Associate Cert: Friend or Foe?
Salesforce released the Certified Associate certification in September 2022. It's an entry level exam for those preparing for the Administrator cert or end users wanting to validate their Salesforce knowledge. Salesforce recently had a promotion giving away a free exam code to take the Associate exam. It was one of their regular exam codes, so able to use for discounts on other exams too. There has been a ton of people on social media flock to take the Associate exam; some new individuals getting their first Salesforce certification & some long time Salesforce technicians with many certifications already under their belt. Of course, everyone posting their new certification badge & bragging about their latest accomplishments. There have also been posts complaining about the Associate certification, some very aggressively with responses back very passionate. That is one thing about the Salesforce Ohana community that I love. It's a passionate group of individuals pursuing their Salesforce goals. Someone will always cheer you on & celebrate your successes, but if negativity comes up they also call one out on it.
It seems like every month or so someone gets frustrated about something related to Salesforce certification, posts a controversal post & people lose their minds. This month, it was someone posting:
"Associate certs are ridiculous... there I said it. Grown-ass professionals proudly announcing the entry-level exam (nothing against entry levels), is like a Civil engineer winning a Kindergarden sandcastle contest." Original Post
He might as well lit a match & tossed it into a barn full of hay. With 131 responses in 24 hours & counting, I'm surprised it wasn't picked up by LinkedIn as a trending topic. I've seen numerous posts outside of the original one in response to it as well. My thoughts on it?
If someone wants to get the Associate exam, go for it!
It is not my right to tell someone they can or cannot do something. It is their own decision to make.
For me personally, I am not interested in pursuing the Associate cert. I don't care that it is free. I don't care that someone received 100% on it in less than 15 minutes. I don't care that the CTA's are making it a game as to how fast someone can complete it with the most correct.
I do not feel that it would be beneficial for me to get.
I also feel that I'm beyond that stage now. It doesn't mean I'm better than anyone, but means I've surpassed that level in the Salesforce "Super Mario Brothers game" of my career. The Associate cert is an entry level exam in prep for Administrator. Nothing wrong with it. If it had been around before I took my Administrator exam, I would have taken it but Associate cert wasn't around. I have other goals I want to accomplish & Associate cert isn't one of them.
Everyone's Salesforce career journey is different. Be unique. Be you. And most of all...
Be kind!