IT Qualifications Guide - 2011-2012
The following list of roles and qualifications demand for popular computer careers. It shows major IT industry fields and the percentage of employers who requested specific qualifications in 2011 and 2012 job advertisements. Salary information was also collected and presented when it was made available.
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Page Contents
- 2011 - 2012 IT Qualifications Research Results
- Are Qualifications Worthwhile?
- Qualifications and Career Options
- Demonstrating Technical Competence
- Job Candidate Experience vs Percentage of Eligible Jobs
- Getting Qualified - Managing Time
- Getting Qualified - Your Budget
- Getting Qualified - Region of the world
- Getting Qualified - Peaks and Troughs in the Economy
- Getting Qualified - Hot Industry Technologies
- Hot IT Skills 2012
2011 - 2012 IT Qualifications Research Results
| Helpdesk Analyst | |
|---|---|
| Qualification | % Job Advertisements |
| Degree | |
| ITIL | |
| MCSA | |
| MCSE | |
| MCP | |
| Comptia | |
| CCNA | |
| Desktop Support | |
|---|---|
| Qualification | % Job Advertisements |
| Degree | |
| ITIL | |
| MCSA | |
| MCSE | |
| MCP | |
| Comptia | |
| CCNA | |
| PC Support | |
|---|---|
| Qualification | % Job Advertisements |
| Degree | |
| ITIL | |
| MCSA | |
| MCSE | |
| MCP | |
| Comptia | |
| CCNA | |
| Systems Administrator | |
|---|---|
| Qualification | % Job Advertisements |
| Degree | |
| ITIL | |
| MCSA | |
| MCSE | |
| MCP | |
| Comptia | |
| CCNA | |
| CCNP | |
| Network Administrator | |
|---|---|
| Qualification | % Job Advertisements |
| Degree | |
| ITIL | |
| MCSA | |
| MCSE | |
| Comptia | |
| CCNA | |
| CCNP | |
| CCIE | |
| Juniper | |
| Network Engineer | |
|---|---|
| Qualification | % Job Advertisements |
| Degree | |
| ITIL | |
| MCSA | |
| MCSE | |
| Comptia | |
| CCNA | |
| CCNP | |
| CCIE | |
| Juniper | |
| Network Architect | ||
|---|---|---|
| Qualification | % Job Advertisements | |
| Degree | ||
| ITIL | ||
| MCSA | ||
| MCSE | ||
| Comptia | ||
| CCNA | ||
| CCNP | ||
| CCIE | ||
| JNCIE | ||
| Security | ||
|---|---|---|
| Qualification | % Job Advertisements | |
| Degree | ||
| ITIL | ||
| MCSA | ||
| MCSE | ||
| MCP | ||
| Comptia | ||
| CCNA | ||
| CCNP | ||
| CCIE | ||
| Developer | ||
|---|---|---|
| Qualification | % Job Advertisements | |
| Degree | ||
| ITIL | ||
| IT Manager | ||
|---|---|---|
| Qualification | % Job Advertisements | |
| Degree | ||
| ITIL | ||
| MCSA | ||
| MCSE | ||
| Comptia | ||
| CCNA | ||
| CCNP | ||
| CCIE | ||
| Prince2 | ||
| Project Manager | ||
|---|---|---|
| Qualification | % Job Advertisements | |
| Degree | ||
| ITIL | ||
| MCSA | ||
| MCSE | ||
| Comptia | ||
| CCNA | ||
| Prince2 | ||
| Enterprise Architect | ||
|---|---|---|
| Qualification | % Job Advertisements | |
| Degree | ||
| ITIL | ||
| MCSA | ||
| MCSE | ||
| Comptia | ||
| CCNA | ||
| CCNP | ||
| CCIE | ||
| Storage | ||
| Prince2 | ||
Are Qualifications Worthwhile?
One of the most common questions we receive from visitors is 'is it worth investing in formal IT qualifications?'. If so, which ones are the best?
That question does not have a straight forward answer. But in this article I will do my best to give you the seven most pressing points when assessing your personal IT qualifications requirements.
Deciding to commit to IT qualifications is a great first step, however, you need to first understand exactly what you want to achieve in order to select the right qualifications for you. This is primarily because Information Technology does not currently regulate training in the industry. This means that there may be a number of different paths that you can take in order to achieve the same result.
