The holy grail of certifications?

[groovicus]

This is a stupid question, but that's what happens when I have too much time on my hands...but here goes..

What is the absolute most elite of certifications one can get? I know pretty much anybody can get their A+ cert, heck, after looking through the study guide, I think I could even pass it, and I don't know crap...

When I meet a 4 star general, I know he/she has paid their dues, and has put their time in, and no matter what I think of them, they deserve my respect...

Using that analogy, I'm wondering what the certification equivalent of a 4 star general would be?

[cheyenne1212]

I'd say if you could get all the Cisco exams passed, and all the *nix certs done then you would be a pretty knowledgeable computer dude.

However, just because you have boucous of certs doesn't mean that you know it. Anyone can past a test, but not everyone can actually configure something the correct way.

[phantomj104]

Hello,

I was allways impressed with the MCSE , But Personally I think that Anyone who has put a serious effort into any reputable certification, passing or not , deserves at least some respect , and I only have a PhD.

Cheers and regards

[noODle]

Using that analogy, I'm wondering what the certification equivalent of a 4 star general would be?

I doubt one becomes a 4 star general on a single certification.

The allready mentioned Cisco cert would look pretty nice I guess as are the sans certifications (http://www.sans.org/)
A 'chief hacking officer' imo would also have an over-avarage understanding of various operating systems.
MCSE is nice but is not aimed at security (even though there are some security exams you can take).

Conclusion:
I dont think there is a single certification that would make you a 4 star hacker

[D0pp139an93r]

IMHO the holy grail of certs would be the CCIE, just because of what is required to obtain it. But it's still not going to make you a 4 star hacker unless you only plan to hack Cisco stuff.

Like Cheyenne said, anyone can pass a test, but you need to understand the material, not just memorize it. I know people who have an assload of certs who probably couldn't configure a home LAN without 2 books and 3 people helping. I also know a highschool dropout who knows Linux as well as Torvalds (well, almost as well...).