The C programming language has been leading the programming scene from the front lines ever since its birth at Bell Labs in 1972. The programming language has come a long way from its humble beginnings as a simple tool for developing utilities capable of running on the Unix platform. Today, it has a range of applications, varying from gaming and software development to avionics and space research.
Throughout its run of almost five decades, the general-purpose, procedural programming language has continually influenced, directly and indirectly, programming languages. Some notable examples include C#, Go, Java, Perl, PHP, and Python.
Despite the C programming language being so old, it is still growing strong. How can we say that? Well, check out this list of the best programming languages to learn and earn in 2024, and you will see C, along with C++, in it. In short, going with C is definitely, a great idea.
Why C Certification?
Once you’ve started learning C, it’s time to get your feet wet in the enigmatic and innovative waters of programming. But how to start? One way is to get certified for using the C programming language.
There are numerous C certifications available as of now. While some are popular among the masses, others aren’t. Moreover, different certifications ensure different levels of C programming prowess. So, you need to choose one that best matches your skillset.
3 Best C Certification Program
To help you opt for the best C certification, we have shortlisted 3 of the best ones in this article. You can check out the level of the certification to check whether it is the best one for you or not. Without any further ado, here they are:
1. CLE – C Certified Entry-Level Programmer Certification
Level – Entry-level
Platform – C++ Institute
The CLE – C Certified Entry-Level Programmer certification is exactly what it states. It is intended for someone looking to start their career in C programming, low- and middle-level programming, software development, and related technologies.
An interim step to the CLA – C Certified Associate Programmer certification, the CLE certification assures that the holder is:
- Capable in writing and debugging simple C programs using the standard language infrastructure
- Conversant with data types, typecasting, conditional statements, memory management, functions, runtime environment, and other universal programming concepts and developer tools
- Familiar with the fundamentals of the C programming language, such as semantics and syntax
Important Topics:
- Installing and setting up the C compiler
- Introduction to IDEs
- Arrays and pointers
- Basic data types, operations, and flow control statements
- Basics of functions
- Computer logic
- Memory management
- String basics
- The compilation process
- Advanced operations on arrays and pointers
Exam Details:
Name – CLE – C Certified Entry-Level Programmer
Code – CLE-10-01
Duration – 45 minutes for the examination + 5 minutes for the non-disclosure agreement/tutorial
Language(s) – English
Passing Percentage – 70%
Prerequisites – None
Price – $59
Questions Type – Single-choice questions, multiple-choice questions, fill in the blanks, drag & drop
Total Questions – 30
You can signup here.
2. CLA – C Programming Language Certified Associate Certification (CLA – C Certified Associate Programmer Certification)
Level – Intermediate-level
Platform – C++ Institute
The CLA certificate is a professional C certification that gauges a candidate’s ability to accomplish various coding tasks and write programs in C while leveraging basic programming techniques, library functions, the C preprocessor, and related technologies.
A CLA certified candidate:
- Have a robust understanding of the universal concepts of computer programming and developer tools
- Is well-versed into the data types, syntax, and semantics of the C programming language
- Writes C programs using the standard language infrastructure, independently of the hardware or software platform in use
Important Topics:
- Introduction to compilation and software development
- Arrays, pointers, and structures
- Basic scalar data types and their operators
- Files and streams
- Flow control
- Memory management
- Preprocessor directives and complex declarations
- Structuring the code/functions and modules
Exam Details:
Name – CLA – C Programming Language Certified Associate (CLA – C Certified Associate Programmer)
Code – CLA-11-02
Duration – 65 minutes for the exam + 10 minutes for the non-disclosure agreement/tutorial
Language(s) – English
Passing Percentage – 70%
Pre-requisites – None
Price – $295
Questions Type – Single-choice, multiple-choice
Total Questions – 55
You can signup here.
3. CLP – C Certified Professional Programmer Certification
Level – Expert-level
Platform – C++ Institute
The CLP – C Certified Professional Programmer Certification is the highest C certification offered by the C++ Institute. It is intended for professionals with several years of expertise in C and can work with its advanced features.
