Last time, we discussed job hunting without a certification. Now let’s take a different angle. Let’s say for the sake of discussion that you don’t have much experience, but you just completed either your MCITP: Enterprise Administrator certification or your MCPD: Enterprise Application Developer certification. How do you market yourself despite not having a lot of real world experience?
1. Stay humble
Achieving your cert was a big accomplishment, but don’t expect everyone to be wowed, especially if you don’t have much experience. Recruiters and employers are often skeptical of the newly certified. They wonder if you really know your stuff, or if you just memorized the answers from a brain dump site.
Don’t be afraid to say that you still have a long way to go and that you look forward to being able to take what you have learned and put it into practice. Part of being humble is being realistic. If you don’t have much experience, then don’t expect anything more than an entry level position.
2. See the big picture
Try to see the forest from the trees. Sure, your cert was a significant accomplishment. But you should portray it as a milestone on the path to something greater. The key word is milestone. Celebrate the milestone, but remember that the cert is just one stage of your career growth and you still have a long way to go. For example, you also need real world experience and you will have to continually learn and diversify in order to keep up with the changing technology. Future certs await you, so your current cert might become the first of many.
3. Prove it
Provide the web link which allows the recruiter to view your transcript online by entering an access code. Also bring a printed copy of your transcript to the interview. Do research ahead of time to know how much you’re worth, in case the recruiter asks you what salary you are seeking. Whenever you are asked this question, always give a range of +/- $5k from what your research has determined your market value to be. For example, if your research determined your market value to be $65k, if the recruiter asks the question, respond with $60k to $70k.
4. Don’t forget soft skills
One of the best ways that you can move to the top of the list with the recruiter, even if you don’t have a lot of experience, is to demonstrate excellent soft skills. Soft skills are skills like communication, teamwork, initiative, adaptability, and creativity. If you have previously attended any classes to develop soft skills, make sure you list those on your resume. Prior to interviewing, think of concrete examples from your career where you have put each of the above soft skills into action, and look for ways to mention those examples during the interview. Recruiters love to hear stories about initiative, collaboration, and how you used creativity to solve problems and to help your company’s bottom line.
