Welcome SCJP Candidate#

I presume that you've reached this page because you are a bored SL-275 course participant. If you got here by some other devious route, I'd love to hear how!

SL-275 and SCJP#

Oracle's brochureware tells us that SL-275 "Java Programming Language" is "Recommended Training and Preparation" for the Sun Certified Java Programmer certification. Permit me to express my skepticism!

I've only been teaching SL-275 since 1996, so what do I know?

The truth is that, whilst SL-275 is a great cram-course for learning Java Programming if you already know how to program in some other OO language, it is hopelessly inadequate for preparing anybody for the SCJP exam.

Get one of the books. There are a couple of good ones. Contact me for suggestions if google/amazon fail you.

Why SCJP?#

Remember my assumption about how you reached this page? (At the top of the page.)

So you're bored with the course, and probably justifiably pissed off that you've paid good money (or somebody has!) to attend a course that does not achieve its purported aim. If you think you're frustrated, consider for a moment how frustrating it is for an instructor who really cares about delivering amazing quality courses, and who really want to help developers achieve their learning goals...

I have frequently been asked, bu such course participants, whether certification is really worth the expense and effort; whether (in my experience) the industry really values certification very much.

In truth, the answer has to depend on just who in the industry we're talking about. For a company wanting to employ Java developers, it seems to me that SCJP and similar certificates are not terribly valuable. They're much more interested in how good a developer you are, and they're likely to find this out in the form of programming quizzes and practical design exercises rather than relying on any certificates you might possess.

SCJP and similar certificates are helpful to headhunters, since they frequently have little or no idea just what the real technical requirements are, so a checkbox asking "Do you have Certificate X?" is quite a handy crutch to them.

The one kind of employer for whom certification is very useful is the Bodyshop; companies that employ developers and contract them out to their clients. In these situations it really is helpful for their marketing department to be able to say "All our developers have Sun Certification." Sounds impressive without committing anybody to anything.

It all sounds rather depressing, doesn't it?

The Upside#

There is a ray of light, though. The fact that you are willing to invest the effort required to obtain a certification means that you are very likely someone who actually cares about quality in software design; in the craftsmanship of code.

You've found the right place. Our JavaJediProgramme, ObjectOrientedSoftwareAnalysisAndDesign and AdvancedArchitectsWorkshop were developed for you. Now it's up to you to persuade your manager that attending those courses will not only make you a better programmer, but will also reduce software development costs, time to market, improve product synergies and make them sexier, wealthier and more fun to be with.

Seriously, though... these courses only for you if you're as passionate about software development as we are. Get in touch with us if you need help justifying the training to your employer.

Failing that, send your manager on an OOTechnologyForManagers course. They might become dangerously clueful!