Spent 8 months chasing a certification that barely moved the needle

Everyone told me getting the PMP would open doors instantly. I studied for 4 months, took the exam for $555, and passed. Then I spent another 4 months applying to jobs and got one offer for the same pay I was making before. Networking at a local meetup in Austin did more for my career in 2 weeks than that cert did. Has anyone else found that some certifications are way overhyped?

2 comments

2 Comments

the_jake14h ago

Austin meetups changed everything for me too. I signed up for a local DevOps meetup after my AWS cert got me nowhere, and three conversations there led to a job offer within a month. That cert was $150 down the drain, but the handshake at the meetup was worth ten times that.

tylerlane15h ago

Man, school does the same thing. Overhype the piece of paper, underhype the real-world connections.