I am thinking of going part time at work to give me some time to get some practical qualifications free from it having to fit in with the needs of my employer.

I think I'm mainly intereted in programming as I've done some before, and it fits in with my general aptitudes.

Could anyone recommend one or two general qualifications that are relevent to employment in a wide range of fields?

Embarrassing to admit to but I've not got a single qualification in IT to my name after 20 years as an IT professional.

Look at the Microsoft exams - although the Linux and Mac people will say different... :D Do a Google on MCSE, MCSD.

Joe

what language are you interested in, as that makes a big difference as to what you should do.

MCSE is for people setting up servers isn't it, not developing?
MCSD is for people developing in .net

Originally posted by Cyclone
what language are you interested in, as that makes a big difference as to what you should do.


Indeed.

I hold a C&G 417 in applications programming (which was taught using Pascal - way back in 90-91) which enabled me to understand C, C++, Perl, PHP etc as they all use simular syntax/data constructs. We were also taught Cobol (stop laughing - it was mainly for the structure and constraints that it places on the programmer).


I would personally say steer clear of anything that relates purely to proprietry software - go generic (ie C or C++ and compile to binaries) as you will then be able to write code for any platform that has a C/++ language compiler available (most do).

Originally posted by sccsux
Indeed.

I hold a C&G 417 in applications programming (which was taught using Pascal - way back in 90-91) which enabled me to understand C, C++, Perl, PHP etc as they all use simular syntax/data constructs. We were also taught Cobol (stop laughing - it was mainly for the structure and constraints that it places on the programmer).

You've not mentioned your previous life as a famous Z80 coder!

the majority of popular business programming is now split into 2 camps, microsoft and java. There are still rolls available using C++ and to a lesser extent C, and many niche rolls for specialist languages.
Both Microsoft and Sun (Java) offer their own qualifications, both of which are respected somewhat in the relevant fields.

Originally posted by sccsux
Indeed.

I hold a C&G 417 in applications programming (which was taught using Pascal - way back in 90-91) which enabled me to understand C, C++, Perl, PHP etc as they all use simular syntax/data constructs. We were also taught Cobol (stop laughing - it was mainly for the structure and constraints that it places on the programmer).


I would personally say steer clear of anything that relates purely to proprietry software - go generic (ie C or C++ and compile to binaries) as you will then be able to write code for any platform that has a C/++ language compiler available (most do).

In 98 they were still teaching Turbo Pascal in the A-level computing course at Sheffield College :)

Originally posted by fnkysknky
In 98 they were still teaching Turbo Pascal in the A-level computing course at Sheffield College :)
Nower days they teach VisualBasic 6 and scripting Excel.
As far as I see most employers want ppl with knowledge of one of the big 3 RDBMS and comercial experience in programming in Java/C++/VB....whichever qulifications these depend on.
[BTW] More and more look for webservice developers.

Yes,

That's spot on about the Microsoft qualifications.

It does depend on what you want to do but really, experience has proven to be of more value to me in the long term, which is why I've never really pursued the courses.

So, what's your area of interest? Applications? System programming? Databases?

Joe

Most of my experience with computers and programming from a work perspective is databases, and thats what I think I'd be predominantly interested in.

Yes, nothing beats experience, but I guess a few basic qualifications might put me in a better position to get some experience.

Originally posted by alchresearch
You've not mentioned your previous life as a famous Z80 coder!

:blush:

Still got copies of everything I wrote for it (source & binaries and the machine they were wrote on - though the voltage regulator has failed now:( ).


Originally posted by Cyclone
the majority of popular business programming is now split into 2 camps, microsoft and java.


Ten years ago, Cobol was the language choice of busniesses. Before that there was LisP, Algol etc. In 5-10 years there will be another language available that will appear more tempting to business users.

My point is, computers and their languages are in a permanent state of flux and will constantly be so for the forseeable future, so needs & uses will change also (both business & home).

BTW. Java also uses simular constructs/syntax to PHP, Perl, C++ ... So again, my argument for learning a generic programming language should be put above one that requires proprietry software.



Originally posted by fnkysknky
In 98 they were still teaching Turbo Pascal in the A-level computing course at Sheffield College :)


That's the beast :thumbsup:

Produce(d/s) pretty slim & speedy code though. Still use it occasionally now:o ;).


Originally posted by adaline
Nower days they teach VisualBasic 6 and scripting Excel.


Which then ties you to proprietry software/OSs, which immediatly hits your available market. As to RDMSs, you'd still be better prepared learning the generic SQL (not MS-SQL or MySQL) upon which many of the others are based.

Do you think MS wrote Windoze in VB/.NET etc (GW-BASIC back in the old daze)? I don't think so (then again, with all the garbage that a standard install of windows puts on a HD, it wouldn't surprise me if they did).*


Originally posted by adaline
[BTW] More and more look for webservice developers.


Then C or C++ would be the way to go for cross platform compatibilty that requires no external interaction from a browser (doesn't require plugins/runtimes installed locally to run).


Again, I say, a generic language would be the way forward.



* FTR Windows was written (for the most part) in C/C++ (and, what's the betting that MS didn't code their own C compiler for the purpose)!

Originally posted by sccsux

That's the beast :thumbsup:

Produce(d/s) pretty slim & speedy code though. Still use it occasionally now:o ;).

Yeah it's a great language to learn general programming techniques with as it's well structured and supports OOP so you can get an understanding for that too. Some people were miffed that they didn't get to use VB and other Win32 RAD tools but they tended to be the ones who didn't know what they were doing anyway :) I've still got Turbo Pascal on floppy somewhere as well.......