I work in Houston,at a company that uses old technology VB sql 7 etc and want to stay current. Company I work for pays for add on training.

So should I go for My MCSD in .NET? Any advice as to how to study, if it is worth it.. other training I should get? And what is the word on these sites that sell "Test reviews" guaranteed to help you pass. are they the actual test questions ? Would think Microsoft would crack down on that?

Muchas Gracias

I was going for an MCSD in VB6 when I changed careers.  I got the first test done and then got a job because of that MCP logo on my resume.

If your company will pay for the training HELL yes go for it.  The M$ classes are good background material and it's good to have the teacher for when you'll come up with the 'why did they do it that way' or why does it do that' questions that always arise.

Besides the standard M$ courses, I used a book specifically for the first VB test I was going to take as well as the Transcender CD for the test.

The big thing you have to be careful of with the CD questions is DO NOT think you are reading the real test question.  M$ has made their question base much bigger since I took my test but sure enough you're going to get a question that's worded damn close to what you practiced with on the CD.  READ IT!  Make sure you understand what they're asking.  That's half the damn test - reading comprehension.

For the book I used....awh hell it's packed, but I think it was a Sybex book.  It was good for highlighting and notes and general stuff, but the code examples had a wicked number of mistakes or unfinished examples that left you scratching your head wondering where the hell it was going.  But it was all worth the effort.

Again, if the company will foot the bill, there's really no excuse not to.

GL!  

It really depends on what your company is willing to pay for.  Do you have a college degree?  If not, get one.  There are a lot of people out there with certs, but because the potential employee pool is so big, a lot of the larger companies are using also looking for people with college degrees just to weed the other people out.  Whether it is a B.A. in art history or a B.S. in computer science, many will take you over the candidate with no degree and some certs.

Being that BennyFranklin is more on the programming side, I would listen to him more than me.  However, when it comes to other IT jobs, companies are starting to look more at experience and higher education than certs.  If I had a dime for every technically worthless person with certifications I'd be retired (and I'm only 28).

thee12nv,
I can't comment on the .net aspect but I say go for all the M$ training your company will pay for.  I'm a nerd in training (I've got the 70-216 test in two weeks for my MSCA) but If you've already got your MCSE then the best way to stay current is to go on with your MSCD.  Have you been with your company long?  Do you feel secure in your employment there?  Those things would help me make my decision.  I was planning on staying with the M$ track but after my MCSA I'm going to focus on my PMI Project Managment Cert.
Chimborazo- If your not on the programming side can I ask what type of stuff you do?  I'm new to the field (a little over a year in IT)  and I'm trying to decide if I should focus more on technology or general project managment stuff.
I agree 100% on the degree thing.  I've got a BS in Forestry and an Associates degree in Networking but the BS is what got me my job and I work for a health care company....GO figure.

 
Good Luck

Ugh, ain't that the truth.  I've got 3 years of programming experience.  3 years ago when I started, that would have been enough to get a decent job.  Now because it lists a BS as a req, I don't even make the cut anymore.  Even though I've got database performance tuning and some solid maintenance programming under my belt, a kid just out of college with a BS is 10 times more employable than I am at this point.

[rant]
WTF?  Just because I wasn't interested in putting myself in debt for life to get some piece of paper that says I was able to listen to some people and regurgitate it on a test paper means I'm not employable?  Get bent!
[/rant]

Thanks for all the replies..

Actually I have a BSBA In Management/ MIS
And a Masters in MIS. I just want to stay marketable as my company has been going through layoffs. And have been pretty scared to see all these IT people without jobs.

I have heard about the transcender cd's also.. will have to look into them.

Chimborazo could you explain-"If I had a dime for every technically worthless person with certifications I'd be retired"

What do you look for to determine this.. A bunch of certificates but no experience?


Also what other cert or training should I go for and what time should I allocate for each.

I've been programming for 24 years, 17 of which has been at the professional level. All 17 of those have involved MS platform development of some sort. I have watched MS craft their marketing base through their certification program over the years and believe that it's the wisest investment they ever made. I also believe that if you write a single line of code on the MS platform in a professional setting, you should consider MS cert.

Even in my own small company ($7m/year), a basic MS cert can be as much as a $12K annual salary differnce from day one.

If nothing else, when they are the ones investing in your knowledge base, it's a card for your current employer to consider before ever letting you go.

A full MCSD should take you 6-8 months if you are studying right. It can go quicker if you are familiar with the IDE and the dev platform.

It also depends on what you want to do. Do you want to be a trench coder? R&D? Maintenance? Quality Assurance/Risk Management? Project management?

Do you have DBA already? DBA skills in tandem with the development is an even more powerful mix.

If you're getting classes, I'd also look into UML and learning some modeling environments (Rational Rose XDE, etc..). That's cross platform skill and in relatively high demand.

Transcenders and Sybex are both good. Classroom (like New Horizons or Tech Skills) is better - but way more expensive.