What is brainbench?

Discussion in 'General Distance Learning Discussions' started by dis.funk.sh.null, Oct 15, 2004.

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  1. dis.funk.sh.null

    dis.funk.sh.null New Member

    I came across this site and am interested in knowing...

    They say they offer professional certifications. Are their certifications recognized? I don't mean from an academic sence in terms of credits, but do they have certificate granting authority? What are the legal issues?

    here is the site for your convenience http://brainbench.com
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Oct 15, 2004
  2. jimnagrom

    jimnagrom New Member

    Brainbench certificates are recognized as entry-level (very entry-level) certificates. The Federal Govt., IBM, Allstate, etc., use them to screen candidates.

    I require my students to complete an appropriate "free" certification exam as a semester homework assignment. I have had students tell me that having a BB certification made the difference between them and an equivalent candidate without it - in other words - a discriminator.

    As for their "certificate granting authority" - they have the same authority any commerical company has (Microsoft, Cisco, etc.).
     
  3. dis.funk.sh.null

    dis.funk.sh.null New Member

    really? I tried the HR certificate... and I almost passed it (missed by one question from my calculation) and HR is not even my area :confused:
     
  4. dis.funk.sh.null

    dis.funk.sh.null New Member

    also

    Can you elaborate on the authority that Cisco and Microsoft have to grant these certificates? Do they need formal recognition from the government or from any department of education? Thanks for sharing
     
  5. JNelson467

    JNelson467 New Member

    I have managed to complete the job Role of manager/Supervisor, which required about 8 certifications through them. I also have passed and obtained 16 certifications in various areas as Financial Mgmt., project mgmt, HR/ Accounting and various industry knowledge certifications.

    I can say that most of them are pretty hard and you either know the subject or not.

    i took them all basically for challenge as they were offering them all for free for about 2 weeks a few months ago to celebrate their 1 millionth certification offered. Not sure of the actual utility of them, but they do make you feel proud of a accomplishment as again, they are very difficult.

    PS: The certificates actually look nice as well if one chooses to purchase one after passing. their like 9.95 to 14.95 for a paper certificate.
     
  6. jimnagrom

    jimnagrom New Member

    Re: also

    You're kidding, right?
     
  7. Stanislav

    Stanislav Well-Known Member

    I posess a BB certificate in "Sexual harrassment awareness", wich allows me to call myself an "expert in sexual harrassment" :) I also have a bunch of IT certificates from them, and fulfilled their "Internet Developer" designation. I did list some of those things on my resume, but can't be sure if it made any good (I was hired by one compant to do VC++ development, but I do have Microsoft certificate for that). Now that I'm a graduate student, I have no use for those papers whatsoever (besides "sexual harrassment" joke of course ;)) . I beleive they have very little value but not totally worthless. Exam difficulty varied greatly, from easy to very difficult.
     
  8. dis.funk.sh.null

    dis.funk.sh.null New Member

    Re: Re: also

    Ironically, I am not... but there is another reason why I would like to be clear on this... and hence I ask once again. Do they have formal authority (if so, how) to grant certificates or endorse people as certified professionals?
     
  9. jimnagrom

    jimnagrom New Member

    Re: also

    I'm going to let someone else address this.
     
  10. -kevin-

    -kevin- Resident Redneck

    Re: Re: Re: also

    OEMs maintain intellectual and property rights with regard to their respective products/services. In the U.S. the United States Code and other laws protect these rights.

    Your question merits some discussion since it broaches areas outside of the normal educational accreditation. Many OEMs offer CEUs (Continuing Education Unit) or CLPs (Continuous Learning Point), some of these can carry academic weight and certifications to various levels on their products or services. In many instances certifications have been accepted in industry and in fact have received ISO certification (PMP, CISSP).

    for example;

    PMI is chartered and incorporated under the laws of Pennsylvania.
    Within their approved bylaws the following:

    "Article II, 2, i

    i. To identify, develop, foster, and maintain professional, practice, ethical, credentialing and accreditation standards and principles."

    Note the use of "credentialing". Perhaps some of the legally informed can shed a better light.

    Regards,
     
  11. Marylars

    Marylars New Member

    You mentioned a brainbench HR certification, but I'd not bother with it unless you were using it as a warm-up to take one of the recognized exams.

    The information below is taken from the following website and gives a pretty good overview of the certifications that have widespread credibility in the US.

    http://www.hrmguide.co.uk/hrm/chap1/ch1-links5a.htm

     
  12. CoachTurner

    CoachTurner Member

    What follows is my understanding of the issue -- I am not an attorney.

    Yes and no. Many of these companies are the creators of the products they offer certification for or were contracted to develop training by the creator. As the creator of the product, they seem to have the "right" to also create the training and "credentialing" related to their product. A good example is Microsoft and their certification programs.

    Some credentials are issued by "self regulating governing bodies" or professional associations. Their authority to do this comes solely from their own organizational documents. An example is the American Society for Clinical Pathology (certifies Medical Lab Techs). Many such organizations are even created as for-profit businesses. Many are very well respected -- others are a giant joke.

    BrainBench falls into the category of a for-profit venture. They are not granted any authority of the government to write and administer tests and certifications because what they offer is not "a degree". Now, they may face some regulation when it comes to terminology. Adding the words "certified" and "accountant" is not generally allowed in most states except by the state itself. There are many examples of this -- Registered Nurse, Professional Engineer, etc... So long as these companies do not step over the line into state regulated professions, they are generally free to issue whatever "certifications" they wish.

    Then we have the state regulated professions. These are governed by state boards such as your state Real Estate Licensing Board. These include certification of Paramedics, teachers, counselors, architects, etc.... The list of state regulated professions varies from state-to-state. In South Carolina, one must have a license issued by the state to perform a message -- in many other states only a shingle and a table is required.

    The credibility of any credential rests with the value it has to the holder. That Microsoft has no specified government authority to certify systems engineers doesn't diminish the value of that MCSE certification in the least.

    In some cases, professional association certification has more value than state certification. Medical Doctors are an example -- the state licenses the MD to practice but further specialty certification by an organization that is not the state creates many more dollars for Doc.

    As for BrainBench -- I've used it as a diagnostic and it has served me well. I hold the Trainer job role certification that was not easy to get. For the most part, it simply verified my understanding of the KSAs required in the field. I've never seen a job announcement specify "BrainBench Certified Trainer" though -- I've seen many require a BA/BS or an MA/MEd or a product specific certification such as MCT or WebCT Certified Trainer.
     
  13. dis.funk.sh.null

    dis.funk.sh.null New Member

    Excellent information

    Thankyou so much for your input on this issue guys! I have gained a lot of understanding about this.
     

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