2010 07:17:21 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.2 hourly 1 By: Charity Stoner http://blog.utest.com/a-dissenting-opinion-on-the-to-cert-or-not-to-cert-debate/2010/01/comment-page-1/#comment-14761 Charity Stoner Fri, 22 Jan 2010 17:04:42 +0000 http://blog.utest.com/?p=3348#comment-14761 Matt, thank you for the soapbox! I appreciate your willingness to publish both sides of this debate. Michael, thank you for your reply and your willingness to continue the debate. I replied on the ProtoTest blog site. Lisa, thank you for your response! Like I mentioned, I do not believe that certifications are for everyone and you definitely don't need one. As I say in my response on the blog experience trumps certification, always. Looking at it from your own point of view for yourself I can understand why you would not want to take a certification class/exam. My question to you is, do you agree that there is value to the younger generation of testers just coming into the workforce to take a certification test? Matt, thank you for the soapbox! I appreciate your willingness to publish both sides of this debate.

Michael, thank you for your reply and your willingness to continue the debate. I replied on the ProtoTest blog site.

Lisa, thank you for your response! Like I mentioned, I do not believe that certifications are for everyone and you definitely don’t need one. As I say in my response on the blog experience trumps certification, always. Looking at it from your own point of view for yourself I can understand why you would not want to take a certification class/exam. My question to you is, do you agree that there is value to the younger generation of testers just coming into the workforce to take a certification test?

]]> By: Matt Johnston http://blog.utest.com/a-dissenting-opinion-on-the-to-cert-or-not-to-cert-debate/2010/01/comment-page-1/#comment-14759 Matt Johnston Fri, 22 Jan 2010 03:19:31 +0000 http://blog.utest.com/?p=3348#comment-14759 Thanks for sharing your note, Michael. I've read your comments on Charity's post and I applaud you for advancing the discussion in such a constructive manner. Thanks for sharing your note, Michael.

I’ve read your comments on Charity’s post and I applaud you for advancing the discussion in such a constructive manner.

]]> By: Michael Bolton http://blog.utest.com/a-dissenting-opinion-on-the-to-cert-or-not-to-cert-debate/2010/01/comment-page-1/#comment-14758 Michael Bolton Fri, 22 Jan 2010 03:11:23 +0000 http://blog.utest.com/?p=3348#comment-14758 I appreciate that Charity has engaged the conversation. I've responded to Charity's comments, and I also appreciate that she's afforded me the opportunity to do so. ---Michael B. I appreciate that Charity has engaged the conversation. I’ve responded to Charity’s comments, and I also appreciate that she’s afforded me the opportunity to do so.

—Michael B.

]]> By: Lisa Crispin http://blog.utest.com/a-dissenting-opinion-on-the-to-cert-or-not-to-cert-debate/2010/01/comment-page-1/#comment-14757 Lisa Crispin Thu, 21 Jan 2010 22:25:09 +0000 http://blog.utest.com/?p=3348#comment-14757 Charity makes a valid point that the fact that a tester bothered to get a certification may be an indication that the person is motivated to grow her skills and career. If I'm a hiring manager looking at that stack of resumes, it might catch my eye also. However, I would put more value on the candidate's responses to questions such as "What do you do for your own professional development?" Certification may also give some managers who don't know anything about testing a certain comfort level. So it probably can't hurt to get a certification. I count myself in the anti-certification camp, because the things you can measure with multiple-choice questions really don't reflect the person's skills and abilities to do a good job of testing. Mindset and attitude are much more important to me than whether a person knows the "official" definitions of different kinds of testing. I've been in the software business for 28 years, and in the testing business for 15+ years, and I don't know how well I'd do on a certification exam, because I don't know all the "lingo". Do I know something about testing? I sure think so, though there are others who disagree! I admit I am cynical - most testing certification programs I see are designed to make money for the organization offering the certification or for "training" organizations that prepare people for the exam. Charity makes a valid point that the fact that a tester bothered to get a certification may be an indication that the person is motivated to grow her skills and career. If I’m a hiring manager looking at that stack of resumes, it might catch my eye also. However, I would put more value on the candidate’s responses to questions such as “What do you do for your own professional development?”

Certification may also give some managers who don’t know anything about testing a certain comfort level. So it probably can’t hurt to get a certification.

I count myself in the anti-certification camp, because the things you can measure with multiple-choice questions really don’t reflect the person’s skills and abilities to do a good job of testing. Mindset and attitude are much more important to me than whether a person knows the “official” definitions of different kinds of testing.

I’ve been in the software business for 28 years, and in the testing business for 15+ years, and I don’t know how well I’d do on a certification exam, because I don’t know all the “lingo”. Do I know something about testing? I sure think so, though there are others who disagree!

I admit I am cynical – most testing certification programs I see are designed to make money for the organization offering the certification or for “training” organizations that prepare people for the exam.

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