October 08, 2008, 1:51 PM — The question at hand: Do vendor specific certification programs need the radio frequency (RF) transmission training or is that more important to the guys who are installing it?
Paul Stewart wrote, in a comment on my last post, that certifications have too many requirements. He added that you don't see Ethernet or T1 certifications, yet wireless certifications are there in the market. Now I'm not saying that Paul is wrong, and I suppose that we are not talking about certifications for cabling like BISCI (which is the only one I am familiar with).
Paul sparked my interest, so I headed on over the the BISCI site, and to my surprise I found yet another Wireless Certification Program. Courses include:
- WD100: Introduction to Wireless
- WD110: Designing Wireless Networks
- WD200: Wireless Design Specialty Review
Looking at the course description I notice that their introduction to wireless looks similar to the CWNA. I can safely say that much of the Introduction to Wireless is in fact covered in my new book, CCNA Wireless: Official Exam Certification Guide, however my book is geared towards Cisco Certifications and the Cisco Unified Wireless Network Architecture.
Which brings me back to my opening question: Who needs to know how RF works? The guys maintaining the network? The guys configuring the Controllers and Access Points (APs)? Or the guys who are wearing a tool belt and rack mounting and hanging APs? My opinion? All of the above.
I mean, who cares where you get certified. BISCI for the installers, Certified Wireless Network Professional (CWNP) for the vendor neutral folks, Cisco CCNA Wireless and CCIE Wireless for those in a Cisco environment. I think that no matter where you get it the information is the same on how RF works and it puts engineers of all sorts on the same page. Installs are done properly, configurations are correct, and troubleshooting will follow suit.
Sound off! What are your thoughts? What certifications do you hold? Do they really matter?
