Tech IndustryMay 28, 2019
Newzombo

Is certificate useful in terms of expanding knowledge for a SDE?

Specifically the AWS architect solution pro certificate. I am always under the impression that certificate is mainly for support roles but for architect stuff ... I think it’s especially useful for SDEs? Or should I say that it can be a good start to get into architecture? I know people think certificates don’t matter(at least all my friends who get into FANG don’t have any certificate) that much or people who can pass are not necessarily good at it. But my company is offering some incentives for people who can pass certificate and I think ... YOLO, right? During the time when I was chasing the “new grad to FANG” wagon(unfortunately I missed it and I am no longer a new grad), I went through most of the system design problems/materials but those are more abstract and high-level, I can’t really elaborate on those since I have never had those experience (duh). But with studying the certificate prep material, can I learn more about how an architecture works? Or the certificate focuses too much on trivial situations that I may never encounter and I should just give up and grind Leetcode... Since ultimately, I still want to get into FANG but instead of grinding leetcode, I do want to learn something “tangible”. What do you guys think? Thanks.

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4everalone May 28, 2019

you need to win leetcode competition. it gives the only certificate you'll ever need.

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zombo OP May 29, 2019

I attend Leetcode contest weekly with 600 problems done. I am pretty sure I can whiteboard like 200 of them in different categories. I just don't feel like it's a skillset to me.

SAP SaUK45 May 28, 2019

Take the exam. You have nothing to lose and more to gain. AWS certification holds value these days, especially for companies who are transitioning to cloud. Don't underestimate it. Another rising workforce is remote devops. You can charge big bucks doing this stuff and some don't do on-call. Once you get the cert, you can always go back and do leetcode.

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zombo OP May 29, 2019

Thanks! Glad you are actually answering the question