Certification - Is it worth it? - Part 2

Since my last post on this topic I have received mixed feedback from various people. In general the responses tend to vary based on the person's expectations.

If someones expectation was that by having a certification they would magically get a better, higher paying job, then they were usually disappointed and don't feel that certifications are worth it. On the other hand, if a person already had knowledge and experience and achieved a certification more for their own professional growth (with no pre-conceived notions of salary increases), they were happy with the results.

I don't have a certification yet so I can't speak to the aftereffects of achieving it but I can say that during my studying I'm learning that my 'expert' knowledge of ASP.NET web development isn't as all-encompassing as I thought it was. I knew that I didn't know everything but there are things that I thought I knew pretty well where I'm learning new things. Methods and attributes on controls that I didn't know about but have had occasion to use.

So for me, even if my getting a certification doesn't translate directly to better job/pay, the increased knowledge will help me do my job better, which will make me more employable at a better rate and so on. Basically, I think achieving a certification is a good thing professionally.

Just do it.