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You might want to check out the Unix module to the SAGE certification. The cert was put together by sysadmins, and the junior level test is a good overview of the skills you'd need.

I'd recommend studying instead for an exam that focuses on systems administration ability rather than memorization of command switches. Look at programs like the SAGE Certification program, which are designed to test a candidate's ability to run systems, rather than their ability to pass tests.

Another method that works well is printing it out and posting it on your cube wall so people walking by your cube can see it.

Another method that can work is by becoming a certified SAGE SA (see http://www.sagecert.org/) . One of the requirements of the cSAGE certification is to have read the code of ethics. Note, that does not mean one has to follow it, but one does need to have read it. The more cSAGE certified SAs on your team, the more your management will be aware of the certification, and the more reasonable the idea of a code of ethics will become.

As a senior SA in the team I work for, I made it clear to all the other people in my team that I expect them to be aware of the SAGE code of ethics. Again, I am not saying that they have to follow it, because I am not their supervisor. But it raises the awareness of the code of ethics.

As for making people more aware of SAGE itself, one excellent method is by showing up at SAGE local groups that are in your area. Make sure your manager knows what you are doing. Even if you are on call, frequently a deal can be worked out that someone else will cover for you while you are attending that meeting. Make sure to let your manager know that it is more than a social club, discuss some of the ideas that come up in the meetings. That way, your manager gets some constant reminders about SAGE itself, and some of the advantages that exist for it.

the SAGE junior-to-mid-level systems administrator cert, cSAGE.

SAGE, the Systems Administrators Guild has a junior-to-mid-level professional certification for systems administrators now, called cSAGE.

Unlike vendor/product certifications, this cert is designed to assess your ability to perform in an IT role -- namely, systems administrator -- rather than your ability to memorize features and functions of a particular product. It tests troubleshooting skill, background knowledge of process and procedure, and general junior-to-mid-level sysadmin proficiency, both in general and specific to Unix (they're working on a Windows module and several other, higher-level "merit badge" modules).

Definitely go to college and get a bachelor's. The subject doesn't matter. The important thing is that you learn how to think critically, and that you learn how to learn. THAT is the true purpose of a college education.

Beyond that, find a senior-level admin who will mentor you (the SAGE organization has a mentoring program). Get a professional, not a vendor, certification (SAGE also offers a professional certification program).

• Medicine is a field which requires certification. Writing code is not a profession in that sense. There is no body analagous to the American Medical Association or the IEEE that regulates best practices, standards,ethics. There is no journal of the American Coders Association
• Certification is a tricky business for technical, rapidly changing fields; any sysadmin aware of the SAGE Certification program should know about the long, hard road to determining what makes a certified sysadmin.
• Most coders don't even participate in the Association for Computer Machinery, the first computer professional organization.
• The low barriers to entry for coders make regualtion damn near impossible. It's a lot like the repeated attempts to unionize sex workers: there's always another eighteen year old waiting in the wings to take the work and do a miserable job. I have way more respect for the average sex worker than coders - competetion makes them good at what they do. Most coders get paid either way. But that's a different rant.
• Who determines the public good? This is ostensibly the work of the government, but occasionally falls to non-governmental organizations like the AMA. This is not a job for the self-righteous /. community. Is spyware harmful? I think so, but most people either aren't aware or are indifferent. This isn't a technocracy, which despite what some readers might think is a good thing - technical people can't govern any better than anyone else, and frequently do worse.

• Nice idea, but you can't get there from here.

  Some days it's horribly obvious that too many /. readers really don't know any serious computer professionals. These aren't new issues, but they've never been brought to the attention of this community.

How can this article ignore two of the most important certifications on the market right now, LPI and cSAGE??

They're both platform-independent, they're both psychometrically valid, and they're both of paramount importance to anyone looking to run computer infrastructures that include *nix systems.

cSAGE is an entry-level exam designed to certify competence in the practice of systems administration, and it was developed by the community, just like LPI (in cSAGE's case, it was developed by the community of systems administrators and the folks at USENIX and SAGE - The Systems Administrators Guild.

Isn't everyone tired of taking exams designed to test your ability to memorize trivia about a vendor's products? Why would you want yet another certification just because vendor $FOO has cranked out a new version of their widget? Wouldn't you rather have certifications that are designed to qualify your ability to do your job, rather than your ability to memorize?

That's exactly what cSAGE is all about.

How can this article ignore two of the most important certifications on the market right now, LPI and cSAGE??

They're both platform-independent, they're both psychometrically valid, and they're both of paramount importance to anyone looking to run computer infrastructures that include *nix systems.

cSAGE is an entry-level exam designed to certify competence in the practice of systems administration, and it was developed by the community, just like LPI (in cSAGE's case, it was developed by the community of systems administrators and the folks at USENIX and SAGE - The Systems Administrators Guild.

Isn't everyone tired of taking exams designed to test your ability to memorize trivia about a vendor's products? Why would you want yet another certification just because vendor $FOO has cranked out a new version of their widget? Wouldn't you rather have certifications that are designed to qualify your ability to do your job, rather than your ability to memorize?

That's exactly what cSAGE is all about.

SAGE runs a sysadmin certification program.
It's still in early days, but the idea was to set up a non-vendor dependant certification program.