Cert mill ??????

Discussion in 'Accreditation Discussions (RA, DETC, state approva' started by Lerner, Feb 28, 2013.

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  1. Lerner

    Lerner Well-Known Member

    Last edited by a moderator: Feb 28, 2013
  2. SteveFoerster

    SteveFoerster Resident Gadfly Staff Member

    Wow. Well, I guess this is yet another reason why smart employers test prospective employees themselves rather than rely on degrees or certifications.
     
  3. Lerner

    Lerner Well-Known Member

    Also take in to account that many of his certifications eligible for Academic credit.
    Many colleges and universities incorporate these in to their IT curriculum.
    WGU IT degree for example offers 6 to 8 certs , some are CompTIA and others.
     
  4. SteveFoerster

    SteveFoerster Resident Gadfly Staff Member

    Indeed, Charter Oak recognized my MCSE certification as the equivalent to 12 semester-hours. I didn't look into the site thoroughly, but I would be surprised if it weren't an expensive "service". Probably cheaper just to learn things....
     
  5. Lerner

    Lerner Well-Known Member

    I was looking for fast ITLS certification and this site came in the search engine.
    They charge 1800 for ITLS cert.

    I was looking for prep classes and test engine so I can take the real exam not to buy cert.

    I think they take your money and run. Who will complain that they tied to buy certification?
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Feb 28, 2013
  6. SteveFoerster

    SteveFoerster Resident Gadfly Staff Member

    Heh, that's an interesting point.

    "I paid them to defraud someone else, but they defrauded me instead! I'm so angry!"
     
  7. CalDog

    CalDog New Member

    I have some experience with standardized exams at Prometric testing centers in the US. Security was far higher than for typical academic tests -- they checked the identity of examinees vs. a photo ID, which was copied. And then they scanned and recorded fingerprints. And of course, the testing center was covered with security cameras, so your general appearance was recorded. I would question whether it is really viable to send a "proxy" under these conditions.

    Prometric handles some pretty sensitive exams, like for medical boards, CPAs, Enrolled Agents, civil engineers, etc. They are not casual about security.

    Possibly their security is lower for IT certifications, or at testing centers outside the US. The website is registered to an address in China.
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Feb 28, 2013
  8. CalDog

    CalDog New Member

    It looks like many of the IT certs that are offered through Prometric aren't actually conducted at "real" Prometric testing centers. Instead, the IT companies (Microsoft, Cisco, etc) work with Prometric to develop the exams, and then Prometric makes its testing software available to cooperating schools and commercial training centers.

    For maximum security, Prometric can both deliver and administer exams. But for many IT certifications, Prometric only delivers the exams; test administration (including security) is handled by the cooperating school or training center. And their security probably is much more lax than it is at a dedicated Prometric center; I doubt that they scan fingerprints, for example. So for IT certs, the "exam by proxy" approach to cheating seems much more viable.
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Feb 28, 2013

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