Amid the current race for getting highly qualified as an HR professional, people around the world go for MBA human resources as a career option. However, because of the global trend of unemployment, human resources as a career has taken a major hit as far as joblessness is concerned. The main trends of unemployed human resources professionals have been those people who although possessing a college degree in human resources were those who didn’t have a professional certification in human resources.
The degree option of human resources seems the most sensible and viable way to have a stable and advancing human resources career because those people who study the profession go through 20 – 30+ courses over a period of 2 – 3 years, whereas those people with human resources certification have to just apply for an exam and then prove their merit in the exam test and they are given the certification through numerous human resources certification vendors globally.
The main difference between certification and a degree in human resources is that certification is usually taken once the person is working in the field and wants to advance his knowledge of the area, a general consensus among employers is that those people having human resources certifications have a very focused and comprehensive knowledge of the human resources function.
But having said this, a global trend of employment for those people who did not even possess an MBA in human resources but had a certification in human resources was greater, they were more desired and more likely to get shortlisted and even hired. So why is this so? The answer is quite simple, while MBA in human resources will cover all the major aspects of business functions, certifications in human resources are only focused and saturated with human resources studies and the functions in human resources, moreover the certification vendors have strong contemporary human resources specialist on their panels who constantly update all the human resources knowledge base based on modern trends, studies, researchers in human resources and publications. Hence all the subject matter is core human resources knowledge.
So the question here is this that whether a person who wants a career in human resources should opt for an MBA in human resources or go for a certification in human resources. Although common sense would suggest that first, a person should get a master’s degree in human resources and then explore the different certifications of human resources but most of the professionals without the MBA degree also need to learn the human resources skills and they prefer to get certification as it can be obtained within much less time than the conventional degree. Furthermore, getting enrolled in the business school requires passing through various steps of the screening process, meeting eligibility criteria, passing SAT, interviews.
Generally, institutes that provide certification in human resources have a quite simple enrollment process without any complications. With rapidly changing markets and new publishing researches every day, institutes providing certification in human resources have to keep up with the introduction of new topics and subjects and update their syllabus according to it.
People often need certifications when they see an opportunity of getting promoted or getting a job and the chances of getting hired by an employer to depends on several factors according to the human resources professionals. However, there are certain things that attract the eye of a recruiter, applicants possessing certification in the latest human resources topics are more likely to get hired. Changes are happening every day and in order to meet the market demands, people are considering the certification courses more than ever thus expanding this sector of education.
Certification definitely holds some weight as it makes the person eligible for expansion from his/her current domain. If a person is working in an organization for more than five years in the same position without being promoted then there are chances of that person getting promoted if he/she acquire certification of some sort and gain new skills that are needed in the company`s expansion. Employers also encourage their employees to learn additional skills through on the job training and workshops, they often present them the offer to bear all the expenses including fee because they know that it would result in improving their employees’ efficiency and effectiveness that would result in increased productivity and help them in achieving organizational goals.
The average time required to complete the certification vary from one to three months and even weeks. Various methods have been introduced to facilitate people who are currently working in an organization and have time management issues.
Technology has helped in reducing the time significantly thus making it easier for the professionals to obtain their desired certification. Online certification encouraged professionals in learning new skills. The induction of the option of online classes helped in changing the dynamics of certification industry with the option of taking lectures whenever they want and wherever they want. One can easily get the certification by simply visiting and enrolling in the website of concerned certification providing institute. All of the processes are entirely virtual especially lectures, quizzes, exams, learning materials, all are being provided online that can be easily obtained.
The field of human resources is changing rapidly with the influx of new research in almost every aspect. Majority of professionals working in the low tier economies tend to attract less to the newly published research and focus more on their conventional job resulting in slow and steady growth. The reason why the economies of USA and UK are well ahead of the African and South Asian economies is that their professionals are highly skilled because they adapt to the latest researches and trends frequently as compared to the other countries.
The cost of getting the certification in the field of human resources vary according to the level of the person, such as junior, middle, and senior level courses. The courses are designed specifically to cater the current skills need and are being updated instantly. The cost of getting a certification is very affordable as such it boosts the current skill set of a person and covers up the cost within a short period of time. There are lots of certification opportunities in human resources which is the reason behind the rapid growth of the human resources field.
One can easily distinguish the pros of human resources certification by researching the current market needs. With
the induction of new ways, human resources department is more advanced than
ever before. In the coming years, there will be much greater need for every
human resource professional to be aware of the IT and its practical application
of advanced level because with the innovation in the technology sector there
are many applications and software that are being introduced in the human
resource field. The induction of artificial intelligence will shift the entire
dynamics of the human resource industry by reducing the human workforce
significantly and be more efficient. In order to efficiently operate the modern
systems, professional will more likely to shift their focus on getting
certification in the field of IT as well. But there will also be a process of
upgrading the human resources certification syllabus as it will help integrate
both fields human resources management and technology.
Although, MBA in human resources department is a
good choice to go but it somehow limits the person to only human resources
management domain. If any person who does not have a Master’s degree in human
resources management but in other field ever find it challenging to adapt the
change in work methods can easily get certification in human resources
management and overcome his/her work problems and would eventually increase the
performance significantly.
The evolving news of fake certification
institutes is a cause of concern for this potential field because it somehow
affects the credibility and discourages people. However, there are bodies that
oversee and verify the authenticity of certificates providing institutes and
help in indicating the fraudulent institutes and sites. These illicit activity
majorities exist on the internet because from there, it is easy to manipulate
people. The best way to avoid getting certification from the fake certification
awarding mills is to verify the credibility through checking the affiliation
and thoroughly researching it.
The business schools in many countries also
offer certifications and are the most reliable way of getting the
certification. Human resources management field will definitely improve in
every way day by day and with it the need of getting a formal degree or
certification will be increased but if one will compare both options then
he/she can easily see the difference as such the time, convenience, and cost
will be the major factor in taking the decision.
It is better to grab the opportunity when it
arises anywhere rather than wait for it to come directly to your door step.
Human resources certification is the best and more convenient way for the
professionals to get as it is far effective and lesser in overall costs.