The New Millennium’s Downward Ramp of Jobs.

Yeah, this is true. I’ve seen it in my own field. Now to get jobs I held a decade ago, I need much higher-level and much more difficult to get technical certifications.

Some jobs I am ineligible for in the minds of HR because I have no college degree, but even those positions which do not specify a degree now require certifications that were not mandatory even as recently as 4-5 years ago.

Hence one of the reasons I’ve been taking so many exams lately.

To get the same job I held in 2001 with no certifications other than natural fucking talent, I now pretty much need to spend $2,000 – $3,000 on exams and study materials, and 600+ hours of study time.

Certifications unlike most college degrees are better than just signaling mechanisms, but not that much better.

I’ve met plenty of people with the same certs I have who could barely or couldn’t even tell you what an IP address is, while at the same time I’ve met people with no certifications who could do plenty of things I can’t.

I’d say on balance a job candidate having certifications means there is about a 10-20% chance of them being better at the job. Not nothing, but also not a lot.