Re: lasses needed for job??

----- Original Message -----
From: Jim Tom Polk <jtpolk(at)texas.net>
[cruelly snipped]
> > Here is my question: is it worth paying money for an online course if I
want
> > to get a job doing this or can I learn it on my own from books, free
> > tutorials, etc.??  I don't want to spend the $75 if I don't have to as
I
> > *really* can't afford it being a full-time student living on loans.
>
> > Do employers take the certificates from these online courses seriously?
>
> Savvy employers will look at your work, however, -->clients<-- love
> having that certificate on the wall.
>
> A prospective employer will probably look at your work first, then at
> any certificates, then at your work last. ''Oh, yeah, you like my work,
> but I also took some course and have some certificates''.
>
> Sounds good. But that will probably be a bit down the road. Build a good
> home page first.

Just to add to what Jim said, which I entirely agree with -

Being able to demonstrate examples of your work is the most important thing
in this business.  However if you apply for a job that has a specialist
requirement, then being able to demonstrate an interest in that area might
just give you the edge over other candidates, and having taken a course
dealing with that specialism might just do that.

Like so many others here, I taught myself HTML, Javascript, CSS, etc from
books and online tutorials, articles, etc.  I started in response to a
request at work to create a dept website on the company intranet.  But I
developed an interest in accessibility issues, and, while working to make
my personal website as accessible as possible, trying out various
techniques I read about, I took the HWG class on Accessibility last summer.
Then the company hit some financial rocks, and I was given several months
notice that my contract would terminate at the end of February this year.
I heard about a website editor position with a charity for the blind and
visually impaired, and applied.  The most important thing from their point
of view was proven experience in web design and coding, and they wanted to
be able to view examples of candidates work online (I put together a
"sampler" from the work I'd done on the intranet, since they couldn't go in
and view it directly).  However, given their focus on issues affecting
blind and visually impaired people, I mentioned in my application that I'd
taken the HWG Accessibility class, and they did ask some questions about
the course when I went for interview - it obviously counted for something
in their eyes.  I don't think, though, that they were bothered about
whether it was online or not - I think it simply demonstrated that I was
serious in my interest in accessibility issues, and hadn't simply
"discovered" an interest in the issue when I applied for their job :-).
However I'm quite sure that if I hadn't been able to *show* what I had
already done, it wouldn't have mattered much how many (or few) courses I'd
taken.

So I'd say don't take courses (online or otherwise) just for the sake of
it, particularly if you're the sort of person who is able to learn from
books, reading, and trying things out.  But don't dismiss them either - in
the right circumstances, they can be useful additions to a portfolio of
work.

Regards,
Donna

PS.  I missed getting the job I applied for by a hairsbreadth, but they've
offered me contract work in the meantime, and have proposed that I consider
another job that is also open, which deals much more specifically with
promoting web accessibility, which is another reason I reckon they took
note of me having taken that Accessibility course!  :-)
--
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