A Message from Rulei Ting
Communications Certification, Chair

As the first half of 2012 is behind us, I very much want to thank you all for your continued interest  and support of the WCET Certification program and ComSoc Training. As we progress into the second half of the year, we look forward to yet another testing window for the WCET Certification exam opening on 23 September and running through 27 October 2012. Applications to take the exam during this time must be received by 7 September.

If you earned the Wireless Communication Professional (WCP) credential in 2008, you will be pleased to know that recertification information is now available. If you wish to keep your WCP designation current and you like keeping the IEEE and those three letters (WCP) by your name on your business card, you will need to recertify by the end of 2013. It's never too early to figure out which way you'd like to maintain your credential. There are two options: 1.) by retaking the exam or 2.) earning Professional Development Units(PDUs) through contributions to the profession and/or personal professional development. Gathering the records for the PDUs you've earned may take some time. It's never too early to have some basic understanding of what kinds of activities qualify when we talk about PDUs and "contributions to the profession" or "professional development" activities.

If you are not familiar with the WCET Certification Exam I urge you to request a copy of the Candidate's Handbook which gives you some background on why the exam was created and what the benefits of getting certified are; as well as details such as, eligibility, application details (costs, deadlines, testing center locations, etc.), how to prepare and understand exactly what is tested on the exam, in addition to resources available to you.

The second edition of the WEBOK is scheduled to be available this August from Wiley. There is a pre-publication offer where you can use code WEBOK to save 32% off the list price. This is valid now through the end of September. This new edition will be included in the course materials for the 5 day course running 17-21 September and can assist you in your preparations to take the WCET exam.

ComSoc Training will continue to offer both in-person and online courses to help you stay current in the wireless field. New courses are in development and we plan on running a 5 day track of in-person sessions at 4G World and a 3 day course at Globecom this year. The programs are in development now and details will be shared with you in the coming weeks. This is exciting for us and we look forward to seeing you at our booths at the shows as well as in the classrooms.

As always, this issue is packed with the latest industry headlines to help you manage your career as well as keep you up to date with upcoming events such as conferences, the August / September training schedule, and helpful reminders.

Happy reading!

  In This Issue:

• ComSoc Training Schedule for August and September
• Get Certified in 2012: WCET Applications Accepted Now Through 7 September
• Upcoming Meetings and Events
• Industry News

 ComSoc Training Schedule for August and September

Introduction to Professional Wireless Communications
6 August 2012 - ONLINE - 9:00am - 4:30pm EDT
Instructor: Lee Vishloff
Price: $300 - non member; $250 IEEE / ComSoc member
Get the full course details.

LTE for the Wireless Engineering Practitioner: Fundamentals and Applications
20 August 2012 - ONLINE - 9:00am - 4:30pm EDT
Instructor: K. Daniel Wong
Price: $300 - non member: $250 IEEE/ComSoc member
Register by 31 July and save $25!
Watch a preview of this course.
Review the course description.

Wireless Communications Engineering - Current Practice
6 September 2012 - ONLINE - 9:00am - 4:30pm EDT
Instructor: Jonathan Levine
Price: $300 - non member; $250 IEEE/ComSoc member
Register by 10 August and save $25!
Learn more.

5 Day Wireless Communications Egineering: Intermediate Fundamentals Review & Current Practices
17-21 September 2012 - 4 hours a day - 9:00am - 11:00am EDT
then again from 1:00pm - 3:00pm EDT - Online (20 hours of instruction)
Instructors: Lee Vishloff and K. Daniel Wong
Price: $725 - non member; $625 IEEE/ComSoc member
A copy of the 2nd edition of the WEBOK is included with the course materials.
Register by 17 August and save $100.

2 for 1 Deal: September VIrtual 5 Day Training PLUS Fall 2012 WCET Exam Seat
This money-saving special offer provides you with access to a free practice exam, a seat in the 5 day training taking place 17-21 September and a seat for the Fall 2012 WCET Certification Exam. You also get a copy of the 2nd edition of the WEBOK included with your course materials for the 5 day course.
Price: $1100 - non member; $950 IEEE/ComSoc member
Learn more.

 Get Certified in 2012: 
 Submit your WCET Application Now Through 7 September

Now is a great time to understand if you are ready to get certified in wireless by IEEE. Review a list of 10 steps to make the determination if completing an application is right for you. Applications are being accepted now through 7 September and you will be able to schedule your exam on a date between 23 September and 27 October 2012 at a local testing center. Learn more about IEEE WCET Certification at www.ieee-wcet.org.

