Year-to-year demand for IBM software certification has surged because certifications help the industry locate and hire top software developers by creating an industry-leading method of building and validating skills.
Under the new programme, students will be offered access to online exams. It will help increase the number of qualified, skilled software developers available to meet a growing opportunity for software innovation worldwide.
For a discounted rate of US $30, students at universities across these four countries now have access to 25 web-based exams covering IBM's rational software delivery portfolio, IBM said.
According to the company, 22 different certifications are available in emerging technology job areas such as architecture management, change and release management, process and portfolio management, and quality management.
IBM further said that this discounted certification testing will be offered to students worldwide starting in the second half of 2008.
“By expanding this programme to the region, we are developing a loyal community of highly skilled certified professionals who continue to innovate around open standards and collaborative technologies,” IBM's ISV and Developer Relations General Manager Jim Corgel said.
Informing an increase of five per cent in the number of certifications in India and China, the company said that interest for certifications in Vietnam and Singapore is expected to rise at a similar pace.
The new programme will help students to learn the latest in industry-leading software engineering techniques, tools and the software development process, besides enriching their engineering experiences by promoting their practical skills.
It offers convenient testing and complements the existing test centre network available through Prometric Prime system, which delivers certification testing for 19 different IBM software and hardware products.
The company said that these exams are administered by its proctors at a participating university's computer lab or on the company-supplied computers at a designated testing site.
The proctors ensure that tests are successfully taken via the Prometric Prime system in a secure and closed-book environment, the company added.
