How many software engineering professionals hold this certificate?

TL;DR

This paper estimates the number of software engineering certificates issued over a decade, revealing insights into their actual value and the maturity of the profession based on certification trends.

Contribution

It provides the first quantitative analysis of software engineering certification issuance over ten years, challenging assumptions about the profession's maturity.

Findings

Certificates issued are fewer than expected, indicating limited adoption.

The value of certificates may be greater than their issuance suggests.

Certification trends reflect on the professional maturity of software engineering.

Abstract

Estimates of quantity of the certificates issued during 10 years of existence of the professionals certification program in the area of software engineering implemented by one of the leading professional associations are presented. The estimates have been obtained by way of processing certificate records openly accessible at the certification program web-site. Comparison of these estimates and the known facts about evolution of the certification program indicates that as of the present day this evolution has not led to a large scale issuance of these certificates. But the same estimates, possibly, indicate that the meaning of these certificates differs from what is usually highlighted, and their real value is much greater. Also these estimates can be viewed, besides everything else, as reflecting an outcome of a decade long experimental verification of the known idea about "software engineering as a mature engineering profession," and they possibly show that this idea deserves partial revision.