The entire Java technology is developed and maintained by the Oracle Corporation, and Oracle Java Certification is a recognition by the Official Oracle Corporation. The certification that you receive from Oracle Corporation states that you have acquired quality, comprehensive and industry standard skills and knowledge on one of the Java Technologies. It can be on anything like Core Java, Java SE or Java EE as well. This is the certificate that can acknowledge that you will be able to develop high-quality Java applications using the technology in which you are certified.
You will be able to enjoy a number of benefits when you are an Oracle Java certified professional. As you are getting the right knowledge of the technology, you will pain confidence, and hence your productivity also increases. There is a lot of competition in the market, where you will be able to stand out. Many people just rely on their programming skills and do no go for any kind of certification. Most of the employers also look for professionals with a good number of years in programming. But as a certified employee adds credit to the company as well, most of the companies are also looking for professionals who are Oracle Java Certified. So, being certified fetches you a number of opportunities.
Levels of Oracle Java Certification
There are, basically, four different levels of Oracle Java Certification. Depending on the level that suits your requirement at your workplace, you will have to choose the certifications.
- OCA (Associate);
- OCP (Professional);
- OCE (Expert);
- OCM (Master).
OCA – Oracle Certified Associate: Java SE Associate Level
If you just got started with Java, then taking OCAJP or Oracle Certified Associate Java Programmer I is a good startup. You will be able to acquire good knowledge about the subject, and that is going to be a good start to your career as a Java Programmer. You will be able to develop software and applications using Java Technology now. You again have different versions of the same Java Certification in Java SE Associate Level like Junior Associate or Novice level, Java SE 7 Programmer, Java SE 8 Programmer, Java SE 6 or SE 5 level. The number of questions for each exam differs, but at all the levels you will have multiple choice questions only. As you are moving upwards from the Junior Associate level, clearing the previous level exam is the prerequisite.
OCP – Oracle Certified Professional – Java SE Professional Level
In order to move further in your career as a Java Programmer and to fetch better opportunities from the employers, you will have to take the next level of certification, and that is professional level from associate level. You will be able to take this level of certification only if you are an associate level certified professional. You have different versions of the same test as OCPJP SE 8, OCPJP SE 7 and OCPJP SE 6.
OCE – Oracle Certified Expert – Java EE Expert Level
The next level of certification as an Oracle Java Certification practice Test professional is an Oracle Certified Expert. In this exam, you will be tested in the Java EE technology. You have a list of certifications available in this level, and each is for a different Java technology.
- OCEJWCD (Oracle Certified Expert, Java EE Web Component Developer);
- OCEJPAD (Oracle Certified Expert, Java Persistence API Developer);
- OCEEJBD (Oracle Certified Expert, Java EE Enterprise Java Beans Developer);
- OCEJWSD (Oracle Certified Expert, Java EE Web Services Developer);
- OCEJSFD (Oracle Certified Expert, Java Server Faces Developer).
To advance in your Java career, these Expert level certifications play an important role. This is the best certification for those who are having good knowledge about the Enterprise edition in Java and also having real time experience in developing web applications. If you are also an application development framework developer, then this is going to be an added advantage for growth in your career.
OCM – Oracle Certified Master
In the Oracle Java Certification, this is going to be the last level. If you are able to clear the exam of Oracle Certified Master level exam, then you will be able to set a great career path for yourself. Oracle Certified Master, Java EE Enterprise Architect (OCMJEA) is the certification that you need to take. You need to complete at least one of the Oracle Java Certifications. You will have an exam for 60 multiple choice questions, and you need to get at least 71 percent to pass the exam and get your certificate.
Preparation and Exam
Java is definitely not a subject which can be learned without practice and so are the exams. You need to make sure that all your basics are clear in the respective modules for each level. It is just going to be multiple choice questions, but the difficulty level is definitely going to increase as your level of certification increases. So, you need to make sure that you are preparing from the right source. There is a number of preparation dumps available online and reading just those dumps can help you clear the exam. But that may not help you all the time. It is very important that you refer to the right source at the initial stage and you can go with the dumps at the end like before you give the exam.
Conclusion
If you are an aspirant to make a career in Java technology as a developer, then this certificate can be an entry pass for you if you do not have any experience on real projects. Most of the employers rely on these certificates than the real-time experience as they can train their employees according to their real-time requirements. So, if you are good at your basics in Java, then you can get started with the Junior level associate exam.
