Top 21 Certifications to do in 2021
Getting yourself certified for a particular skill set is the new trend for getting a job. Many companies, both big and small, actively look for employees who have done a specific certification course and are proficient in that particular course. Why? Because job roles have become clearer nowadays, companies want their employees to take on a specific part of their organization.
Apart from this, there are many other benefits of doing a certification course. Many people take these courses to upgrade their skill set or add a new skill to their existing portfolio. Some people take these courses to change their careers and to start working in a new industrial line.
No matter what your reason is, doing a certification is profitable in many ways. You can keep learning new things while improving your range of skills and career options. However, it is also essential to know what courses to do to gain value. If you do a course that does not have any industrial value, it may prove a waste of time.
To help you out, we have researched and outlined the top twenty-one certifications that both beginners and experienced can do in the year 2021. These certification courses are in high demand and may help you land a well-paying job if done from the right source.
Best Certifications to do in 2021
Cybersecurity
Cybersecurity professionals are one of the most sought after in the IT industry, especially amid a pandemic that promotes contactless transactions. From software systems and networks to data centers, the opportunities are limitless.
A few of the most popular career paths open would be Security Architect, Information Security Analyst, Penetration Tester and Information Security Officer. Beginners also have many career opportunities ranging from database/web/systems/network administrator to IT technicians and computer engineers.
The average pay in first world countries would be around $90,000 per annum, with management-level jobs paying even higher.
Artificial Intelligence (AI)
AI is a field with much broader spectrums, including careers like Machine Learning, Deep Learning, and Data Sciences. It would require one to know essential math topics (statistics, probability, algorithms, calculus, and algebra) and the right instinct in programming, logic, and efficiency.
AI is the future as more and more automation is being involved in our everyday life, and there will not be any shortage of opportunities in the future. The average salary ranges from $75,000 to $124,000 yearly, the pay increasing with experience and specialization in sub courses.
Machine Learning Engineer
Machine learning is a type of Artificial Intelligence in which the algorithms are made more efficient. Due to its high requirement, universities like Stanford and MIT also have provisions for learning and updating online platforms’ skills.
Its career opportunities include Data Analyst/Scientist, Computational Linguist, and Business/Private Intelligence Developer. All kinds of companies and corporations established in any sector would require Developers for their IT divisions. The average pay of a machine learning engineer is $146,085, a 350% increase since the past five years, with scope for so much more.
Web Development
Web developers are behind the scenes professionals who work on setting up and ensuring the glitch-free working of websites on the world wide web or an intranet (private networks). It would require the knowledge of coding/programming languages and the basics of forming algorithms. It also gives you a basic understanding of HTML, CSS, and JavaScript.
The median pay for a beginner starts from $64,000 per year to $110,000 for a senior, with an average hourly rate being $44.
Cloud Solution Architect
A cloud architect is an IT professional who specializes in cloud computing strategies. They include jobs like cloud management and monitoring and developing support for application architecture. It would also require a good knowledge of the current market requirement to suit its role in correspondence to the needs.
Amazon is one of the top companies on the constant lookout for better and competent cloud architects aside from others like Google, IBM, Verizon, and many more.
Cloud architects and engineers are still very much necessary, with their median salary being $127,000 per year.
Salesforce
Salesforce courses teach you to manage and develop its cloud-based computing system to better suit clients’ requirements and market demand. It provides you with top digital skills to boost your marketing career through management courses other than web and software developments.
Its average earnings start around $70,000 per year and is still the No.1 player in administrative management, with Oracle, SAP, and Adobe being its biggest competitors.
Big Data
A prominent data engineer/analyst or a Data Scientist is a person who analyses and knows how to manage vast amounts of data and can get quick and efficient results from it. The average salary for a Data Engineer ranges from $110,00 to $155,000, depending on the skill.
The job specifications vary from creating subfolders to and from large pools of information and developing tools and pipelines for information flow. It is the fastest-growing job in the technology sector with over 50% growth in vacancies in the past one year.
Project Management
More than developers and technicians, there is a higher demand for competent project managers who can apply the processes, skills, knowledge, and methods to manage a project and achieve the goals in time. Deals and projects provided in this course assure you efficiency and practical experience, which is the project manager’s trade point.
Being certified in this field gives your clients the guarantee of your communication, adaptability, collaboration, and organizational skills. The average salary ranges from $93,000 to $140,000, depending on the industry and experience. It is also one of the in-demand and high paying services with around a 23% increase in the previous year alone.
IT Service Management (ITSM)
ITSM enables the understanding and support behind the creators, developers, and managers of the IT sector. Professionals in this role plan, operate, control, and deliver all IT related services. Doing this course can give you a direct insight into the IT industry and significantly improve your professional career.
It has a global market of USD 1.92 billion and, with its current growth pattern, is expected to reach around USD 4.6 billion by 2026.
DevOps
DevOps engineers bridge the gap between software developers and IT operators. It requires constant evolvement and improvisation of products, for which they have to design, build, and test with more incredible speed and efficiency.
DevOps engineers earn an average of $95,000 per year, even as big as $130,000 at market-hot spot locations. It is also one of the most popular titles, with Linked In declaring it as the most recruited role after a growth of 26% on its net value.
You can find plenty of online organizations offering certification courses in DevOps. Some of the best sources include Edureka, Udemy, and Simplilearn. Make sure to do enough research before you get enrolled in this course and check the value and rating of the certification courses available to get the best out of it.
Data Science
Data science refers to data mining services using machine learning algorithms to design and develop required models to pool data. Their careers are closely related to those of system developers and architects who require these data sources.