A CLP certified candidate can:
- Use advanced library and features of the C programming language
- Identify bugs, errors, and bottlenecks in C programs
- Work with advanced data structures
- Solve non-trivial problems using algorithms and data structures
- Design and write programs using the standard C language infrastructure, independent of the hardware of software platform in use
Important Topics:
- Evolution of C/Newer versions of C
- Basics of network sockets
- Constant variables vs. volatile variables
- Handling a variable number of parameters
- Internationalization i18n
- Memory management
- Portability issues and undefined behaviors
- Processes and threads
- Strings
- Working with integers and floats
Exam Details:
Name – CLP – C Certified Professional Programmer
Code – CLP-12-01
Duration – 65 minutes for the exam + 10 minutes for the non-disclosure agreement/tutorial
Language(s) – English
Passing Percentage – 70%
Pre-requisites – CLA – C Programming Language Certified Associate
Price – $295
Questions Type – Single-choice, multiple-choice questions
Total Questions – 55
You can signup here.
5 Best C Tutorials & Courses
Although the best C certifications come with a good range of study material, you can always reach out to other ways of preparing for the certification exam. One such method is online tutorials and courses. Here are 5 of the best C tutorial and courses that will help you prepare for your C certification exam:
1. Programming in C - The Complete Course
For – Beginners
Platform – Udemy
Duration – 11 hours
Type – a Video course
Put together by Anand Mahajan, an experienced teacher with over two decades of experience in teaching programming, and offered by Udemy, the Programming in C - The Complete Course is one of the best Udemy courses, in particular, and best C course, in general, to build a good grasp over the fundamentals of the C programming language.
Although no programming experience is required to take on the Programming in C - The Complete Course, having the ability to handle basic computer operations serves as an extra push in the positive direction of learning from it.
All the learning material is packed in 108 video lectures that have a total run time of about 11 hours. To enhance the learning experience, the course comes with 114 downloadable resources. As with any Udemy course, lifetime access, and mobile and TV access are available.
Topics covered:
- Basic programming concepts
- Arrays and programming
- C operators (Operators supported by the C programming language)
- Character set, data types, I/O library functions, and tokens
- Command-line arguments
- File handling
- Functions
- Graphics programming in C
- Iteration construct (Looping)
- The lifecycle of a program
- Pointers
- Recursion
- Sequence construct, if statement programming constructs, and switch-case construct
- Storage classes in C
- Strings in C
- Structure of a C program
- Structures
- Unions
You can signup here.
2. Writing, Running, and Fixing Code in C
For – Beginners
Platform – Coursera
Duration – 4 weeks/31+ hours (flexible)
Type – a Video course
The Writing, Running, and Fixing Code in C course ready learners to get down and get started with writing C code. Aside from learning how to compile and run a C program, students also get to know how they can look for errors in their applications and fix the same.
Offered by Duke University in collaboration with Coursera, the Writing, Running, and Fixing Code in C course provides the flexibility to reset the deadlines as per to a student’s schedule. The entire C course is delivered in video lessons, and subtitles are available in English and Vietnamese.
Andrew D. Hilton, Genevieve M. Lipp, and Anne Bracy are the course instructors. Students can get in touch with them at any time during the course to clear their doubts, discuss a problem, and to gain invaluable advice about C programming.
In addition to video lessons, the C course also features a plethora of reading material. Moreover, quizzes are available at the end of every chapter to let a student assess their learning.
Topics covered:
- Introduction to writing code
- Introduction to the programming environment
- Assembling and linking
- Comparing output with diff
- Compilation process
- Compiler errors
- Compiling with a Makefile
- Editing files with Emacs
- Generating test cases
- Introduction to GitHub
- Macros and header files
- Test-driven development
- Types of testing
You can signup here.
3. The Complete C Developer Course - Build 7 Exciting Projects!
For – Anyone
Platform – Udemy
Duration – 14.5 hours
Type – a Video course
No matter whether you’re a C programmer with decent professional experience or a newbie, The Complete C Developer Course - Build 7 Exciting Projects! The tutorial has something for everyone, irrespective of the C skill level.
Learn how to build C programs for Linux, macOS, and Windows platforms with The Complete C Developer Course. The C course is curated by Prashant Shinde, a C & C++ developer, ethical hacker, and computer geek.
The C course helps in building a robust mastery over the C programming language by allowing the learners to construct multiple, real-world projects that vary from beginner to intermediate and expert levels of proficiency.
The Complete C Developer Course - Build 7 Exciting Projects! Features 316 video lectures that you can traverse as per your liking. The 14.5-hour-long C video course features 168 articles and 21 downloadable resources for an enhanced learning experience.
