Shelter-in-place orders have changed, postponed, and cancelled plans worldwide. These circumstances can be a particularly challenging time for students looking for jobs and internships.
Instead of worrying about a gap in your resume, now’s the perfect time to pursue a certification. We asked iSchool faculty to share their best recommendations for certifications, specializations, and courses that students can take now and over the summer. Here’s what they said.
Library Science
Arrangement & Description Certificate
Recommended by Jian Qin, Professor and Director of the Library and InformationScience program
Digital Archives Specialist Certificate
Recommended by Jian Qin, Professor and Director of the Library and InformationScience program
Disaster Information Specialist Program
Recommended by Beth Patin, Assistant Professor
Foundational Skills
Information Technology Infrastructure Library (ITIL) Foundation Certification
Recommended by Jeff Fouts, Assistant Director of Career Services
Project Management Institute
- Certified Associate in Project Management (CAPM)*
- PMI Agile Certified Practitioner (PMI-ACP)
- PMI Professional in Business Analysis (PMI-PBA)
Recommended by John Stinnett, Senior Adjunct Professor; Mark Borte, Senior Adjunct Professor; Jamie Stewart, Senior Adjunct Professor
Hiring managers often look for PMI certifications because they complement technical certifications. These certifications can be taken online, rather than a testing center, and the training typically takes two days. For CAPM, the iSchool offers exam preparation courses every semester.
Security and Privacy
CISSP (Certified Information Systems Security Professional)
Recommended by Daniel Smith, Adjunct Professor
CISSP is needed for most government and private sector IT and cyber positions.
CompTIA Security+
Recommended by Dave Molta, Associate Professor of Practice
Security+ addresses risk management and security policy, which are non-technical topics that security professionals need to understand. Additionally, the iSchool offers exam preparation courses for Security+ each semester.
International Association of Privacy Professionals
Recommended by Keith Clayton, Adjunct Professor
IAPP certifications have no prerequisites and offer specialties in regulations, policy, technology, or compliance management.
Red Hat Certified Systems Administrator (RHCSA)
Recommended by Daniel Smith, Adjunct Professor
Data and Analytics
Certified Analytics Professional (CAP) certification
Recommended by Jason Dedrick, Professor
Excel MOS Certification
Recommended by Jeff Fouts
The Excel Training and Certification Program is free to all students, faculty and staff of the iSchool.
Facebook for Business 200-101: Facebook Certified Marketing Science Professional
Recommended by Jason Ryan, Adjunct Professor
This certification focuses on data, insight, and measurement, making it perfect for iSchool students.
Google Analytics Courses
Recommended by Jason Ryan
International Institute of Business Analysis
Recommended by Gregory Zink, Adjunct Professor
Microsoft Certified: Power Platform Fundamentals
Recommended by Raj Dewan, Dean of the School of Information Studies
Tableau Certifications
Recommended by Raj Dewan
Networking and Cloud
Amazon and AWS Certifications
Recommended by Jeff Fouts; Radhika Garg, Assistant Professor; Lee McKnight, Associate Professor; Carlos Caicedo, Associate Professor
According to Lee McKnight, “If an iSchool student even just states on their resume they are working on (an AWS) certification, they will be noticed.”
Cisco Certified Network Associate (CCNA)
Recommended by Jeff Fouts
Google Certified Professional Cloud Architect
Recommended by Jeff Fouts
Microsoft Certified: Azure Fundamentals
Recommended by Lee McKnight, Associate Professor
This is the first in Microsoft’s Azure certifications. Students who want to learn beyond the basics can pursue Azure Data or Azure AI.
We want to hear from you! If you have any suggestions and recommendations on certifications relevant to iSchool students, let us know in the comments below.
by Jessica Zuk
