Hello,
I am a freelance software engineer coming from a Java / DevOps / Cloud background. I take an interest in learning COBOL and Mainframe as they seem to be quite interesting skills to have for me on the side. They could prove useful for example in cloud migration projects of Mainframe systems.
I completed one Coursera course and I’m considering taking the programming course. I am thinking however, whether completing the programming course will be enough to convince clients later that I am competent enough in COBOL. Often clients will either want to see practical experience or an actual certification as “proof” of competence. Although practical experience is best, it is difficult to get this experience if no one wants to offer you an opportunity because they often require you to have experience already. Or you’d have to join an entry-level role with a junior salary, and also at the expense of your other skills which you’d probably prefer to keep practising.
I was therefore wondering a certification program could be introduced for COBOL. With some high-quality certifications, developers of any seniority could study for them on the side while working their current jobs, and prove that they have the skills and competence to partake in COBOL/Mainframe projects. These certifications should then allow them to bypass the requirement for practical experience.
A certification program setup could for example look like this:
- COBOL Entry-level Developer: Know how to write basic COBOL programs and understand Mainframe concepts
- COBOL Associate Developer: Intermediate topics
- COBOL Professional Developer: Advanced topics
Exams should be paid for and be proctored. And they should be hard, so that the certifications carry actual value. Multiple-choice questions are fine, the certification should ideally have lifetime validity. Developers can then prepare with dedicated certification-preparation courses that are either free or available for a low price (< $100).
I personally think this could be helpful to entice developers to learn COBOL, and also prove that they learned something with an objective measurement in the form of an exam. For employers or clients it would then also be easier to assess a developer’s skill level if he has an industry-recognized valuable certification on a certain level.
What do you think about this idea?