Jerry

I agree that the most valuable "certificates" are those that require a period of attendance and sustained effort, preferably with in-course assessment rather than just a test at the end. Such a qualification tells an employer that the person can stick at something for more than a minute, can write a coherent sentence and can learn. Ie it says something about the "person" rather than suggesting they might be competent with a tool before they begin work with the company.

A good example of this is that in the UK, medical doctors with more than 3 years' clinical experience can get a city finance job with a starting salary of 100,000 pounds even if they know nothing about finance. The financiers are not stupid, their assessment of medical practice is that it imparts personal qualities of problem solving, communication and decisionmaking that make such people productive in finance.

IMHO employers are increasingly aware of the relative value of various qualifications and more and more will discount those that can be achieved by reading books or by sitting over and over.

Regards

JR