You can have all the degrees and certifications in the world, but if you have no understanding of the industry you are going onto. what good is that? Granted it can be in the IT or IS department of a company, that makes no difference. If you go into the automobile or other heavy industry and you have no idea how anything works, how can you develop or support systems that are for that environment? Sure you have a CS degree or citification, but it will not help you make a connection between the database and the special PLC device that collects data from a CNC metal stamping flex-cell.

BTW, having a stack of Microsoft certifications does not make much difference if you walk into a Linux shop or are asked to be the DBA for an ORACLE Manufacturing application. So what I am getting at is that you need to have a well rounded experience, education , and perhaps certification mix to really stand out.