Let’s begin by answering the question. No, you don’t need a certification to get a job as a business analyst. There are many thriving business analysts with no recognized certifications in that line. You may also have met many “certified” business analysts, sometimes with numerous additional letters behind their names on professional forums such as LinkedIn, who are unemployed.
It is my philosophy that actual knowledge should never be sacrificed for mere certifications. As an employer myself, I would not hire you even if you have a ton of certifications but lack actual knowledge that makes you relevant to the role.
But yes, certification can be very good for you and may contribute towards getting you your dream job.
First, you need to understand that business analysis is a relatively recent field, and has mostly become popular due to the growth of information technology in the past decades. This might explain why you are unlikely to find university-level diplomas, such as bachelors or masters degrees, that focus exclusively on business analysis. You will more readily come across such offerings for related fields like business analytics, information systems, etc.
This implies that there is a gap. For most people, this gap is filled by attending short-term training programs and eventually gaining work experience.
And this is where certifications come in, and why they are so important. How do employers determine who has gained enough knowledge to get started in the path, or to advance to a certain professional level?
Getting certified implies (for most people anyway) that you have gained knowledge in specific areas and have reached a level of competence. The knowledge may have come through attending some training program, which is often the case, or self-study. It’s a quick badge that tells employers what you know (or are supposed to know). It also tells them that you have at least a certain level of breadth as certifications are generally designed to test your understanding of a range of areas, some of which you would not have paid attention to if you did not have to write a certification exam.
The result of all this is that when you apply for many business analysis jobs, you would notice that they may mention that having a relevant certification may provide you an edge.
In summary, in a world where there are many applicants, it helps to have an additional reason to be the favoured choice.
