If your company is big enough in certain product lines the training is free or very low cost. In the past when I wanted to get certified and my employer was dragging his heels I would find a way to research and learn on my own and show initiative. Many times employers won't have you certified because they expect you will want more money and why should they pay to have you certified and possibly pay you more when you can do the work well, you just don't have a piece of paper for it. It is flawed logic but it happens. Plus many employers don't want to work with a non-compete because they can be hard and costly to enforce, and don't want to train an employee for a competitors' benefit.

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