When Oracle initially created its certification program, there was one design and abbreviation: Oracle Certified Professional (abbreviated OCP). However, several years ago, the company broke the program into four different levels of certification, each of which has its own title and abbreviation. This article discusses each of the levels and some of the differences between what they mean and what is required to achieve them.
OCA - Oracle Certified Associate
Oracle Certified Specialist is an entry level certificate. Oracle Education focuses on these certificates for people who are simply familiar with Oracle or have experience from one to two years in the test area. For candidates who have achieved this certification without any work experience, the expectation is that they have demonstrated knowledge of basic principles and can be satisfactorily performed under supervision.
OCA certificates usually require only that the candidate passes two exams and does not have additional requirements. Tests for OCA certificates usually cover a wide range of topics for reducing depth. The purpose of the exams is to ensure that candidates have a basic understanding of the characteristics in the test area and how to apply them.
OCP - Oracle Certified Specialist
The Oracle Certified Professional design is the next step for candidates who have achieved OCA certification. Oracle Education targets these certificates to people with three to five years of experience working with Oracle in the test area, who can perform most of the operations without supervision. Certification is not intended for candidates with no experience with Oracle. Candidates who have done this will demonstrate a lack of knowledge of the fundamentals in the certified field and can work without supervision.
OCP certificates are based on the Oracle Certified Partner level and require a candidate to pass one or two exams outside of the OCA requirement. Some OCP certificates also have practical training requirements. Tests for OCP-level certificates, as a rule, slightly reduce the range of topics and require more in-depth knowledge to answer. The purpose of the exams is to ensure that candidates have a thorough understanding of the subjects being tested and can successfully use them.
OCE - Oracle Certified Expert
The design of Oracle Certified Expert is a weird person. In a sense, this is the next step up from the OCP level, but it is outside the hierarchy of certificates in essence. OCE examinations are aimed at niche areas of expertise. They are designed to show a high degree of proficiency in a very narrow subject area. These certificates help to determine the field of specialization of the candidate. This is not a step in the OCA-OCP-OCM level, but it helps expand the OCA or OCP certification.
OCE certificates require a single test and have no prerequisites or practical training requirements. Tests of expert certificates cover a very narrow area to a considerable depth. The purpose of the tests is to demonstrate that the candidate has significant experience in this field.
OCM - Oracle Certified Master
Oracle Certified Master Designation is the highest level certification offered by Oracle. It builds on the OCP design, requiring the candidate to be an OCP, attending two advanced hands-on training courses and passing a two-day, performance-based practical exam. Oracle Education targets this certification to candidates with a minimum of six years experience in Oracle database administration. OCM certified candidates will demonstrate the ability to administer enterprise-class databases.
The difficulty and cost of the exam plus the cost of the necessary training make it a very rare certificate for people. The owners of this certification are counted after consulting companies and corporations with critical Oracle installations.
Any Oracle certificate is a valuable addition to your resume. However, none of them are isolated, although (perhaps with the exception of OCM), you will find recruiters. Experience, education and other factors play a role in attracting the attention of people who recruit Oracle positions. Getting certification and sitting to wait for job offers to roll in is not a winning strategy.
