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Computer Certification: What Happened in 2004, Predictions for 2005
Certification continues to provide good value and to add respected credentials to a resume.
Published January 10, 2004
By Anne Martinez
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2004 was a year of no surprises in the certification marketplace. Although many of us hoped for another big growth spurt for the value and popularity of certification, there was little change. But that's not necessarily bad news; certification continues to provide good value and to add respected credentials to a resume. The most advanced certifications can lead to quite high salaries.
Certification and Salary Trends
One of the first things people want to know about certification is, will it boost my salary? According to Certification Magazine's 2004 Salary Survey of nearly 35,000 IT professionals from 160 countries, the average compensation for IT workers in 2004 was $67,000, up from the 2003 average of $63,540. The study reports that the highest paying certifications for computer professionals cover Cisco networking, telephony, project management, or IT security. It also found that people who are already certified must be happy with their achievements, because 83.2 percent of them plan to add one or more certifications in the coming year. 48% of respondents reported that employers picked up the whole tab for their certification, up from 42% in the 2003 survey. You can read the full Certification Magazine 2004 Salary Survey on their Web site.
Microsoft Magazine also does an annual salary survey. Their findings, which were published several months earlier, were a little bit different. The Microsoft Magazine survey included 5,000 individuals, and categorized salaries for Microsoft Certified Professionals as stabilized but flat, with average salaries of $61,900. That's barely above the previous year's figure. Not surprisingly, the entry level MCDST (Microsoft Certified Desktop Technician) title received the lowest compensation. The complete survey is available at MCPMag.com.
For a third viewpoint I contacted David Foote, of Foote Partners LLC, which studies and reports on pay for skills as well as for certification. According to Foote, during 2004, pay for certifications averaged 7.6 percent of base pay in late 2004. That is a change of -0.6 percent, or basically flat growth from 2003 and a decline of 6.1% percent from 2002. Certifications showing the highest annual growth rates were: HP/Compaq ASE and MASE; Cisco CCIE; MCSE(Security and Messaging specializations only); and Citrix Certified Administrator.
Foote also reports that Certifications earning the highest premium pay rates in 2004 were: Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP); Cisco CCIE and CCDP; Project Management Professional; Certified Information Systems Auditor(CISA); GIAC Security Expert and Windows Security Administrator; Microsoft Certified Solutions Developer and Microsoft Certified Trainer; Citrix Certified Enterprise Administrator; HP/Compaq MASE.
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