Hello all,
I agree 100% that C programming should not be a necessary skill for
a junior admin level (though it is possible that some firm familiarity
with a scripting system -- ie, a shell -- is a requirement).
Having a separate exam for programming is possible, though IMO
programing is difficult to quantifiably certify since there is so much
of a creative element to it. Doing a fill-in-the-blank or multiple
choice based exam, the best that may be _reliably_ hoped for is to test
someone on familiarity with tools, interfaces and processes. Anything
more (such as evaluation of candidate code samples) will be very labour
intensive and accordingly both more expensive to deliver and grade and
less scalable.
I would also add one other moderately off-topic plea while I'm at it:
Piotr Klein wrote:
You are talking about "System Engineer" not "SysAdmin"
This is my personal opinion, but I would URGE this group to shun any
certification titles that use the word "engineer".
Engineering is a university-level discipline involving multiple-year
programs, and in most areas engineers are regulated professionals with
government recognition. What is currently known in the IT certification world
as "Systems Engineer" (in the mode of CNE or MCSE or RHCE) is a corruption
of the use of the term of "engineer".
Even the field of Software Engineering, as a branch of conventional
engineering, is somewhat controversial -- but even that is a far cry
from what is called a "engineer" according to many current IT
certifications.
Some professional engineering societies have even gone to court over the
issue:
http://www.cips.ca/news/national/news.asp?aID=1852
In other words, IT certification bodies are aware of the conflict yet
continue to do it. I beg the BSD group not to compound this error.
- Evan
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