Getting your player ready...
The value of certification and/or advanced degrees, such as an MBA, often comes into question in the wake of economic downturns.
There are two camps on the issue. On the one side you have those who spent time and money earning these achievements and now may be questioning the value in light of job loss or, at least, job insecurity. The other camp consists of those who don’t have the advanced education and wonder if obtaining it would help their job search efforts or career aspirations. Unfortunately, there is no clear, black and white answer. There are many complex factors. The need for such credentials depends on the job, the company, the interviewer or person screening the resumés, etc. In the end, it probably comes down to this: having certifications and advanced degrees certainly will not hurt your chances of finding a job or advancing in your profession. However, those who believe that certification or an advanced degree is the key to finding employment in a competitive job market may be disappointed. Despite curent positive trends, the job search is very competitive. In this environment, possessing professional certification or an advanced degree can certainly give one an advantage. However, where these credentials will help the most is in the initial weeding-out phase of the hiring process. The further along in the hiring process one gets, the less these credentials will impact one’s fate. At some point, the emphasis moves toward relevant skills and experience and then, once you are in the face-to-face interview phase of the process, it really comes down to the interpersonal interaction between the interviewer and interviewee. Based on this, some may conclude that the advanced degree or certification is not important. However, there is plenty of evidence that having certification and/or an advanced degree is beneficial to earnings and job security. Holding an advanced degree can definitely increase one’s earning potential. This is important, given the cost of such a degree. In 2010, weekly earnings for workers with a master’s degree averaged $1,579, compared to average weekly earnings of $1,344 among those with only a bachelor’s degree, according to the latest available data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Those with a professional degree earned an average $2,376 per week in 2010. Certification can also lead to a salary boost. The most recent annual salary survey conducted by Quality Progress, the monthly publication of the American Society for Quality, managers with ASQ certification earned nearly $8,000 per year more on average than their counterparts without certification. The annual salary for certified auditors was an average of $15,451 more than for auditors who were not certified.
