The Harsh Truth of Free Certificates Era
I realized something late... There are 100s of free certificates out there, but guess what? Most people finish them without even learning anything. Watch videos in 2x speed, skip through, use ChatGPT for answers, click submit ✅, grab the certificate, and post on LinkedIn like "Proud to complete this verified course." But deep down... zero learning, zero effort.
And funny part? HR still asks — "Do you have certificates for this skill?" Me: "I actually know the skill." HR: "Sorry, rejected." ❌
This certificate craze feels like collecting Pokémon cards now. But what’s the point when you can’t even apply the knowledge in real life?
I felt this culture was toxic. So instead... I focused on building projects. 2 for MERN Stack, 2 for Machine Learning, 1 for SQL — real, hands-on projects. AWS? Only conceptual, still on my list.
Anyone else feels the same? Or am I the only one skipping this fake certificate race? 😭💭
Talking product sense with Ridhi
9 min AI interview5 questions
A JD that mentions certification required for (at least some of) the roles is a huge red flag. It's also a sign of them indirectly admitting that they have no clue what the role does on a daily basis. These are openings where the hiring manager has no deep expertise or understanding of your role either. If you attend the interview you'll be able to notice that the hiring manager asks very superficial questions and will nod their head to whatever BS you answer with confidence.
Certificates are a useless piece of paper. I would go to the extent and say, even college degree is worth only for five years. After 10 yrs , it's not worth the paper in which it's printed.