Some simple ways to learn about different IT fields and gather indicative salary expectations are;
- Study Job Advertisements; Job advertisements are a live window to the current market. Recruiters often list preferred experience and IT qualifications in their advertisements. Research advertisements in your area to get a gauge on what to aim in order to succeed in the field.
- Speak to Job Recruitment Agencies; I have developed very good relationships with many recruitment agencies over the years. We have spoken about the local market many times and these discussions have shaped my career. It is interesting to hear agents point of view because they are often aware of upcoming bodies of work as well as current trends.
- Speak to Friends. If you are lucky enough to have a friend, neighbor or relative in the IT industry seek their opinion about your pending decision about IT qualifications.
By the time that you have gathered information from these sources you should have a better idea of the what specific field is interesting to you as well as the demand, training and pay scale in your local region of the world.
Qualifications and Career Options
Firstly, you should not limit your career options just because you do not have a huge budget for IT training. There are dozens of training options including very low budget solutions and of course free Internet based information at your finger tips. It is important to remember that most certification exams require that you pass an electronic question set. They do not specify 'how' to acquire the knowledge and are unable to distinguish between candidates who have undertaken inhouse professional training versus those who have not.
Remember, IT qualifications exist so that you can demonstrate your level of competence in a field. If you are able to demonstrate this competence via other means such as work experience, project deliverables, authorship or self study then you can still submit a strong job application.
More information about career options or skills in IT careers can be found by following the provided links.
Demonstrating Technical Competence
Demonstrating competence in cover letters, resumes and interviews generally involves describing the source of your knowledge. For example, a completed certification or previous project. The more sources of knowledge on the same subject the more credible the application appears.
- Experience including unpaid work experience
- Degrees and Diplomas
- Professional Certifications
- Home projects, hobbies and memberships
- Self study courses
- In house professional courses such as boot camps
- Authorship
See examples of demonstrating technical competence in our resume page and cover letter samples page.
Job Candidate Experience vs Percentage of Eligible Jobs
The following graph maps popular fields against experience requirements. It plots the percentage of jobs that a candidate can expect to be eligible for in the respective field. For client facing roles such as help desk, several years of experience implies that, based on experience, the candidate should be eligible for almost 100% of jobs. Other fields such as architecture and management often have more rigorous experience requirements with some jobs requesting only candidates with 10+ years of experience need apply.
Getting Qualified - Managing Time
When it comes to IT certifications time can be managed with money. That is, the more money that you have to spend, the faster that you should be able to complete each certification. Conversely, certifications can be completed relatively inexpensively (at the cost of the exam and perhaps a book) but in my experience the trade off is time.
Getting Qualified - Your Budget
There is no doubt that the IT industry is king when it comes to the sale of knowledge. IT qualifications are no exception. A well funded candidate can position him/her self in a very strong career position. A candidate with a low training budget can achieve the same results but at the expense of additional time. Relevant work experience is a good way to fast track low budget certification goals but it is not a substitute for hard study.
University degrees and diplomas are less susceptible to time management budget issues because they generally run for a fixed period of time.
Getting Qualified - Region of the world
IT qualifications do hold different values in different regions of the world. Local job searches and recruitment agencies should shed light on the value of your proposed certification in your region. Generally speaking, this factor is closely associated with the supply and demand of candidates with those qualifications.
In addition to this page, we also research and list best paying computer careers in the USA as well as individual career skills data listed within our job descriptions.
Getting Qualified - Peaks and Troughs in the Economy
Yes, the economy plays a big part in the value of qualifications. When times are tough such as the economic troubles of 2008 and 2009, qualifications become a powerful tool against stiff competition. During IT boom periods many employers are less picky because good candidates are scarce. Once again, this factor is associated with supply and demand.
Getting Qualified - Hot Industry Technologies
Every once in a while a booming technology catches the industry off guard and creates a skills shortage. Voice over IP is a good recent example. If you possess a 'hot' qualification during a skills shortage then other qualifications seem to take a back seat, at least temporarily.
Hot IT Skills 2012 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Qualification/Skill 2012 | Avg. Salary Range | Max Salary |
| Security | $92K-$112K | $200K |
| SAP | $97K-$115K | $180K |
| Mobile Software Development | $90K-$105K | $170K |
| Cloud | $105K-$119K | $170K |
| CCIE | $96K-$118K | $160K |
| Business Intelligence | $97K-$115K | $150K |