Companies are very eager to collect more data as its efficient management results in trend spotting and increases their brand value. And hence, it is a very appealing and lucrative job option that pays around $116,000 per year. All big MNCs like Apple, Oracle, Microsoft, and Walmart are always competing to recruit data scientists.
Digital Marketing
Digit marketing is a job that requires you to understand the current trends on the internet and social media to promote the products and services authentically and uniquely that appeals to customers in a concise window of time. Digital Marketers have a wide range of responsibilities and often use platforms like Google Ads, Social Media Ads, and other promotional tools to reach their marketing goals.
To develop such marketing strategies, analyzing the target audience, and selecting the channel or platform to market is essential. This job role requires analyzing data and drawing insights, which is what the courses teach.
An experienced digital marketer earns around $73,000 per year and has the opportunity to explore a wide range of career options. Digital Marketers are highly in-demand, and many big-name companies are actively looking for employees who can market their products digitally and generate revenue through these techniques.
Database Admin
They are in charge of creating, managing, and maintaining databases that are compatible and necessary for the companies. Their job would also be to supervise the planning, design, installation, performance, and security departments and make sure they operate smoothly. A certified database administrator (DBA) gets paid 19% more than an average employee, and the pay scale goes up with experience, the median being $101,500 per year. IBM, Microsoft, and Oracle also provide certifications giving room for recruitment later on.
Network Engineer
Developing and maintaining the connectivity between networks of an organization or between different organizations lies with the network engineer. It would also involve the access and implementation of policies and security of the network.
Network Engineering is also a high demand profession with a projected growth of 6.5% over the next ten years. As the organizations and their IT sectors keep expanding, so is their need for network engineers. The mean salary of network engineers averages from $76,000 to $100,900 per year based on their experience.
Agile & SCRUM
Agile is a well organized and successfully implemented software methodology that allows swift changes from developers to management. Scrum is the most popular and profitable agile framework that enables the development of complex products, emphasizing software development.
These skills can be a huge advantage that can help you through filtering a skilled project/team manager. It also increases the value of an individual/company as a skill set. Companies like 3M, IBM, Google, and Spotify are among those that have profited a lot due to the focus on Agile Scrum training.
Risk and Information System Control
Certification in Risk and Information System Control (CRISC) is a program that recognizes your skills and training in IT risk management. It is a distinguishing mark that gives your employer the necessary assurance on a person’s knowledge and practical experience in the financial sector and enterprises.
These certifications take you through the process of risk assessment without requiring any prior knowledge, and the average salary of an analyst certified with CRISC would be around $89,000 per year.
Microsoft Azure
Azure is a computer application that provides cloud computing services designed and developed by Microsoft. Microsoft Azure would help individuals looking to progress their careers and be a different asset to an organization. Apart from that, it also would be a good investment for people looking to improve their skill sets or considering a new start/career change.
Administrators/analysts with the Microsoft Azure certification have an average paying salary of $126,000, one of the top 15 paying IT certifications of Forbes 2020.
Google Ads Course
The accreditation offered by Google Ads certification is by far few of the most useful and high-paying ones for both a professional and corporate career path, as well as that for a freelancer. It improves the proficiency of individuals in basic and advanced aspects of Google Ads through digital advertising platforms.
The best part about this is that you can do this specifically for free from Google Skillshop. Even though the course is open, the certification value is very high since Google designs the certification course.
Apart from this, lots of universities offer these courses online like Udemy and Wordstream. It is effortless to learn quickly, and even beginners without any knowledge in the related fields can earn a fair amount. At the same time, experienced people can make an average income of $42,000 a year.
Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
SEO is the practice of enhancing the necessary quality and quantity traffic required for websites to rank on Search Engine Ranking Pages (SERPs). It works its ways around content based on keywords to help Search Engine algorithms display the website on top of search results.
Doing an SEO certification will help you understand SEO tools such as Google Analytics, Search Console, and SEO Analysers. Average SEO professionals make $81,000 per year either individually or through service-oriented third parties individuals/companies. It is an excellent option for beginners and freelancers due to the course’s versatile and raw nature.
UI/UX Designing
A UI/UX designer’s job is to create a user-friendly interface for applications and devices. It is a popular career choice due to its flexible and impactful nature of employment. Through this course, you can learn how to create mobile app designs, animated prototypes, and mockups using Sketch, Figma, and other tools.
You can even understand other essential factors like the difference between iOS and Android app designs and learn skills like wireframing, coding, interactive designing, UI prototyping, and research. A UI/UX designer’s average salary is around $60,000 to $113,000 per year based on experience and skills.
There are plenty of job opportunities available for UI/UX designers. Many top companies dealing with website and application development are actively looking for talented UI/UX designers and may even offer a well-paying package.
Animation and Multimedia
This certification is also a top-rated and celebrated course and can get you a high payment and impact job. The training usually includes filmmaking techniques, storyboarding, 2D and 3D animation, cartooning styles, colors, and compositions.
This certification also offers a wide range of career opportunities in the advertising, film, television, and gaming sectors. Although the starting pay may not be very high, you might be eligible for jobs with an average salary of around $70,000 per year in top tier companies as you gain experience.
Conclusion
All the certification courses mentioned in this article are currently top industrial choices. Getting certified through these courses will help you improve your skill profile and land you jobs in big-name companies with high salary packages.
However, make sure that you take these courses from a good source. Getting certified from a low-rated organization may not give you the expected exposure. Some of the right places to choose certification courses include MIT Open Courseware, Coursera, EDx and other similar reputed online/offline organizations.
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