Certifications?

[CaptianScooby]

I am 16 and will be a junior in high school this fall and was wondering what computer certifications would benefit me in life? I have material for my A+ and Network +. Which should I go for first and why? Shoud I go for my CCNA or MCSE?? Any help woud be appreciated.
Thanks
P.S. Are there Linux Certifications? I would like to get one if possible since I love to expand my horizons.

 

[Pothead]

Rarely do companies look for Network+, So throw that out. A+ is really simple and great for part time jobs troubleshooting/desktop support. CCNA and MCSE is a bit harder. CCNA being the harder of the two.

However, certifcations will mean jack. It will help only to a certain extent. Companies are looking for people with experience (or just have connections).

 

[Daxxax]

He's right, for the most part having a Cert may get you a interview or maybe a call back, but if you don't have experience the certs won't go to far. From what I have seen the best thing about certs is if you ALREADY have a job in the industry, and you get a few certs to improve your knowledge and to show your boss/manager that you are willing to learn and improve your value to the company.
Although when I studied for the A+ I did learn a few things that helped. And since your only 16, now is the best time to start. I say get your A+ first then maybe N+ after those two you'll have good basic knowledge. Then you can decide which field interest you. But like I said before nothing beats EXPERIENCE!!

 

[lti]

Along with classes towards certification, go for intership in that field...as much as your schedule permits..as much chance as employers give you to do it. That would give you some experience. I've had an intern who finished vocational computer course, and got a job right after graduation.

 

[drag]

Ya, Certifications are great for getting hired. Most HR departments are the ones that do the hiring and they generally have no clue when it comes to computers and the certificates are very impressive to them. So certificates are important to get your foot in the door, HR is usually the first people you have to deal with when getting a job.

however, as far as a boss's are concerned certifics are kinda a waste. They know that you study to past the tests and a lot of time people still don't know what they are doing even when they have the certificate. For them job experiance is much more important. So getting employed in the area (being a intern or whatever) is much more important, because then they know you have real-world experiance. (you know when you are studing for A+ or ccna and see something vague or obstcure, ut you need to know it anyways to pass the exam and you say to yourself "when will I ever need this?" you probably won't)

The down side of course is finding a place that will take you.... So while you are lookiing for a intership or whatever work on those certiificates, get whatever you can....

experiance > certs...... certs = interviews ..... kinda catch-22