I am a network engineer who is trying to find a programming related job. As a network engineer i have done lots of certifications from Cisco,Microsoft,Ecouncil,Comptia....
Are there programming certifications? In the Network engineering area certifications are very useful to find a job, is it also true for programming?
I can't speak for the industry at large, but when I review resumes, I don't give a moments thought to programming certifications. They are mostly a waste of time and money. (One colleague, after passing a couple of MCSD-related exams for C#, confided to me that he had absolutely no idea how to program in C#.)
Yes, there are programming certifications.
Microsoft, for instance, has the MCP certifications. Note that I don't know how useful they can prove. Microsoft of corse says they are, but hey, after all they're there to sell.
You can achieve similar certifications for Java, and probably for other technologies too.
I think at least for Java and .NET (and other Microsoft stuff), there are plenty of certification. Don't know, how important they are, though. I don't know about network engineering, but in programming, the majority of certification does not at all require enough skill to really be even a mediocre programmer.
In companies, where management hires new developers without asking existing ones, it might be a plus. But personally, I wouldn't wanna work in such a company.
In fact, you will find, many developers look down at certification: http://stackoverflow.com/questions/84556/whats-your-favorite-programmer-cartoon/954235#954235
greetz
back2dos
Sun has some levels of certifications: http://in.sun.com/training/certification/java/index.xml
At least for the German job market these kind of certificates are often marked as "optional". It's good to have one but isn't a showstopper if not. They will test your knowledge anyway... ;-)
Best wishes for your new job