Topics covered:
- History, features, and applications of the C programming language
- Algorithms and flowcharts in C
- Arrays and pointers
- Bit-level programming
- Command-line arguments
- Compilation and execution processes
- Date & time programming
- Data types and character set
- Decision making and branching
- Dynamic memory allocation
- Error handling and debugging in C
- File handling
- Functions
- Graphics programming
- Hierarchy and associativity of operators
- Installing CodeBlocks, DEV C++, and Turbo C++ compilers
- Keyboard programming
- Loop control structure
- Mouse programing
- Preprocessor directives
- Sound programming
- Storage classes
- String handling
- Structure and union
- Construction of a C program
You can signup here.
4. Introduction to Programming in C Specialization
For – Beginners
Platform – Coursera
Duration – 4 months (flexible)
Type – Specialization
Coursera offers the Introduction to Programming in C Specialization course in association with Duke University. Although it is an excellent online course to get started with software development, C certification pursuers can also use this course to prepare for their C certification exams.
The C specialization helps a learner to:
- Develop a robust understanding of the programming fundamentals, and
- Solve complex, real-world problems by writing computer programs
Other than English, the C specialization is also available in Vietnamese. Learners can flexibly set and maintain deadlines. At a 10-hour workweek, the Introduction to Programming in C specialization requires about four months to complete. The C course has four instructors:
- Andrew D. Hilton – Associate Professor of the Practice/Electrical and Computer Engineering
- Genevieve M. Lipp – Assistant Professor of the Practice/Electrical and Computer Engineering and Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science
- Anne Bract – Senior Lecturer/Computer Science, Cornell University
- Liz Wendland
Students can contact the course instructors for immediate help, wrapping their heads around the learning material any time they feel like.
Courses covered:
- Programming Fundamentals
- The Seven Steps process of problem-solving
- Developing algorithms
- Reading and understanding code
- How programming concepts relate to algorithms
- Writing, Running, and Fixing Code in C
- Writing code based on what the program should do
- How to compile and run a program
- Framework for systematically testing problems and fixing the same
- Pointers, Arrays, and Recursion
- Pointers and arrays
- Recursive functions
- Interacting with the System and Managing Memory
- New programming techniques for interacting with the user and the system
- Dynamic memory allocation
- File handling
You can signup here.
5. The C Bible: Complete C class with C++
For – Anyone
Platform – Udemy
Duration – 8 hours and 10 minutes
Type – a Video course
The C Bible: Complete C course with C++ prepares learners to start developing their programs in both the C and the C++ programming languages. The C course is delivered in 89 video lecturers that run for a decent 8 hours, 9 minutes, and 49 seconds.
There are no pre-requisites for taking on The C Bible: Complete C course with C++ tutorial. No previous programming exposure is needed. The online course is ideal for anyone looking, to begin with, C and C++, in particular, or programming languages, in general.
Post the successful completion of the course; a learner can:
- Write programs in C and C++
- Understand any application written in C and C++
- Work with the object-oriented concepts
- Start with their projects involving C, C++, and related technologies
The C Bible course is compiled by Rahul Sohdey, a programmer, software engineer, and full-stack developer with 8+ years of working experience. The direction by Rahul not only delivers the fundamentals of C and C++ but also the advanced concepts about the popular programming languages.
Topics covered:
C Programming:
- Installing code blocks
- Variables & arithmetic operators
- Comments and newline escape sequence
- The pow() function
- Type conversion
- Operator precedence
- The if, if-else, nested if-else, and switch statements
- Testing with relational operators
- Operators
- Looping (for loop, while loop, do-while loop, nested loops, and infinite loops)
- Break, continue, and GOTO statements
- Scope in C
- Functions; call by method, call by reference
- Arrays and pointers
- Strings in C
- Structures and unions
- Recursion in C
- Typecasting in C
- Parametrized and predefined macros
- Running C programs on Linux
C++ Programming:
- Introduction to object-oriented programming
- Arithmetic and logical operators
- Comments, identifiers, and whitespace
- Data types
- Escape sequences
- Scope of variables
- Structure of a C++ program
You can signup here.
Summary
That finishes our list of the three best C certifications. Hopefully, you might have gotten what you were looking for. If not, let us know via the comments.
You can also share your views, opinions, remarks, comments, corrections, ideas, etc. via the dedicated comments section below. We’d love to hear from you. If you like the article, please share it with others who might find it useful. Thanks already!
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