You most probably don’t need a QA certification
If you’re working in IT, you’re surely no stranger to the world of certifications. But do you really need to get a certification ? Let’s talk about it.
What is a certification?
Let’s get this out of the way from the beginning. Although I pondered a bit if I should include this or not, I recently read a LinkedIn thread where people were bickering on this exact subject which made me realize that my understanding of what a certification is might not be commonly shared among others. And because I have a propensity for Letters, let’s see what the dictionary tells us about it.
Worth getting certified?
Now that we’ve established what a certification is, let’s talk about the what, how and why.
What?
I’ll use a personal anecdote. I’ve been working in the IT industry (more specifically in the QA branch) for around 13 years now. I hold 3 certifications (one which I need to resit if I want for it to extend its availability) if we’re counting only the industry related ones (as I have Linguistics related certifications too). These are the certifications that I hold:
- ISTQB Foundation Level
- Professional Scrum Master I (PSM I)
- Adobe Certified Expert — AEM Business Practitioner
Were these certifications essential to my career progression in any way? I would say no. Did these certifications help me expand my horizons and pique my interest in areas of the industry and/or products in which I would have probably got to later on or maybe never? Yes. And herein lies their use.
How?
Ideally you won’t need to study for a certification. You really won’t. I’m saying that because what a certification represents (as we have seen above) is just a seal of approval that you truly know and apply all the concepts that are presented in a certification’s syllabus (and surely these syllabi are up to date with what happens in the real world, right?)
But, given that these certifications are usually governed by an external body which sometimes has to follow its own agenda, you might want to have a read through the syllabus because maybe some of the things that you’ve been doing all along have a totally different name. And that’s asinine but in a QA world where the definition of what a bug, a problem, an incident or a defect is depends on the company you’re working for, it’s not far from the truth that we still have ways to go until we reach a common and standardized vocabulary of QA related terms.
Why?
Continuing the point started above, because we have little standardization we need to have a common way (regardless of the company or industry) to assess someone’s technical and managerial prowess. And because this model is quite widespread, of course we have to pass a certification in order for hiring managers at different companies to get the same idea about our expertise, right? Wrong.
What use is holding a certification that does not have any connection to the real world? Why should I get ISTQB certified since a lot of the things that ISTQB postulates are not even used in the day to day activities of QAs? Just for the sake of it? Most of the times, the answer is yes. As it’s very easy for recruiters who usually don’t have a technical background to see if someone is fit or not for the role they’re advertising (or if they’re even worth a phone call), certifications are a necessary evil.
And it will continue being it unless we change our minds about what is really important for a QA professional to demonstrate during an interview. I’ve seen or heard a lot of examples where people were double or triple certified yet they could not summon creativity and problem-solving skills in “what if” type of questions which are very simple and common to use by any interviewer. Having the ISTQB won’t save you from answering questions in an interview nor will it answer them for you.
Yes, having a solid foundation when it comes to the concepts is paramount for continuous self improvement but what seals the deal is seeing all of those concepts and theories be applied day in, day out at your job. Learning by seeing theory in action beats any other type of knowledge immersion.
Forget about the idea that a certification is going to help you in your career. It won’t.
Next steps?
What I would do were I at the beginning of my career is go through these certifications’ syllabi and read about the concepts and theories. It will, if nothing else, spike your interest in knowing, learning and reading more about it and it will send you down a beautiful rabbit hole (13 years down the line, I’m still digging). But don’t sit the exam, you don’t need to. Really, why waste 300 dollars on a piece of paper that will serve no purpose?
And if you’re working with recruiters or are one yourself, understand that the sum of a person’s knowledge does not reside in them having or not a piece of paper that says they know some stuff. Especially true in the case of people are the beginning of their careers. Talk to them, have discussion with them, ask them about hypothetical scenarios, challenge them with out of the blue questions but don’t discard or disqualify them just because they thought 300 dollars might be worth spending a different way.
Once you’re confident in your skills, and can show it through a good portfolio of projects, then think about certifications. They might actually be helpful to get your foot in the door, but don’t rely on them too much — they are not the only way to demonstrate knowledge.
Conclusion?
I’ll probably never stop trying to change the status quo around my profession and even though at times it might get me down, it’s only up to me (and others like me) to keep pushing the boundaries of understanding who we are, what we do and why we are here.
If you’d like to get in touch on any of the subjects above or about leadership, QA or management in general, I’m always reachable through my LinkedIn profile. Drop me a line! Whether you had a similar or totally different experience, I’d love to hear about it.
And if you’re new here, you might want to check some of my articles where I’m talking about good management or feedback.
