Confused about CQE certification

[awan_raza]

Listen to Tidge.

Your professional experience is valuable, but as Tidge pointed out the "gatekeeper" might be simply looking for x years of experience - look at the advertisements. Their language reveals what they expect in a new hire. It is unusual to find employers stray from that among applicants they intake in the usual way, that is answering advertisements. If you have ASQ groups who meet in your area, you can potentially meet professionals there and network your way into a role. I have never succeeded at this though, even when the QA Manager I was trying to network with was in my own organization and already knew me. Clearly he didn't think as much of me as he did the person he moved into the role I was coveting. It must have been my magnetic personality. I eventually moved on out of that employer, as I have always done.

Your years of experience should, indeed help you to take the exam because there are time-in-industry requirements for each.

I passed all of my exams via self study which focused on the Handbooks, select additional references and purchased test question banks. I used the test question banks to look up the answers because I find myself absorbing more that way than simply reading the handbook like a novel. It is just my learning style, yours may differ.

Thanks for your response, you have been very helpful. Cheers

 

[Randy]

Cut to the chase........

What do you, you yourself, have to offer as a Quality Engineer that someone else might not have? There's got to something that is so unique and uncommon that it could possibly escape matching.

What makes you the special catch? (don't fall back on the Masters, I can purchase you another online for a few $$$)

You are a commodity on a grocery store shelf (let's say can of tomato soup) along many others just like you except for the design of the label, actual contents, and seasonings. For what single reason do I take your brand and not the brand either side of you? (all of you are is a can of tomato soup).

As for me, I've got tons years, decades actually in the quality arena, I've done it, I've taught it and I've audited it (oh yeah, if I hadn't done it correctly, no if's and's or but's people could or would have been killed including me........I did serious, serious quality). I'm also marginally educated with a Masters myself and a good deal of pre-doctorate credit/work, but not in engineering. And as 1 or 2 others in here might be able say I kind of understand the process. With all that and much more, I don't feel qualified nor do I feel I truly have the necessary competencies to be an effective Quality Engineer.

Again, you're a can of soup, entice me to purchase.

 

[hogheavenfarm]

great analogy Randy, I will have to remember that one...

 

[Mike S.]

My question is, if I obtain the ASQ CQE certification, will it help me break into the UK job market as a Quality Engineer?

I think it would help you to perhaps stand out in a field of entry level (low or no experience) candidates. CQE is a tough certification. Like all certifications, it doesn't guarantee success on the job, but I've had better experiences with CQE's in the QE or QM position than I have with Ph.D.'s, FWIW.

Good luck.

 

[Tidge]

Like all certifications, it doesn't guarantee success on the job, but I've had better experiences with CQE's in the QE or QM position than I have with Ph.D.'s, FWIW.

I'm reminded of the PhD I know who casually signed up for the CQE exam, and failed to pass on first taking (no preparation) and second taking (minimal prep, that I'm not sure involved reviewing the BoK). At this point they stopped trying to attain certification.

The most disappointing employment-related character trait of this individual was that there was a deeply held belief (fundamental to the personality really) that the answer to whatever problem must have been already discovered and recorded somewhere... if only they could find it. It is hard to describe how professionally frustrating it was to work with (an otherwise pleasant) engineer who not only was allergic to trying to tackle a problem from "first principles", but would actively ignore "fresh" analysis of issues and potential solutions because they couldn't find references to them in past records. Months would go by on many problems and the response always was "I can't find this in the existing records, I need more time to look, and besides... I'm busy."

At one level, I can forgive the engineer (and my own disappointment) because the Engineering Management of that department was even less qualified to handle development and problem solving. Their response to these (what should have been "unacceptable") delays was always: "Those are my Engineers, if they say it is a hard problem... then any other analysis is certainly wrong and get back in your lane."

 

[qualitymanagerTT]

However, I haven't received any responses from recruiters, possibly because my resume doesn’t list a Quality Engineer title. My question is, if I obtain the ASQ CQE certification, will it help me break into the UK job market as a Quality Engineer?

I'm not familiar with vacancy notices in the UK for Quality Engineers - do many of them require ASQ CQE, or is there a CQI or other UK equivalent which vacancy notices require?

 

[Jen Kirley]

I think it would help you to perhaps stand out in a field of entry level (low or no experience) candidates. CQE is a tough certification. Like all certifications, it doesn't guarantee success on the job, but I've had better experiences with CQE's in the QE or QM position than I have with Ph.D.'s, FWIW.

Good luck.

It has been many years since I took the CQE exam and it has changed since then (when I took it the exam was rather heavily focused on statistics), but I can vouch that is a high reach for the first ASQ certification exam. So do the right thing and invest the time to study the materials; after all, the exam is not cheap. I knew a statistics PhD who took the exam back then and reported "I got spanked!" afterward because he didn't study.

My point is, @awan_raza, you are considering entering a new field. So treat is as such. Even with a certificate I would not expect a highly placed position unless it is with a small company. Even after passing the exam, doing is different than reading about it so there will be challenges to apply the disciplines. This is not manufacturing engineering. I don't know our your age, but I know it pays to be patient.