Hi guys,
My name's Evan Weeks, and I'm currently working for a small startup
company
as a video game developer using C# and XNA. This is a recent development,
and
I'm having a blast working in .Net and am seriously considering making
this
****ft permanent.
For the past six years previous, I've been a Java/J2EE developer working
on
enterprise web applications for the US Air Force, as an enlistedman. I
separated from the military in 2006 and found it very difficult to get a
job.
While I had the experience and the knowledge, I did not, and still do not
have a degree to back it up. Java shops, I have discovered, are very picky
about the software engineering degree requirements for their positions,
and
most of the Java developers I have met tend to have a sort of Ivory Tower
attitude about their chosen specialization in our profession.
So, I'm examining the possibility of using this time while I'm gainfully
employed as a developer in a video game shop to earn my MCSA/MCSD, with
particular emphasis on .Net technologies. My question here would be how
much
more employable will this certification make me? I am also currently
pursuing
a bachelor's degree in software engineering from the University of
Advancing
Technology Online (www.uat.edu), but that will take some time to complete,
and I want to play the percentages, stack the deck, however you want to
think
of it, in my favor when it comes time to move from this job to another
.Net
position. Will Microsoft Certification be enough, in your opinion, to get
my
foot in the door for an interview and have an employer overlook the lack
of a
formal degree (though I am actively pursuing one)?
I appreciate any responses I can get, guys, and look forward to reading
what
you have to say.
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