Top 5 IT certifications for 2011

An IT certification is one of the best and easiest ways of getting into the IT job market. Though there has been some decline in premium paid for IT certifications there are some specialties that still command good money. As the economy leaves bad times behind and chances of a double dip recession look bleak, IT recruitment will definitely pick up from next year. Here we detail five of the hottest IT certifications for 2011. 1. Microsoft certified technology specialist Microsoft is still the most dominant player in the desktop market. In September 2010, NetMarketShare showed Windows at 91.08% of the global operating system market. Microsoft has seen a renewed interest in its new operating system Windows 7. In July, Windows 7 surpassed Windows vista in global usage and around 20% of Microsoft users have already shifted to Windows 7. Gartner Inc estimates that 250 million PC’s will be migrated to windows 7 over the next few years and also predicted an acute shortfall in qualified IT staffers to handle Windows 7 migration. A MCTS program with a specialization in configuring and deploying Windows 7 can prepare you for these opportunities. 2. VMware Certified Professional Cloud is transforming IT. Virtualization technology is growing with most of the companies but lack of expertise in this field is a cause of worry for majority of them. “Cloud services have a huge potential and the demand for professionals will be equally high in the coming years" says Nitin Khanapurkar, executive director (advisory) KPMG, who works in the domain of cloud computing. Global cloud computing market is expected to be over $121.1 billion by 2015 growing at a CAGR of 26.2%. 3. Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP) IT security professionals had an extremely smooth sailing during the bad times. While IT budgets worldwide came down, companies fearing cyber attacks pushed IT security spending up during recession. The market is further expected to grow at over 12% YoY for next 3 years. The Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP) has become one of the most important certifications as employers look this as a validation of candidate’s skills for this profession. 4. Project Management Professional (PMP) Certification The number of IT project management related job opportunities has been down lately but because of a restricted supply of the quality job seekers, it is still a candidate driven market. With economy out of recession there will be a strong demand for candidates with awareness of formal tools and techniques of project management. CWJobs.co.uk, a UK job board specializing in IT recruitment has more than 420 IT project manager vacancies listed on their website currently. 5. Network + The only basic certification on our list, but still one of the most important. Every IT professional must know what drives an organization’s IT infrastructure whether it’s Linux, Apple or Windows. Network+ certifies networking technicians with knowledge in the networking domain. It has consistently been a high-in-demand certification in the networking sector. Totaljobs salary checker data shows a healthy increase in average IT Networking salaries signifying a good demand for qualified professionals. Vishal Sagar is a freelance IT consultant.