 Upcoming Meetings and Events

International Confernece on Telecommunicaitions & Multimedia
30 July - 1 August 2012
Heraklion, Crete, Greece

2012 IEEE International Conference on Communications in China
15-18 August 2012
Beijing, China

The 9th International Symposium on Wireless Communications Systems
28-31 August 2012
Paris, France

 Industry News

Wireless Industry Faces Shortage of Skilled Workers
There aren't enough technically skilled workers to fill the needs of the wireless industry, according to the Society for Human Resources Management. But even with the high level of demand, the association says salaries in the industry remain flat as companies appear to be investing in R&D rather than employee pay. [RCR Wireless]

WLAN 802.11ac Webinar Coming July 24
A webinar on the IEEE 802.11ac standard will be held on Tuesday, July 24 at 3pm GMT. Hosted by Frank-Werner Thuemmler and Michael Simon from Rohde & Schwarz, the webinar will cover the basics of the standard as well as test solutions and typical transmitter tests. [EE Times]

Nokia Cutting 10,000 Jobs
Facing stiff competition and a need to cut nearly $3 billion in operating expenses, Nokia announced it will cut 20% of its workforce -- about 10,000 jobs -- by the end of 2013. It has already replaced several of its marketing executives. The company said it plans to close two of its facilities in Germany and Canada. [Gizmodo]

T-Mobile USA CEO Moves to Vodafone
Philipp Humm, CEO of T-Mobile USA, has stepped down and will become Vodafone's CEO of Northern and Central European Operations on October 1. Current T-Mobile COO Jim Alling will serve as interim CEO. [The Guardian]

Five-Part Course on Wireless Testing Available Online
Digi-Key recently presented a five-part online course on testing wireless devices and systems. All five parts are archived online. An additional five-part introduction to electronics course will be held July 23-27. [Design News]

Mergers & Acquisitions up in 2012
M&A activity in the mobile and online markets was up 3% in the first half of 2012 compared to the second half of 2011, according to research firm Berkery Noyes, which tracked 970 reported transactions valued at $34.12 billion. [RCR Wireless]

M1 & StarHub to Launch LTE in Singapore
Singapore will soon get two more LTE service providers. M1 says it will launch service in the third quarter of 2012. The company already provides data-only LTE service for business users. StarHub previously announced that it will also offer LTE sometime in the second half of this year. [CNET Asia]

Wireless History Foundation Honors Four Hall of Fame Inductees
Industry pioneers Wayne Perry, Richard Lynch, Raj Singh and the late Amos Joel will be inducted into the Wireless Hall of Fame, the Wireless History Foundation announced. An induction ceremony will be held this October in San Diego. [Yahoo Finance]

CEA Releases Wireless Charging Standard
The Consumer Electronics announced five new standards in July, including CEA-2042.1-A, "Wireless Power Glossary of Terms," which defines the terminology used in wireless charging systems. [CEA]

Oman to Get Nationwide 4G LTE
Omantel will extend its growing LTE network from 50 sites to an additional 200 locations within a year. The company is 70% owned by the Sultanate of Oman. [Oman Tribune]

Research In Motion Considers Major Job Cuts
First-quarter income for Research In Motion was $2.8 billion, down 33 percent from the previous quarter. The company says it is considering several cost-cutting initiatives, including the possibility of cutting as many as 5,000 jobs by the end of its 2013 fiscal year. [Mobility TechZone]

Cable and Wireless Panama Enlists Gilat for Nationwide Broadband Rollout
Cable and Wireless Panama has chosen its long-term partner Gilat Satellite Networks to build a nationwide broadband network using Gilat's Sky-Edge II products. [Space Daily]

Dish Chairman Says Broadband Wireless Spectrum Could Create Thousands of Jobs
Allowing the distribution of video and high-speed Internet to mobile subscribers over the broadband wireless spectrum would create "tens of thousands of new jobs," according to Dish Network chairman Charlie Ergen, who testified in front of the U.S. House Energy & Commerce Subcommittee on Communications and Technology in June. [Fierce Cable]

Zynga to Hire Engineers in China
Zynga's subsidiary in China will hire an unspecified number of new engineers as it shifts to creating mobile games for smartphones and tablets. The company has had several recent successes in that market. [Bloomberg]

Tablets & Smartphones Soar, PC Shipments Flat -- For Now
Worldwide shipments of new PCs dropped slightly (-0.1%) to 87.5 million units in the second quarter of 2012, according to research firms Gartner and IDC. But sales of mobile devices, especially tablets, are soaring as customers buy them to supplement -- not replace -- their desktop computers. But the firms say the pending release of Windows 8 this October could create major shifts in the market. [Tech News World]