Oracle certification tips Oracle Tips by Burleson Consulting

With over 200,000 people now claiming Oracle certification, the Oracle certification program has expanded to offer three Oracle certification areas:

• Oracle Certified Associate (OCA) - This lower-level certification is offered by Oracle for those candidates who successfully passed only two of the four OCP exams. Click here for OCA exam training classes.
   

• Oracle Certified Professional (OCP) - The Oracle certified professional is required to pass four challenging exams and demonstrate proficiency in all technical areas of Oracle database administration. Click here for OCP exam training classes.
   

• Oracle Certified Masters (OCM) - The premier Oracle certification, requiring an OCP plus a challenging on-site practicum.

What is the value of an Oracle Certification?

Back in the Oracle 7 days, certified Oracle professionals were required to submit written evidence of years of job experience with Oracle, but sadly, that requirement has been discontinued, opening the door for thousands of marginal Oracle certificate holders who have very little experience with Oracle databases.  Oracle offers an Oracle Certified Expert (OCE) certification and Oracle Certified Professional (OCP) program, neither of which required any proof of work experience with Oracle.   

I’ve seen Oracle OCP and OCE holders who were illiterate with Oracle, people who could not be trusted to perform even the simplest DBA task. The only Oracle certification that I place any merit is the Oracle Certified Master, which requires a two-day practicum, real evidence of Oracle expertise.

The Oracle ACE program is often misunderstood, since the Oracle ACE title implies extensive experience with Oracle, which is not always true.  I know many Oracle ACE people, and while many are terrific, there are some who do not have enough production experienced to be trusted on any mission-critical system.  We see the same problem with the Microsoft MVP program, where MVP holders have been known to engage in blatant misrepresentation and outright fraud.

When evaluating the expertise of any Oracle professional, always rely on a resume or CV, and always verify credentials.  Resume fraud has reached epidemic proportions, and I see cases every week of padded and fraudulent resumes.

For more information on evaluating Oracle professionals, see the book “Conducting the Oracle Job Interview:  IT Manager Guide for Oracle Job Interviews with Oracle Interview Questions”.

Here are my other news and notes on Oracle certification: