Every so often the “is getting my CSWP worth it?” question crops up in one forum or another. Granted, should a potential employer gloss over the fact that a candidate has earned their CSWP, or not understand what the CSWP certification means, the whole question becomes moot, but let’s make a couple of assumptions so that I can continue with this post, ok? Good. The assumptions are that the employer knows, or finds out, what the CSWP is and the employer puts some stock into the CSWP. Yes, I realize that my conclusions will end up being lopsided, but if a potential employer doesn’t know anything about the certification or, worse yet, doesn’t put any stock in it, then there’s no point in going any further with this post. Right? (Then again, the CSWP only costs you time for the most part. At least that’s the case now. Back when I took it, it cost somewhere in the neighborhood of $500 and 8 hours of your time. That’s when the whole “is it worth it” question really had merit. At the most, you may end up having to pay $99 if you flunk it the first time around. Chump change, but I digress. )
The more I think about it, the more I question whether there’s actually an answer. I know that for me, having the CSWP has opened doors, especially where I don’t have a degree. I realize that all it says is “this guy is a CAD jockey”, but when it’s coupled with my other experience it helps me to rise up.
Rodney Hall, the celeb du jour of last year’s SolidWorks World, had this to say about the CSWP:
“I now work for a very large company as their CAD Administrator and manage over 100 seats of SolidWorks and would almost certainly not have been offered the position without CSWP Certification. My management now only prefers to consider CSWP as first choice when booking interviews with job candidates. I also teach SolidWorks at a local community college and being a CSWP again iced the cake when they considered me for the position.
I would recommend certification to anyone who is serious about keeping or advancing any career that involves using SolidWorks to bring home the groceries.”
Ok, so Rodney is only one person. Add me to the mix, and you get two people who wouldn’t be doing what they’re doing without the certification. I’m willing to bet that there’s more of us, too.
That all being said, I don’t think it’s possible to make a definitive statement one way or the other. It’s strictly related to people’s perception of it. Nothing more, nothing less. If you ask me or Rodney, we’d say it’s very worth it.
What say you?
